Early e-commerce setups for vape retailers were chaos. People used generic platforms and tried to patch age checks with a checkbox that said "I am 21+"—which is about as enforceable as a wet paper bag. Payment processors would freeze accounts when they spotted vape-related keywords, and sellers would scramble to hide product names in the URL.

Another common failure: geo-blocking was an afterthought. A store might ship nationwide, but a state like Massachusetts bans flavored vapes. Without the ability to restrict product visibility by location, the store was technically violating state law with every order from that state.

These problems weren't the platform's fault—they were the result of using tools designed for a non-regulated world. But they taught a lesson: compliance features can't be an add-on; they have to be part of the platform's DNA.