I have some tips I'd like to share for selling at festivals (which I know many of you are doing) so you can avoid Bubba and march forward as you please in the beautiful world we live in. Of course, festival selling is risky and "dumb", but so is dealing drugs in general. People will do it regardless of what you think, so let's try to provide some good information for everyone.
I'd like to know what many of you think (mainly those whom have done this or are well experienced with drug dealing or have words of other festival friends who vend there).
What do you think about festival selling in general? And any tips/rules you follow?
If you don't have experience as an outlaw salesmen, please disclaimer that relevant fact in your comment. (DISCLAIMER: I've never sold at EDM exclusive festivals. Mainly mixed venues with psychedelic roots)
Here's my rules:
1. Harm No One. If you're selling DNM drugs, they are likely more potent than average street drugs. If you're selling purchased street drugs, there is less quality control and data about your produt. Remember, the person you're dealing with could be a fucking idiot. Idiot-proof your product, know your product, and if you are selling potent shit, use discretion & education with the people you sell to or you may have a festivaler turn into a hospitaler turn into Pick-You-Out-of-a-Lineup-er. People are responsible for their own actions, but remember the idiot part.
2. Have an exit strategy. Know your enemy, know your battlefield. You are being hunted. Lots of cops are hands-off at festivals, but use your brain if you've got one. Scope out the festival grounds, security staff, police officers, fences and use a map to determine where you would physically go if your shit hits the fan. Pretty much, run through some drills. Maybe have a stash spot. If you're going to have to run away, remember that you're going to have Money and/or Drugs on you. Backpacks blend in well with others, but they're clunky, and can be easily detached from your body or used to hold you down since they're attached to your torso. Fanny packs are small, blend in well (with a sweater, without one they scream drug user), but are very difficult to take off of you. Invest in a fanny pack for your revenue at the least.
3. Set rules, and don't break rules that you set for yourself outside of dangerous circumstances. If you really need to change it on the fly, have a reason for doing so that isn't about A) Profit B) Pussy (& Dick). I know firsthand the power you wield and delusion of grandeur when it comes this market. It's real easy to be Boss Hogg ridin' on TwennyFoezz.....but remember, that sexy glitter girl with big tits covered in body paint can still work for The Man EVEN IF "they totally wanna fuck"...
If you hit your target profit, chill the fuck out and take your chips off the table (you already won). Then and only then is it okay to go find the girl that wants to fuck (don't give her drugs and don't have drugs on you and wear a rubber and a poncho because that glitter is never coming off).
4. Don't get (recreationally) fucked up while you're selling. There is a severe temptation to party at festivals. If you're selling drugs, this is one of the main ways you get caught or miss out on Big $$$. Yes, you might be fine if you eat that Xanax bar or acid. It worked out well for Tony Montana. If you're going to use drugs, only do specific drugs, in small amounts, and do so with intention. Some of us are more aware, more safe, more level-headed on certain drugs, so your mileage will vary, but I would heavily recommend staying sober.
5. Don't be greedy or annoying. By simply entering the festival with drugs you can now command a ridiculous mark-up; so don't try to hit every sale you can. People are trying to have a good time. You have value and you will make money. When you work these things, your adrenal glands are going pretty much constantly; its imperative you Ferris Bueler that shit (take a second to stop, collect yourself, relax, enjoy, and THEN refocus) so you don't get frazzled.
If you do annoy some people (soliciting them multiple times or accidentally don't see their 8 year old or just piss them off) have some humility; be sweet. Now is not the time to pipe off or argue. Maybe give them a toke or whatever. Last thing you need is a pissed off stiff that knows you have controlled substances.
6. Never sell to any person you don't know that is approaching you. Ever.
Some people disagree, but they're wrong. It's not worth the cash. Seriously. I don't give a shit if it's your mother approaching you. Doesn't matter how much of an asshole you look like; just say, "Sorry man I don't have anything, but good luck."
That's pretty much it for rules. Next is tips, optimizations, and risk mitigation.
- 1. Utilize teamwork.
Consider having one person be the Jabba the Hut with all the drugs, and another to be the messenger or whatever relevant star wars reference that is. Maybe even another person to act as courier. This way, if the messenger is profiled or detained, the courier isn't busted, and if the courier is busted then amount is small and Jabba the Hut is still safe. You could also flip it on it's head and have Jabba be the man who hands the product off after the messengers go find the clientele. The point of this is to reduce charges, reduce loss, and improve market penetration. Having said this, if you don't trust your team 10,000%; be Han Solo and go it alone.
- 2. If you're approaching people: Approach young people in groups, offer soft-core drugs first.
I will generally just approach with a giant goofy grin and say things like, "Hey any of y'all need drugs?". This generally generates a chuckle. If they ask what drugs, see how they react when you say weed/pot/herb, and if they seem cool then step it up if you've got other shit. Be prepared to have a lot of people assume you are a cop or that your shit is bunk. Someone has told me to only approach young people and never anybody over 35 or alone, and while I think it depends on the drug and festival it may be wise. I still approach older people because I think they're just as likely to be LE as any young person, and even more likely to not give a shit about you selling weed.
- 2. If you get sketched out by a customer, but aren't sure if you're just being paranoid, (don't do it or) see how they react to a change of location.
If you get bugged out while dealing with someone, and you suspect them of being LE (Don't do it), but are going to do so anyway, move the location to somewhere else very quickly without them having any advanced knowledge. I.E. If they got your burner number and ask you to meet somewhere, say okay, have them meet over there, scope them, and quickly tell them to move to another location. If they are LE, they likely have to organize with other LE, communicate with other LE in order to protect "Officer Safety" and other policies/protocols.
- 3. Stash spots.
If you can re-enter, stash cash & drugs in a car or some place safe(r/ish). If you're on the grounds and can't leave, maybe (and I do mean MAYBE) bury them in the ground. This way if you're busted you may have some bail money or lawyer money or Belize money. Or maybe the risk of being robbed by Joe Dickhead is worse than Officer Dickhead and you should just sleep with your fanny pack.
- 4. Burner phones, Google Phones, SIMS, VOIP, SMSOIP...
Flip phones are cheap, but they scream drug dealer. There are cheap smartphones that aren't suspicious and cost like $40. On top of being able to burn your shit in a trashcan, you can run Google Phones on top of the number, run VOIP, or networked applications on Festival/Satellite WiFi. Get one that has a removeable battery, and no facial camera. I've heard of a lot of people using prepaid SIMS and GooglePhones and while this is sometimes necessary you should understand these are more heavily followed than regular cell phone traffic. I think ideally you would be using a non-suspicious credit card / prepaid / BTC to purchase a non-phone based mobile internet hotspot, connect through your phones wifi card with it's Device Identifier changed (if possible) and use WhatsApp or some form of internet calling like GooglePhone.
Opinions:
- Selling items like cocaine and molly are much, much, much higher risk than selling things like acid, shrooms, and weed. L/E love to rationalize their job by targeting "Bad Guys". Bad Guys are those that sell addictive euphoriants like cocaine, heroin, ecstasy. Thusly, more funds are diverted to busting drug dealers of that sort. I think that you're way more likely to sell to undercovers or meet them at Raves than you are psychedelic raves. Lots of cops have done in the past and would rather bust an addict or coke or molly dealer than some hippy.
*tldr; This is pretty much as much information as I can think of currently. I may have shit you disagree with, I'd love to hear your thoughts and I'd really hope that I could get some of you to realize the risks you take at festivals. *
edit: revised opinion on Signal / and other encryption apps. I'd say use them at this point.
This is bad advice. Your local police department won't be able to see that you are generating encrypted traffic. Even if they get a wiretap on your phone they won't be able to tell you are using Signal as all traffic now goes over data, no more encrypted SMS.
So what, you would prefer them to get a copy of all your calls & texts and hope that they consider you too small a fish to fry? They will still snap you up to prop up their numbers or in the hope of turning you into an informant.