Woman Obsessed With Red Bull Got a Functional Barcode Tattoo

There are brand loyalists, and then there’s Dew—a 22-year-old Swiss content creator who got a Red Bull barcode tattooed on her body and now rings up cans of the energy drink at self-checkout using her skin.

The barcode, inked in solid black and being “chomped” by a cartoon worm, was inspired by a drawing from Dew’s sister. “I was thinking about getting a barcode tattoo for some time,” she told What’s The Jam. At one point, she considered a broccoli tattoo but ultimately landed on Red Bull after “thinking energy.”

The tattoo reportedly cost her the equivalent of over $600. Dew said even her tattoo artist wasn’t convinced it would function—but it did. “I knew it possibly couldn’t work as my artist was very open about it,” she said. “But he also tried his best.” The next day at work, she tested it. It scanned. “I was so excited about it.”

This Woman Loves Red Bull So Much She Got a Barcode Tattoo That Actually Scans

Dew isn’t new to tattoos—she already had an alpaca, a lemon, some hearts, and a Zelda sword—but said this was the first one she got with functionality in mind. She shared the footage of her checkout experiment online, where it exploded. TikTok pulled in nearly 8 million views. Over 17 million on Instagram.

In the video, she scans her arm at a self-checkout terminal. The register beeps, the drink appears on-screen, and Dew points proudly to the charge for a 250ml can of Red Bull.

“For everyone wondering if my Red Bull barcode works, yes, it does,” she wrote in the caption. And yes, people had thoughts.

“$1.50 for a Red Bull? WHERE?” asked one viewer. “Need one of these for Cadbury Creme Eggs,” said another. Some were just impressed by the commitment. “Now, this is ART. Hell yeah.”

Even Red Bull Germany chimed in, calling it “Inkcredible.” Others were more skeptical. “What she gonna do when the barcode changes?” one person commented. Dew’s reply: “Not care.”

Functional tattoos aren’t common, especially ones that can trick a scanner. Whether the barcode keeps working or not, Dew doesn’t seem pressed. “It was just funny,” she said. “And it actually worked.”