Chris Wheeler takes us through the ins and outs of what makes Savage
Enterprises one of the most successful businesses in the industry.
Can you introduce yourself and tell us about who you are and what you do?
I am Chris Wheeler the CEO of Savage Enterprises. Savage is a multi-faceted company that does everything from manufacturing, distribution, and retail
in multiple sectors such as Cannabis, CBD, and E-Juice.
How did you guys get into making e-liquid and what is your favorite part about it?
Savage got started in the vape business back in 2013 when we opened our first Brick and Mortar store. Very quickly we realized we were extremely good at making e-liquid and selling it, so we decided to start wholesaling our products to other shops in the area.
How did you get the name Savage, how does it apply to the industry?
I actually get this question a lot. To me being “Savage” is doing whatever it takes to win – doing what others won’t, whatever that means to you. As big as being the best father or mother you can be or as small as building your empire.
But honestly it has been associated with gamer tags and other things and
when we were deciding on a name for our company, I threw that name out and everyone thought it was better than all the other options on the table – lol.
Explain more about the connection/relationship with Savage and Vape100.
Relevancy. Our main goal at Savage is to support our retailers to ultimately
make the end users happy, and to do that we have to listen to the market and
make adjustments accordingly. We have missed the mark a few times, but now that our ear is so close to the market, we saw a huge opportunity with a new brand and new size of e-liquid. Vape100 is a brand exclusively by Savage.
What is your personal favorite flavor to vape from the Savage lines and the Vape100 lines?
First it was Fiji Melons, now my ADV is apple berries from Vape100.
Savage CBD seems to be getting a lot of attention in the CBD industry. What sets Savage CBD apart?
CBD is huge – and it’s another big opportunity to help people through the same and different channels. What we are seeing is a huge boom of attention right now both because the farm bill, but also because people are hedging their
bets from the vape industry. What’s crazy is Savage has been in the
Cannabis market since late 2015, and I think because of that our products are
more trusted to be used. We’ve figured out all the hoops to jump through, we’ve vetted farms and suppliers, we’ve hired chemists and staff that can handle these new products and the challenges. As a company Savage is a consumer driven business – meaning that our main focus is to have the best products that consumers want to use, without that mindset and without consumers your business is dead.
"To me being “Savage” is doing whatever it takes to win – doing what others won’t."
What are your current thoughts on the vape industry and the struggles of having to work with in compliance with FDA.
I think everyone is scared right now, and I think there is a lot of drama and blaming happening. It’s ok to be frightened and scared, I get it and I appreciate where its stemming from – but it’s what you turn that energy into, because Joe down the street is pushing forward with his business so I think it’s important to know what we’re up against and formulate some sort of plan – meaning support advocacy, diversify, invest, file a PMTA, or do nothing – that’s a plan too! But make your plan and stick to it, it’s one thing to sit in negativity but
everyone has the same choice to pull themselves out of it.
As for us, and I have been getting heat for this, but I don’t care – our plan is to file a PMTA. I feel over the years we have gotten more and more successful, so
for us not to at least file is disrespectful. Now the image that people paint Is that it’s “impossible” Or “there’s no clear guidance” – which is close to the truth, but the thing is we have a plan and that plan is to engage with FDA and support advocacy and work on our filing. It’s a gamble it really is but all of us gambled when we started into this industry and look how big it has gotten!
"Sometimes the only way out is through & You only miss 100% of the shots you don’t make.”
Being a worldwide recognized vape brand within the industry what
countries do you visit most or love working with?
We’ve been all over the world and sell all over the world, as of late South America and Canada have been our favorite destinations both for travel and sales. I would say all in all Europe is one of my favorite places to visit.
Besides putting out new Ripe Flavors and Vape100 Collections what does Savage E-liquid have in store for us in the near future?
Stay tuned.
