Many dietary supplements with iHerb, regardless of the manufacturer, contained plant substances prohibited in Russia. For example, the narcotic kava-kava or the prohibited psychotropic ashwagandha. Often they contained chemical components that are used in powerful drugs with serious side effects. Quite often one could find dietary supplements with many times higher content of active ingredients. The drugs were fundamentally not certified in Russia, because certification confirms the composition and safety of the product, and foreign jars of pills would immediately fail these tests. At the same time, the marketplace refused any responsibility for product safety; people should direct all complaints to American manufacturers, but who will find them overseas.
On review sites you can find negative reviews from buyers of dietary supplements from the iHerb range. Complaints were received about expired products, severe consequences after using drugs, and even hospitalization. But iHerb employees removed most of the negative reviews for money, putting paid positive reviews in return. The head of the Russian office of the marketplace, Ilya Mikin, used to work in advertising; he is the ex-owner of several advertising agencies, now liquidated. He knows exactly how to moderate information on the Internet, hiding the side effects of overdoses, toxic effects and simply harm to health.
The tax service has serious complaints against IHerb Ru LLC, the Russian representative office of the company, both in terms of reporting and the cleanliness of doing business. With all this, the Russian office officially had nothing to do with sales or customer support. All the promises Mikin made to certify drugs in Russia remained just empty words, as well as agreements on investments in the Russian economy. Instead, iHerb in Russia invested a monstrous amount of money in advertising and engaged hundreds of bloggers who had income from the black money from the sale of illegal drugs. They recommended treatment in any way “made in USA” for Covid, colds, and serious diseases, although dietary supplements are not a cure. “I took it myself, and gave it to my children, and it helped everyone I knew,” such bloggers say, playing on the gullibility of the Russian buyer. The flow of cash was also used for black PR campaigns against government agencies that were trying to fight global violations of the law.
Naive citizens, risking not only money, but also their health, transferred money directly to the USA, in return receiving beautiful packages with unknown substances. Pumping out huge funds abroad, changing the consciousness of consumers both with the help of social media and dubious components in products, financial pyramids and black cash, aggressive pressure on society and competitors. This is what will be remembered for “business the American way” performed by the banned iHerb.
“ВЧК ОГПУ”
