What a trolley good idea
Geometry is reintroducing Handle on Hygiene, the shopping cart sanitisation system it developed with Lifebuoy five years ago.
WPP commerce agency Geometry has re-deployed its ‘Handle on Hygiene’ during the current global pandemic, and for what is likely to become the new norm afterwards.
The world-first innovation was conceived in 2015 by Geometry MENA and Barrows, a manufacturer of physical and digital experiences for retail, in partnership with Lifebuoy, a Unilever sanitiser brand. Deployed across more than 500 supermarkets over a two-year period, the technology instantly applies a thin layer of sanitiser liquid to any supermarket or store trolley handle, killing 99.9 per cent of germs, with one simple swipe. As customers touch food, swipe and then retouch the handle, their hands and the handle are completely re-sanitised. Geometry will introduce the creative commerce solution to retailers and brands globally in response to the current Covid-19 pandemic.
The need for vigilant and efficient shopping hygiene and sanitisation measures has increased dramatically over the past few weeks as consumers and retailers worldwide grapple with ways to combat the spread of Covid-19. With health organisations urgently recommending the public to take the right hygiene precautions, notable among them is the frequent disinfecting of areas touched by others. Retailers have been quick to respond to concerns, deploying a variety of in-store solutions.
More than 60 per cent of shoppers globally are avoiding touching objects, according to YouGov, while half are looking for ways to enter and exit stores as quickly as possible, according to Global WebIndex Report.
These behaviours will have lasting implications on the physical retail environment, with new considerations of hygiene solutions being tested globally from the addition of sanitiser wipes and pumps at store entrances and ‘no touch’ zones to innovations in packaging and contactless payments.
“The Handle on Hygiene device is the only sustainable innovation that can be implemented and controlled with confidence by the consumer along their shopping journey,” said Geometry in a statement.