How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast)” Season 4 Explores the Startup Mentality of a Teenage Drug Kingpin

How to sell drugs online Fast story

In an age where the most ambitious tech projects emerge from teenagers’ bedrooms, How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast) makes a powerful statement. This German series, absurd, thrilling, and alarmingly realistic, tells the story of a teen who builds an online drug empire. But behind this catchy title is a show that speaks directly to geeks, coders, startup founders, and web enthusiasts.

A True Story, Startup Style

Loosely inspired by the true story of Maximilian Schmidt — aka “Shiny Flakes” — a German high schooler who, between 2013 and 2015, sold over a ton of drugs from his bedroom via a self-coded website. Payment was in Bitcoin, nationwide shipping was automated, and logistics were set up. His story was also turned into a Netflix documentary: Shiny_Flakes: The Teenage Drug Lord.

But the show isn’t just a crime story. It follows the journey of Moritz Zimmermann, a teenager who starts selling ecstasy online… to win back his ex. And in his own way, he goes through the exact same stages as a tech startup founder.

Why Geeks Love This Show

This isn’t just a show about drugs. It’s a show about code, servers, user experience, viral marketing, production bugs, and even obscure forums where people promote themselves. It’s filled with admin screens, instant messaging, references to web culture, and even mentions of figures like Mark Zuckerberg and Bill Gates — not to mock them, but to elevate them as role models (albeit in an illegal context).

And above all, it doesn’t speak to young people in a caricatured way. It speaks the language of the internet. Reddit. Discord. Self-taught developers. Those who dream of launching their own SaaS or solo projects.

Startup Lessons in Moritz’s Story

• Building a Fast MVP: his first site is simple, functional, secure.
• Scalability: the servers crash, the clients flood in, and everything has to adapt.
• Growth Hacking: he uses Reddit, dark web forums, and creates a buzz around his product.
• The Founder’s Dilemma: he loses his team, lies, and is eventually overwhelmed by his own success.

Season 4 Update

After years of waiting, the fourth and final season of How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast) was released on Netflix on April 8, 2025. This final season picks up Moritz’s story after his release from prison, as he tries to reintegrate into society and rebuild his life. However, old demons are never far behind, and Moritz soon faces new challenges that test both his entrepreneurial skills and his morality. This conclusion offers a deeper perspective on the long-term consequences of impulsive choices and the pursuit of quick success.

A Warning for the Startup Generation

While some aspects are dramatized, the show also highlights the cost of quick success: loneliness, stress, paranoia, betrayal. And it poses some serious questions:

• How far are you willing to go to “scale”?
• Can you succeed without betraying your values?
• Does the “hustle” justify everything?

Conclusion

How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast) is much more than an entertaining series. It’s a mirror held up to a generation fed on startups, dreams of digital freedom, YouTube tutorials, and sleepless nights coding on Visual Studio.

And above all, it’s a reminder: not all great tech ideas start in Silicon Valley. Sometimes, they begin in a German bedroom… with a keyboard, a server, and an idea that (perhaps too) well executed.

Watch How to Sell Drugs Online (Fast) on Netflix