HEMP HOOPLA

Shop Exclusively Sells Environmentally Friendly Hemp Items, Despite Stigma

"You can't smoke your clothes," points out Ira Schneider, bringing to an
end any stereotype placed on the garments sold in his Boca Raton store.

For Schneider, selling all hemp products is not a gimmick to draw
pot-smoking teens into his shop or lure in middle-aged adults trying to
relive the Hippie era.

Selling products made from hemp is about the environment and education,
says the 31-year-old owner of the Hemp Factory at 503 N.E. 20th St.

"I'm for anything that can save the planet," said the New Jersey native,
who opened the small boutique in 1996 just blocks from his current
location. Schneider, who claims his store is the oldest of its kind in
Florida, is one of only a handful of exclusively hemp product shops in the
state.

"I'm always trying to educate people," said Schneider, whose curiosity in
the hemp plant grew out of his interest in the environment. "I know just
about everything there is to know about it."

Among the items that can be purchased at the shop are hemp shoes, shorts,
shirts, skirts, wallets, yoga wear, hats and American flags. There are even
edibles such as hemp lollipops, truffles, pepper sauce and hemp seed snack
bars. In addition, the shop sells suntan oil, soap and hair-care products
made from hemp oil.

Schneider stresses that not a single product in his store can get a person
high because hemp -- unlike the more well known street marijuana -- has
extremely low levels of THC, the drug that produces the psychoactive high
in pot.

"You can smoke an acre of hemp and not get high," Schneider said.
"Marijuana is the flower. Hemp is the plant. It grows like a stalk.
Worldwide it is accepted everywhere. Only in the States is there a stigma
attached to it."

Schneider, as do other advocates of hemp, hails the plant for not only its
environmental benefits but its versatility as well.

It has been estimated that hemp can be made into 25,000 different products
and among the more historical items made from the plant was the first pair
of Levis jeans and the paper for the first and second drafts of the U.S.
Constitution.

"There are no chemicals needed to grow it, unlike cotton," Schneider said.
"This is a true natural fiber."

Advocates also point out its use as a clean fuel source, its usefulness as
a paper and its oil as a healthy alternative to other cooking oils.

Due to the prohibition of marijuana in the U.S. in the 1930's, hemp fabric,
oil and seeds must be imported into the country from countries such as
China and Romania, which is where Schneider gets the material for his clothing.

"It's a multi-billion dollar business," Schneider said. "Every
industrialized nation in the world produces it. We're the only idiots that
don't. Our country is run by kings, it's not a democracy. We don't vote on
laws in this country. The politicians are protecting their industries."

For this reason and the fact that it's a high-end fiber that does not mold,
mildew or hold odors, says Schneider, that the clothes can be pricey. A
shirt is his store can cost as much as much as $70.

"They [clothes] do not feel like burlap sacks," he said. "This is not crap
fiber."

Schneider says the shop grosses about $30,000 a month, but more importantly
for him, he says it has opened the door for other careers. A Jack of all
trades, Schneider manufactures women's clothing, is a hair salon
consultant, a hairstylist and real estate agent.

"I spend about 16 hours a week at this store," said Schneider, who helped
co-found the Hemp Industries Association, a trade organization. "My plate
is full. I have no time to be a burnout [pothead]. I'm too busy."

And although Boca may not appear to be the perfect market for this type of
alternative shop, Schneider says otherwise.

"Hemp is high-end so you have to be somewhere where people can afford it,"
said Schneider, who also owned a hemp shop in Coral Springs, but later
closed it. "Boca is the only town in Palm Beach County that is liberal.
People here are educated. They have brains and smarts.

"If any unique business is going to make it anywhere in the world, it is
Boca. There is enough money and people," said Schneider, adding that his
clientele ranges from ages 35-50. "This is an international hot spot. Boca
loves me."