GALION — Mike Bodine hopes his newest venture, the Downtown Vapor Lounge, morphs into a more than just a ‘vape shop.”

Bodine, 42, of Marion, is a civil engineer. He also owns My Imprint Studios in Marion.

“This is my third job,” he joked last week inside his new business at 127 Harding Way East, sandwiched between the Galion Inquirer and the Candi Bar.

He opened his business — which caters to those who smoke electronic cigarettes a week ago.

“It’s an alternative to smoking,” said Bodone. “I sell e-juice and hardware.”

But he wants his customers to do more than just buy what he’s selling. He hopes Downtown Vapor Lounge becomes a place that is comfortable and cozy and people will to spend a little time there.

He proud of the look he’s created and hopes it encourages foot traffic and regular customers.

“I put up the ceiling fans,” he said. “I got the displays cases for free from someone I know. The rest — everything you see on the walls and the counter — is stuff I’ve designed and I sell.”

There is sitting area in the back of the store, which he hopes sees a lot of use.

“I want this to be a ‘cool’ place to come to and visit,” he said. “I plan to have some special events to draw people in. This is also someplace were you can stop in and watch football games or other shows. You can just sit and relax. That’s what I’m hoping it turns into.”

Downtown Vapor Lounge is open 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. Monday through Saturday.

“But we’re flexible,” he said. “If there’s a need and we thing we need to stay open later in the evenings, we can adjust.”

His business caters to a younger crowd, which fits well with other things happening in his Galion neighborhood.

On Facebook you can learn more about Downtown Vapor Lounge at dvlgalion or call him at 419-462-VAPE (8273).

Bodine has smoked e-cigarettes for 18 years. He has for sale 34 flavors, some that he manufactures himself.

He is willing to explain and demonstrate to customers how e-cigarettes work.

He also likes the tone and the mood of the downtown Galion area, and is looking forward to become a part of a community that seems to welcome newcomers.

“I found out about this site about a month ago,” he said. “The very first day I was here someone from the Chamber of Commerce stopped in to visit and to see if there was anything they could do to help us out. That’s not usual. That’s not something I’ve seen before. It was a nice surprise.”

Bodine said there seems to be good things happening in Galion and he’d like Downtown Vapor Lounge to be a part of that community.

“When I decided to do this, I looked around and I think there’s a need here,” he said. “This location was available and we took advantage of it. If we’re successful, in the future I’d like to open something like this in other smaller communities.”