Not only had the products changed, but also the way they were consumed. People read reviews, looked around forums, and knew exactly what they wanted. They expected reliable quality, unlike the early days when you bought something in a dirty public toilet and just hoped for the best. Our business success was based on customer satisfaction and repeat purchases. Laws changed almost every day, so we had to be on our guard to make sure all our products remained legal. PILTON England (Reuters) – Partygoers enjoyed many mood improvements with music at Glastonbury Festival, but this year any euphoria was less likely to be fueled by so-called “legal highs” after organisers took a stand against them. “People think that because it`s legal, it`s as safe as buying your tea bags,” he said. “But there`s always a risk with everything you take.” Since last week, legal highs have been illegal in the UK. The Psychoactive Substances Act — a new law banning all those vacuum-packed bags of synthetic drugs and strange names — has come into force. Behind this is the incredibly optimistic hope that banning all these substances will prompt people to stop using them. Prohibition has proven incredibly successful in the past, hasn`t it? Legal highs are available in powders, tablets, herbs or capsules.
Mixtures of herbs or frankincense usually contain dried plant parts. The best-known representative is “Spice”, which caused a sensation in 2008. The coloured bags contained over-the-counter dried herbs that would have produced effects similar to those of cannabis at the time. In laboratory analyses, however, it was found that the herbs were simply carriers mixed with new synthetic cannabinoids. Subsequently, the new synthetic active ingredients were included in the Narcotic Control Act. And you have become the largest distributor of legal highs in the UK? In 2009, herbalhighs.co.uk was compared to Amazon in a BBC documentary. It was a proud moment for us. We never sold mephedrone because it was not compatible with our philosophy – it was too contaminated and dangerous for us. Charge became a success almost overnight and we couldn`t keep up with the production.
So this competition to make legal highs as strong as possible has ruined everything for everyone? Many of the vendors who suddenly jumped on board are former drug dealers and after the change in law, they will resume their old business. The irony is that those who created these problems came from the illegal realm and were never really cut out for legal affairs. These are exactly the same ones that have the most benefits of the new law. It`s like the banking crisis: it was ultimately the people who caused it. Also known as synthetic drugs, legal highs are flooding global markets, the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime said last month. In addition, drugs are in no way legal, even if it is suggested to the user on the Internet. Basically, the mixtures violate the pharmaceutical law. But this is not enough to punish producers. The Narcotic Control Act is more effective.
According to this law, 28 common substances are already banned for legal highs. The problem: if manufacturers only change a tiny building block of a substance, a new substance has been created. This must then be thoroughly investigated, analysed and then banned if necessary. VICE: Hi Donal, I read something about “clearance sale” and “recent orders” on your website. Is it really over now? Donal O`Dwyer: The Home Office has once again made a huge mistake with a total ban on the sale of legal highs. This means that all decent traders must close and make way for unscrupulous criminals. When will they finally learn that prohibition simply does not work? They are called rum blends or bath salts and look quite harmless: the packaging looks young and trendy. But behind the façade hide so-called legal highs. Addictive drugs – and yet easy to buy on the Internet.
Glastonbury, which attracts more than 135,000 people, joined other festivals earlier this year to ban the drugs, which mimic the effect of illegal drugs like ecstasy, LSD and cannabis, but are legal and have been sold openly in the past at stalls. “The problem with legal highs is that people had assumed that if they were harmful, they would be illegal, so people didn`t exercise the same caution as with an illegal drug,” he said. In fact, I wanted to use normal THC, that is, cannabis, but when I was 13, I didn`t make it at that time. Me and a few friends stumbled upon a “legal cannabis substitute” on the internet and ordered herbal blends for the first time – with no idea what exactly it was. When I finally smoked the “legal highs” for the first time, I thought I had to die. I had to vomit for a very long time because the effect was much too strong. Providers are unscrupulous and there are more and more of them. Particularly treacherous: they specifically target young people. One of those who have succumbed to the seduction of “legal highs” is Sam. The 17-year-old struggles with his addiction in a youth protection facility. He tried “legal highs” for the first time at the age of 13.
This was followed by nearly five years of consumption that almost destroyed his life and that of his family. Mario also has experience with substances. At the age of nine, he started taking them, ended up in jail and lost his best friend to drugs. “The only reason they are not illegal is because it is impossible for the law to keep pace,” Rodin said. Jamie, 21, from North Wales, said he had seen the effects legal highs could have. Marco* has been using these synthetic synthetic drugs for years, repeatedly trying different varieties with names such as Rock Star, Jamaican Gold or Monkey 3D. He orders them from home, conveniently in the online store. In most cases, the goods are there the next day. Many legal mixtures look like herbs, they are visually modeled on real marijuana, but in fact, there are chemicals in the mixtures. And each bag can contain different substances. In addition to hundreds of conventional and online retailers, one of the largest and oldest distributors of legal highs in the UK, Herbal Highs, has also had to close its doors.
Herbal Highs started selling herbal ecstasy, magic mushrooms and hippie highs at Glastonbury 23 years ago and, over time, has grown to become the largest wholesaler and distributor of legal highs in the UK. At the height of my addiction, I had neither a true will nor any feeling. I was just a walking shell who didn`t respond or was looking for new drugs. At one point, I didn`t let my mother tell me. Our relationship suffered a lot because I – like almost everyone else – just didn`t care. England-based consultant psychiatrist Ian Rodin, who is part of Glastonbury`s medical team, applauded efforts to highlight the risks of the drugs. But then the market was flooded with cheap plagiarism? Unfortunately, the things that had done us so well in the past ended up working against us. For every batch package we produced, there were at least five counterfeits on the market.
We have been victims of our own success, but unlike Nike, in our case, enforcement of trade regulations does not seem to be a top priority. However, we were also very concerned that customers would buy defective or dangerous products and then mistake them for ours. We have considered ethical and legitimate ways to demonstrate the standards of Herbal Highs to our customers. For example, we introduced holograms. Legal effects – substances that appear harmless and are available as bath salts, perfumes or herbal mixtures. They are intended to serve relaxation and are very easy to get on the Internet. But the truth is that legal highs are very dangerous. Drugs are created faster than authorities can track them. Synthetic cannabinoids have never been the problem.
The problem was the fact that people were selling stronger and stronger products to stay ahead of the competition, like Annihilation. Our products were soft.