Can O’ Dreams makes the shortlist of Fountains Of Hygiene Competition

KANKAN’s collaboration with batch.works is born from a dream that hygiene of the future doesn’t need to cost the earth.

The volume of waste that has been generated by the COVID-19 crisis is not in the forefront of people’s minds, but for us here at KANKAN, a personal care brand devoted to fighting single-use plastics, it was one of the first things we considered. Whilst it’s critical to ensure that the current frontline workers are safe from harm, any progress that has been made for the refill & reuse campaign in recent years had been shelved the minute the gravitas of the crisis became apparent. Keep Cups were refused at coffee shops, antibacterial wipes were bought in volume and the scale of single use PPE use is of epic volumes. It seems this fight against waste will have to be picked up after this pandemic is over.

But we relished the opportunity to apply our ideas to this problem. When we heard about a competition aiming to reimagine the future of hygiene, we jumped at the chance to show that ‘refill and reuse’ and ‘hygiene’ needn’t be mutually exclusive. We submitted a project that was already in development with the clever folks at batch.works, offering a solution that can be both circular in its design and fit for a future where hygiene takes precedence.

1. Design a 3d digitally-printed dispenser from post-consumer PET waste that is both elegant, and practical.

2. The dispenser made bespoke for the consumer, ensures that the item fits perfectly in its environment both aesthetically and practically.

3. By manufacturing to order, the whole manufacturing process is zero-waste.

4. Use an aluminium KANKAN personal care refill within the dispenser. Aluminium is a ‘circular resource’ — meaning it’s able to be recycled infinitely without losing any of its materiality.

5. By using a ubiquitous design such as an aluminium can, we can utilise pre-exisiting supply chains, systems of use and waste streams that are key to ensure a circular design of life.

We are over the moon that the design has been shortlisted for the Bompas & Parr Fountains of Hygiene competition and that more people will see a solution that may be a dream, but is very much rooted in reality and that can be introduced into current day operations with immediate effect.

We will be showcased along the other shortlisted applications in Dezeen magazine, and in the Design Museum (this will be a virtual exhibition if the Corona virus impacts the re-opening) with all submissions being auctioned by Christie’s to raise money for the British Red Cross.