Influencer ‘sucks’ her friends’ drinks to teach them an ‘important’ lesson

One influencer proved a point about how easy it is to get high on a night out.

Shirah Benarde, who co-founded a company called NightCap, which sells anti-drinking snacks, made a TikTok last month where she put candy in her friends’ drinks when they weren’t looking.

The 21-year-old’s goal was to raise awareness about drinking and teach everyone to be careful when they’re out drinking.

“Drinking my friends’ drinks with candy to show them how easy it is…”, she wrote at the beginning of the video.

The minute-long footage featured clips of Benardes dropping or even squeezing candy into people’s drinks while they were distracted by being on the phone or talking to other people.

“Drinking is most likely done by someone you know…think what’s going on with Diddy right now,” she wrote in the video, referring to the criminal sex allegations against Sean “Diddy” Combs.

“Foreplay and private parties are a false sense of security,” Benarde also wrote. “You don’t expect anything to happen, but it does.”

At one point in the video, Benarde hugs one of her friends as she sneaks a candy bar into his High Noon can.

Benarde also pointed out that even water can be sprayed with drugs and that men are also covered with roofs.

“It doesn’t matter if you’re drinking from a can or a battle,” she added. “Always watch the bartender make your drink.”

“And never leave your drink unattended with or without a NightCap,” the video concludes.

Benarde captioned her video: “With everything going on with #diddy right now, this is so important to remember. Don’t leave your vigil at a private party either. #diddyparty #preventiondrinking #spiked.”

In the comments section, several people shared their stories of times when they were drugged at parties or bars.

“This happened to me. I blacked it out and almost hurt someone very badly. I came to 18 hours later, not having a single memory of what happened, only people telling me what I did,” said one person.

Another TikToker said Benarde’s video was “a fun way to teach your friends to pay attention to their drinks.”

Benarde co-founded NightCap with her brother Michael. The duo made the Forbes 2024 Under 30 Retail & Ecommerce list for their innovative products.

In January, Benarde told Forbes that the idea for scrunchies was born in 2019 after her friend was robbed at a college bar.

“We surveyed 100 women when we started the company and 26% of them said they had drunk their drinks,” she said. “Recognizing that it was a problem, that’s how we market it now: It’s a fun solution to a serious problem.”

The siblings ended up on Shark Tank in 2021 and Lori Greneir offered them $60,000 for 25% of the business. Singer-songwriter Julia Michaels later invested $100,000 in the company for 10% ownership, according to Forbes.

In 2023, the business reportedly brought in $2 million in revenue.

Benarde told Forbes that NightCap is working on partnerships with music festivals and bars to continue to keep people safe.