Shirah Benarde
Shirah Benarde is an American entrepreneur and the founder of NightCap, a brand of drink covers designed to prevent drink spiking; at 17 she secured an investment from Lori GreinerLori GreinerLori Greiner is an American entrepreneur, inventor and investor who founded consumer-products company For Your Ease Only, worked extensively in television shopping and became an investor on ABC’s Shark Tank. Her work spans household organization, consumer-product investments, publishing and television production.Open the full entry on the television show Shark Tank.
Contents7 sections
Key facts
2019Inventing and Launching NightCap
Benarde is from West Palm Beach, Florida. In early 2019, at 16, after friends who had started college had their drinks spiked, she came up with the idea in a dream and, on waking, made the first prototype from her mother’s pantyhose and a scrunchie. The product covers a cup while leaving a hole for a straw, and folds into a scrunchie pocket worn on the wrist or in the hair.[1][2][3]
She runs NightCap with her brother, Michael Benarde, then a graduate student at Florida State University. In September 2019 the two launched an Indiegogo campaign with a $12,000 goal to fund a manufacturing deposit, legal services and marketing; it raised $12,145 from 220 backers. After about six months of development, the product launched in December 2019.[4][5][1]
February 5, 2021Lori Greiner Investment on Shark Tank
On February 5, 2021, Shark Tank aired Benarde’s pitch in Season 12, Episode 12; she made a deal with Lori Greiner of $60,000 for 25% of the company. On the show Greiner said: “This needs to be in every woman’s hands.” Benarde was then an entrepreneurship major at the University of Tampa (class of 2024); NightCap sold for $11.99 and had sold more than 10,000 units since 2019.[1][2]
September 23, 2026Interview with Hard Knocks Business
On September 23, 2026, Hard Knocks Business released the compilation “Asking Shark Tank Millionaires How To Make Your First $1,000,000!”, which includes an interview with NightCap’s founder. In the video she introduced herself only by her first name, “Shira,” as NightCap’s founder and CEO, and mentioned an earlier interview with the channel in Austin. In the video she said NightCap would do $4 million that year and $10 million in all-time revenue; she went on Shark Tank with $68,000 in sales, and did almost $200,000 in sales in the 24 hours after the episode aired.[6][6]
She said that when she started at 16 she felt unworthy of running such an impact-driven company and did not know how to respond when people shared their own stories with her. She also said she walked up to the CEO of Forever 21 and got NightCap into all 400 of its stores, after being rejected countless times before people such as Winnie Park said yes.[6][6]
Advice Shared on Hard Knocks Business
Bringing a product to life is never a linear path, so be ready for problems and mishaps along the way (video at 11:27)[6]
Put yourself out there and be ready when opportunities come; being rejected many times is part of the process (video at 11:44)[6]
What holds people back is not a lack of education but a lack of experience: get comfortable with discomfort by putting yourself in situations you dislike until they become natural (video at 12:05)[6]
Company Growth and Investors
After the Shark Tank episode, the product spread mainly through TikTok, with orders from across the United States, and sales passed $2 million in the year after the show. The singer-songwriter Julia Michaels invested $100,000 in the company. As of April 2026, NightCap’s annual revenue was about $2 million.[3]
Related Organizations, Websites, and Public Accounts
NightCap: Official website: https://nightcapit.com/ (opens in a new window).[1]
Sources
- A Little Bit About Us… (opens in a new window)
- Entrepreneurship Major Catches a Shark (opens in a new window)
- La adolescente que creó un exitoso negocio luego de que drogaran a una amiga con una bebida en un bar (opens in a new window)
- This hair tie could prevent drink spiking at bars, parties (opens in a new window)
- A local teen develops a novel patent to prevent the spiking of drinks (opens in a new window)
- Asking Shark Tank Millionaires How To Make Your First $1,000,000! (opens in a new window)