Limassol students transform beauty product into safety tool

A team of teenagers from Limassol has secured third place in Europe after transforming an ordinary lip gloss into a discreet tool designed to help women detect potentially harmful substances in their drinks. HerShield, created by nine students from St Mary’s School, finished third in the upper-secondary category of the JA Europe of the Year 2026 competition at GEN-E in Riga. Slovakia’s Lipigo claimed first place, while Greece’s Enalion finished second. The award places the Cypriot company among Europe’s leading student-led businesses, following a journey that began with a classroom brainstorming session and developed into a fully operating enterprise. Held in Latvia from July 7 to 10, GEN-E brought together national champions from across Europe to pitch their ideas before business leaders, investors, educators and international judges. The event is organised by JA Europe and is described as the continent’s largest youth entrepreneurship festival. At first glance, HerShield looks and functions like an everyday lip gloss. However, its casing contains a concealed compartment holding five drink-testing strips, allowing users to check a drink quickly and without attracting attention. Each strip includes two testing pads. Drops from the drink are placed on the pads, with a colour change potentially indicating the presence of substances associated with drink spiking. According to the company, the strips are designed to detect GHB, ketamine, cocaine and scopolamine, with results appearing within around 10 seconds. However, the product is intended as an additional personal safety measure rather than a guarantee that a drink is safe. Testing strips may not identify every substance or concentration, while anyone who suddenly feels unwell or suspects that a drink has been tampered with should seek help immediately. The concept emerged as the young entrepreneurs considered how to make a safety product both discreet and practical. Rather than designing something that users might leave at home, they focused on an item already carried by many women and girls. Lip gloss became the answer. The team then began working on the casing, concealed compartment and overall appearance, using 3D printing during the development of the prototype. The design had to resemble a genuine cosmetic product while keeping the testing strips protected and easily accessible. In a recent TV interview, members explained that developing the physical product was only one part of the process. They also had to build an entire company, assign responsibilities and handle marketing, sales, production, purchasing, finance and quality control. Ioanna Christina Petrou serves as chief executive, while Andrea Marselina Pelentride oversees operations. Iro Christou is responsible for human resources, Erika Vasili manages sales and Mikaela Tranta leads marketing. Meanwhile, Paschalis Alatzoglou manages accounting, Zoe Michael oversees purchasing, Emmelia Marina Mitrofanous leads production and Despina Michael is responsible for research, design and quality assurance. The project began in October 2025, when the team registered through the Junior Achievement Cyprus. The idea took shape in December, followed by the first prototype in January after several rounds of research and design work. Screenshot HerShield was later introduced to the public at the Junior Achievement trade fair at the Mall of Cyprus in March, where the founders demonstrated the product and received their first direct feedback from potential customers. The company’s national breakthrough came on April 29, when it was named JA Cyprus of the Year 2026. HerShield was selected from 89 student companies involving around 550 participants aged between 15 and 18, with 15 teams reaching the national final. The victory earned the company the opportunity to represent Cyprus at GEN-E. The group developed the project under the guidance of teachers Maria Kythreotou and Maria Papas, together with mentor Annita Petrou, before taking the product and business plan to the European stage. Interest in HerShield also grew following television appearances and wider media exposure. According to the company, its initial production batch sold out, prompting work on additional units and improvements to the casing. The idea responds to an offence that remains difficult to measure because many suspected incidents are never reported. Research in the UK has also shown that women account for a large proportion of reported drink-spiking cases, while bars and clubs remain among the locations most frequently associated with suspected incidents. For the HerShield founders, the European award marks the latest step in a rapid journey from a school-based project to an internationally recognised safety product. Their message is captured in the company’s own slogan “Shielding her since the first sip.”