By Alison Decker
NASHVILLE, TN — Blakk Tatted, founder and CEO of Blakk Smoke, a New Orleans, Louisiana based hookah Company talk’s nicotine free alternatives to smoking in an interview.
“My two close friends along with my love and passion for hookah were the ultimate masterpieces that led to turning my dream into a reality and creating Blakk Smoke,” He said.
The funding to start Blakk Smoke came from Tatted’s social media earnings as an influencer for promotion companies. He saved every dollar of his earnings and put it towards forming his company, he said.
The website features their best-selling hookah pens and hookahs with a variety of flavors and hookah accessories. The hookah pen flavors are: blueberry mint, sweet bubble gum, tropical fruit, cotton candy, green apple, skittles, strawberry lemonade, watermelon, peach mango and pineapple. The hookah flavors for the handheld hookah include: green apple, exotic grape, orange mint, watermelon mint, strawberry lemonade, blueberry mint, mango, mint, strawberry, peach, watermelon, tropical, banana, plum and pineapple fruit varieties.
The hookah flavors are all fruit-based and tobacco-free, eliminating the light-headedness that comes with smoking regular hookah. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, “Tobacco use is a major contributor to the three leading causes of death among African Americans—heart disease, cancer, and stroke.” The CDC also noted, “More than 63.4% report attempting to quit but not being able to stick with it. Hookah offers the same smoking pattern but without the negative effects of nicotine with increasing chances of cancer and heart disease.”
Tatted’s hope for the company in the future is to see Blakk Smoke being operated by his sons, Cardy’ae and Ca’hirey. He attributes his work inspiration to building an empire for his children, future grandchildren and providing generational wealth. His website, blakksmoke.com, is updated frequently with new flavors and hookah accessories and products.
All of Blakk Smoke’s products are shipped from the warehouse and individually packaged and labeled, he said. The business operates with four in-store employees and additional warehouse workers for packaging. Blakk Smoke is looking to expand the team as they grow.
“We at Blakk Smoke believe that our customers are our top priority and truly the reason for all of our success. Blakk Smoke is nothing without its customers,” Tatted said.
Tennessee’s current age restriction on tobacco, vaping, and smoking products was raised to 21+ in accordance with Public Chapter No. 732 effective since January 1, 2021. Blakk Smoke’s products are nicotine-free and fruit based so ages 18 and up can purchase and smoke this hookah.
Smoking fruit-based hookah can be a healthy alternative to individuals addicted to nicotine as well as adults trying to quit smoking. As the technology of smoking evolves, some states are taking steps to mitigate the use of tobacco products by increasing age limits, including Louisiana and Tennessee.