Thirteen stores. Approximately 56 employees. One retail network preparing to shut its doors. 

VOLCANO eCigs plans to permanently close its Hawaii retail operations on December 31, 2026. Its employer, Jocor Enterprises LLC, notified the state on November 4, citing changes in Hawaii’s regulatory environment for electronic smoking products. 

The closure lands one day before new state sales restrictions begin. For adult customers and the people who work in these stores, the consequences of those policies are becoming very real. 

 

What Volcano Has Confirmed 

According to the Hawaii Department of Labor’s closure notice, the shutdown involves 13 retail locations and approximately 56 employees across sales, retail management and human resources. 

Most affected employees are expected to leave on December 31. A small number may remain through January 15, 2027, to help finish closing activities. The layoffs are expected to be permanent. 

The filing identifies regulatory changes as the reason for discontinuing retail operations. It does not provide a product-by-product accounting of what Volcano could continue selling under the new rules. Its confirmed scope is the retail operation; readers should not assume that every other part of the business has also announced a shutdown. 

 

Why Hawaii’s New Directory Matters 

The central change is Act 190, signed by Governor Josh Green on July 7, 2026. 

Under the Attorney General’s implementation notice, manufacturers were required to certify their products beginning October 1, 2026. That certification requires an FDA Marketing Granted Order and compliance with federal and state law. 

Beginning January 1, 2027, only electronic smoking devices and e-liquids listed in Hawaii’s directory may legally be sold in the state. 

An application awaiting FDA review does not meet the stated requirement for a Marketing Granted Order. A retailer also cannot assume that every product from a listed brand qualifies. 

For a specialty vape shop, that distinction can determine whether enough of its inventory remains eligible for sale to sustain the business. Volcano’s filing does not disclose that calculation, but it explicitly connects its decision to the changing regulatory environment. 

 

This Goes Beyond Disposables 

Hawaii also enacted Act 189, restricting disposable electronic smoking devices beginning January 1, 2027. 

There is a detail worth getting right: the state’s FAQ defines the covered devices as non-refillable, with non-rechargeable batteries, and intended for disposal after use. It excludes devices with an FDA Marketing Granted Order. 

That means “disposable” should not be treated as a blanket description of everything this particular ban covers. Rechargeability, however, does not excuse a product from the separate directory requirement. 

The directory applies more broadly to devices and e-liquids. Simply moving a shop’s focus to refillable products does not, by itself, solve the compliance problem. 

 

The State’s Rationale—and the Cost Already Showing Up 

When announcing the laws, the governor’s office emphasized youth protection, federal compliance and environmental concerns involving disposable products, including plastic waste and lithium batteries. 

Those are the state’s stated objectives. Volcano’s closure raises another question: where do adult customers fit into the policy? 

A legal market can become smaller without adult demand disappearing. Removing stores and product choices does not answer how adults who rely on those products will respond. Claims about future smoking rates or illicit purchases would require evidence; the immediate loss of retail jobs is already documented. 

 

Thirteen Stores Are More Than a Policy Talking Point 

Volcano’s decision gives Hawaii’s regulatory changes a concrete human cost: approximately 56 affected employees and 13 closing locations. 

For adult consumers, it also means fewer places to shop and ask questions about vaping products. 

As January approaches, Hawaii’s leaders should be asked how they will measure success beyond products removed from shelves. Adult access, business closures and employment deserve a place in that assessment. 

The stores will close. The adults who shopped there will still need answers.