Flash Tory donor cashed in on disposable vape boom before ban on sales
The Mirror can reveal shareholders at Sandy Chadha's Supreme firm enjoyed a multi-million pound dividend bonanza just months before the sale of single-use e-cigs was outlawed
Grinning as he clutches two bottles, this is the flash Tory donor who cashed in on disposable vapes before a ban. We can reveal how shareholders at Sandy Chadha's firm enjoyed a multi-million pound dividend bonanza just months ago. Supreme, distributor of popular Lost Mary and Elfbar e-cigs, paid out £3.7million in January.
It comes as we have unearthed pictures showing the vaping kingpin has flaunted his luxury lifestyle on social media. Another snap pictures Mr Chadha topless, clad in shades, holding his arms outstretched as he revels in the sunshine next to a pool. The Brit, 58 — who once even gave away a £130,000 Bentley in a bet — has helped bankroll the Conservatives.
Last week, our probe uncovered how disposable vapes were illegally flogged despite their sale being outlawed this month. The crackdown on the single-use devices was brought in to safeguard kids and the environment.
Supreme, which also has its own 88Vape brand, has capitalised on the popularity of e-cigs. Supreme's vaping division revenues jumped 9% to £82.8million in 2023-4. Disposable vapes revenue was 70.7million.
Supreme turned a pre-tax profit of £30.1million in 2023-4, up from £14.4million. The firm paid out £1.3million in remuneration to directors in 2023-4. Mr Chadha's total pay packet was £653,056 – including a £325,000 bonus.
Pictures posted on Mr Chadha's Facebook page demonstrate he had a taste for luxury years before the vaping market took off. One image showed the businessman on the red carpet, with another picturing him by the sea holding his hair in a model-like pose. Meanwhile, in a further snap he climbed out of the water with his arm outstretched and another showed him lying down on a yacht.
Mr Chadha owns in a mansion, with an indoor swimming pool, spa, steam and sauna rooms. He purchased the home in Hale, near Altrincham, Greater Manchester, for £6.8million in October 2017. Mr Chadha's home is in a sought-after area, with the property featuring a roof terrace, study, his and hers ensuites, as well as dressing rooms.
In 2022, permission was given by the local council for a side extension to the property for a new dining room, records show. Mr Chadha's Supreme 8 Ltd donated £350,000 to the Tories in 2023, with the company also giving £50,000 in 2022. And in late 2023, Mr Chadha personally donated £50,000 to the Conservatives.
According to Action on Smoking and Health (ASH): 'In 2024, 18% of youth aged 11-17 had tried vaping, amounting to 980,000 children…' It added: 'In 2024, 7.2% (390,000 children aged 11-17) currently vaped compared to 5.1% (280,000 children) who currently smoked.'
ASH also explained: 'As with adults, the most popular flavours are fruit (adults 47%, children 59%), but children are more likely than adults to choose sweet flavours (16%)...'
It concludes: '...although our survey suggests the rapid rise in youth (aged 11-17) vaping since the pandemic has stabilised in 2024, it is not yet clearly declining. And although the vast majority (81%) of children aged 11-17 have never tried vaping, over a third of those who have tried vaping have never smoked.
Furthermore, children's awareness of promotion continues to rise. The big increase in the use of disposable products has happened concurrently with higher levels of youth use from 2021 to 2023.'
Supreme said: 'Supreme has been at the forefront of seeking to eradicate underage vaping, having proactively introduced plain packaging, reduced hardware colour, age-appropriate product names, and recommendations to retailers that vapes are positioned away from confectionary.
Supreme's overriding goal remains to support the widespread use of compliant vape products as a smoking cessation device in line with the UK Government's conclusion that vaping remains the most effective tool to transition smokers away from cigarettes.'
And Mr Chadha said: 'Supreme PLC operates a diversified portfolio of fast-moving consumer goods, supplying thousands of UK retailers with essential everyday products ranging from lighting and batteries to personal care, household goods, vitamins, and vaping.
All of our products, including those in the vaping category, have been distributed in full compliance with UK regulations. The sale of disposable vapes before the ban was entirely legal and fulfilled strong market demand. Vaping continues to serve as a credible, regulated alternative to traditional smoking…'
He added: 'As a listed company, Supreme's dividend policy has been clearly communicated and remains aligned with standard practices in public markets. Our directors' remuneration, shareholder distributions, and business activities are fully disclosed, publicly audited, and operate under the governance of the UK's regulatory frameworks.
"Personal images cited in your story were posted... many years before Supreme's involvement in disposable vapes and before the development of the UK vaping market. The same goes for the house, which was bought in 2017. Any attempt to link them retrospectively to more recent regulatory debates, or to dividends or earnings linked to vaping, would be misleading.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Telegraph
3 hours ago
- Telegraph
Reeves plots Budget tax raid on dividends
Rachel Reeves is drawing up plans for a tax raid on dividends in her autumn Budget in a hunt to find tens of billions in revenue. The Chancellor of the Exchequer's officials are understood to have drawn up a menu of tax increases, including a raid on dividends suggested by Angela Rayner in a leaked memo. Officials are considering abolishing the £500 tax-free allowance for dividend payments, or increasing the rate of tax from its current level of 39 per cent. Removing the allowance could raise the Treasury more than £300 million and may allow the Chancellor to claim she has not increased taxes on 'working people', a Labour pledge before last year's general election. But the Conservatives said the rise would amount to Ms Reeves 'putting her hands in the pockets of British taxpayers and businesses'. The so-called 'dossier' of tax changes, first reported by The Sunday Times, was not denied by senior government officials last night. It included an increase on the levy on bank profits, which is charged on top of the normal corporation tax rate of 25 per cent.
Channel 4
4 hours ago
- Channel 4
Starmer announces full national inquiry into grooming gangs
The Prime Minister has announced a full national inquiry into grooming gangs. Keir Starmer said it was after reading a review by Baroness Louise Casey. But it's a significant u-turn from his position earlier in the year, when he resisted pressure from the Conservatives, Reform and even Elon Musk
Metro
6 hours ago
- Metro
Three ways latest Middle East crisis could make life more expensive in the UK
One of the big lessons from Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was how a war hundreds of miles away can have an impact on daily life in the UK. As the price of a barrel of oil shot up, so did our energy bills, and the cost-of-living crisis that was already hitting households hard was exacerbated. It now appears that Iran and Israel are on the path towards a full-scale regional war, with neither country paying much attention to international calls for calm heads. As death tolls rise and destruction spreads, many Brits will be concerned about where it's all going to end – and wonder if we're likely to see a repeat of three years ago. Asked if the government could step in to pay steep energy bills, as the Conservatives did in 2022, Chancellor Rachel Reeves told the BBC: 'I'm not taking anything off the table.' However, she cautioned: 'We're not anywhere near that stage at the moment – indeed, in July, average energy bills are going to come down by about £100 a year.' To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video Unsurprisingly, events in the Middle East – one of the world's top oil producing regions – have an impact on the price of oil. Following Israel's attack on Iranian nuclear and military sites on Friday, the cost of a price of a barrel of oil jumped sharply. But there's a risk the knock-on effects for Brits are much more broad. The increase in energy prices largely resulting from Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022 was so significant, the government decided to step in and offer an 'energy price guarantee'. If it had not, the price cap for bills could have been pushed north of £4,000 for the typical household. The invasion pushed oil prices to almost $130 a barrel, meaning costs to suppliers soared, and that was passed down to customers. After an initial jump of 10% after Israel's first strikes on Friday, the cost of a barrel of oil has dropped back to $75 – lower than it was in January. But the big question is whether this conflict will continue for more than a few days or a couple of weeks. That could result in higher prices on a more sustained level, which could feed through to bills. The Bank of England's base interest rate has a direct impact on households across the country, as it is widely used to set the interest rate on mortgages. It's also used by the Bank to try and push down inflation when it gets a bit too high – when the interest rate is increased, people spend less in the economy, which brings down inflation. Since inflation in the UK has fallen from its extreme high in 2022, the Bank has steadily decreased its interest rate over the past year, easing the pressure on people with a mortgage to pay. But high energy prices mean items in shops get more expensive, and if they become more expensive than they were a year ago – well, that's the definition of inflation. Dr Muhammad Ali Nasir, an Associate Professor in Economics at the University of Leeds, explained the potential impact. He told Metro: 'If the increase in energy prices causes another round of sharp increase in inflation, the central bank could change the direction of their policy and start to increase the interest rates again, causing more pain to the household and firms in terms of their borrowing costs.' A sustained increase in energy prices would be enough to increase the cost of a weekly shop in the UK on its own. But that's not the only way the conflict between Israel and Iran could have an impact. There have been concerns Iran could try to block the Strait of Hormuz, a vital supply line for global oil as it links the oil fields of the Persian Gulf to the Arabian Sea and wider ocean. But Dr Nasir suggested events could lead Iran's Houthi allies to step up their attacks on ships in the Red Sea, which leads to the Suez Canal. He said: 'This could be a massive shock to global trade which is already suffering due to the [US-China] trade war. On top of that, the economist said there is a 'sharp increase in the uncertainty around the economic and trade policy due to the conflict' as the world wonders what will happen next. 'Overall, this conflict is the last thing the global economy wants at the moment,' he said, before adding: 'Of course, loss of human life is an even bigger issue.' Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: All 9 countries on the UK Foreign Office 'no go' travel list MORE: Is it safe to travel to Cyprus? Latest Foreign Office tourist advice after Israel strikes Iran MORE: UK advises against all travel to Israel after conflict with Iran escalates
