Home kits for testing drugs are normally bland and clinical, but a newcomer is challenging those conventions with bold branding and an irreverent approach to harm reduction. Overdrive sells fentanyl test strips and takes its marketing cues from energy drinks, not medical devices, pulling in viewers on socials with coverage of extreme sports and underground music scenes. It's not the first time founder Brian Bordainick is shaking up a category: he previously launched Starface pimple patches, DTC morning-after pill Julie and Blip nicotine gum.
Undetectable by sight, taste or smell, an amount of fentanyl — a synthetic opioid 50 times stronger than heroin — as tiny as two grains of salt is enough to kill someone. It's frequently and secretly mixed into drugs sold as heroin, cocaine, meth, MDMA, ketamine and counterfeit prescription pills (oxycodone, Xanax and Adderall), and is involved in the majority of drug overdoses in the US.
Overdrive's 5-pack kit, retailing at USD 12.99 via Amazon and the company's own website, includes test strips, mini spoons for precise measurement and water pouches for dilution. While the brand maintains a mischievous tone, its mission is deadly serious: to provide drug users with a reliable and accessible first line of defense against potentially lethal overdoses. Results are available in just 3 minutes, with a 99% accuracy rate. Which overlooked yet critical category could your organization tackle? Where could you replace moralizing and fearmongering with stigma-free empowerment?
