LSN : Daily Signals : Mastercard expands its True Name commitment

A folding bottle for sustainable sipping

Origami Bottle by DiFold

Bulgaria – Technology start-up DiFold has launched an Origami Bottle using collapsible design technology.

The design is the first re-usable bottle that can fold down to 80% of its original size while also remaining stable when unfolded. Its functional and practical design allows users to easily carry the bottle while commuting or during leisure activities. While re-usable bottles have become a sustainability staple in recent years as brands and consumers continue to shun single-use plastic, the compact design of the Origami Bottle offers twofold benefits.

Radina Popova, co-founder of DiFold, said: ‘As the world enters the new normal, single-use is going like crazy. Emissions are -17% but we’re not addressing climate change in the long term. It’s more important than ever to be more conscious of our personal impact.’

As we identify in our Re-usable Packaging Market, a growing concern about plastic packaging is fuelling new innovations in the FMCG sector.

CityRadio enables imagination travel

CityRadio by Emanuele Pizzolorusso

Italy – Design studio Pizzolorusso has created a radio that offers access to local radio stations from around the world.

The CityRadio features buttons labelled with city names including Beijing, Moscow and Berlin. Created as a re-imagination of early radios, the contemporary design encourages users to engage with multicultural content outside of the internet. Emanuele Pizzolorusso, designer of CityRadio, said: ‘In my childhood home there was an old portable radio, one of those appliances that had the names of several European cities on the tuning dials – a feature from the time when one could still listen to stations from foreign countries.’

During the inter-Covid period, people are likely to seek new forms of cultural immersion, leaning further towards the idea of Imagination Travel.

Mastercard expands its True Name commitment

True Name by Mastercard

Global – Mastercard is expanding its commitment to transgender communities with its True Name initiative.

Since announcing the commitment in 2019, the bank has worked with BMO Harris Bank to further roll out the option of providing an alternative name to a user’s official identification. Initially launched for personal debit cards, the initiative is now available for small business credit and debit cards. As people’s bank cards can act as a barrier for LGBT+ communities, often misrepresenting their true identity, this change can both empower and protect individuals in their daily lives.

This scheme is particularly poignant at a time when the UK government is set to allow people to legally change their gender. With one third of individuals facing harassment for having an ID that doesn’t conform with their gender, according to a recent survey by National Center for Transgender Equality, Mastercard is stepping up without waiting for the government to change its policies.

Beyond purpose-watching initiatives, brands have the ability to provide genuine support to marginalised communities in place of societal infrastructures. For more, read Civic Brands.

Stat: Beauty consumers wary of stores re-opening

Villa de Mûrir by Collective B, Seoul

As stores begin to re-open in the inter-Covid period, beauty buyers still feel uneasy about returning to bricks-and-mortar shopping.

According to a recent survey from Influenster, 24% of shoppers said they wouldn’t be returning to buying beauty products in-store. With consumers feeling especially concerned about health and safety measures, some 30% said they would be more likely to visit stores if brands stopped product testing.

The respondents considered precautions like single-dose sampling, complimentary hand sanitisers, touch-free payments and prohibiting returns as methods to ensure the safety of shoppers.

With many consumers approaching the inter-Covid era with caution, beauty and wellness spaces will have to further prioritise the importance of Recuperative Living as a way to regain customer trust.