Personal care dispenser boasting 75 percent less plastic to hit market in March

15 Jan 2020 --- SOPO – an acronym for Stick-On, Pull-Off Dispensers – is a new personal care dispenser that promises to declutter bathroom countertops while using 70 percent less plastic in its packaging. The invention was granted a Utility Patent on 19 November 2019 and is expected to hit the market in March 2020. The move comes as the personal care sector’s sustainability efforts in packaging are under pronounced scrutiny. Several major brands have launched recyclable plastic containers and refill, reuse options are rising in popularity.

“Evaluation charts have shown the dispenser to comprise up to 75 percent less plastic than the plastic bottles containing the same volume. This was verified by Polymer, which is our pouch manufacturer. The adhesive is a stretchable tape. It will either be a 3-meter Command Strip or something similar to it. The consumer simply pulls off the protective cover that exposes the adhesive and attaches it to the shower wall. It pulls off without damage or residue,” Edward Goldfarb, SOPO’s President and inventor, tells PackagingInsights.

“Our Mission Statement reflects our company’s values: SOPO is committed to providing the safest and most natural personal care products delivered in SOPO’s innovative, patented and eco-friendly packaging. We are dedicated to the preservation of our planet. Sopo the Frog, a red-eyed green tree frog, will be our ambassador and reinforce the need to do more to save our Earth. Like our frog, our dispensers stick on any surface and pull off without damaging the surface,” he adds.

As natural as possible
The dispensers can eliminate the array of bottles scattered on countertops and are recyclable. SOPO products are formulated by customized packaging developer Spa de Soleil and are made as natural as possible.

“No more squeezing, twisting, shaking or using two hands,” the company says. Once attached, SOPO is hands-free to use and benefits consumers with dexterity issues. Being gravity-fed eliminates the expensive pump and tube mechanism that often stops working. Moreover, the mechanism replaces the need to shake out or waste the last 10 percent of the product that usually remains at the bottom of the bottle. 

A spout located at the dispenser’s bottom has a one-way silicone valve that keeps the product inside until pressure is applied, allowing the product to immediately be released into the consumer’s hand, the company notes.

“The pouches are recyclable as sustainability is very important to millennials, Gen Ys and Gen Xs. Nothing at the present time is totally biodegradable, but we are working on it. Once there is a totally biodegradable pouch, we will try to be the first to use them,” Goldfarb says.

The first two products will be shampoo and conditioner, followed by body wash, moisturizer and a children’s line. SOPO also taps into many other applications: garages, hospitals, businesses and institutions. The company is also exploring the possibility of a hotel line of one-ounce Minis. 

“After a short test to ascertain future inventory requirements, we will also launch a body wash and moisturizer. This will be followed by toothpaste. We are working on a children’s line where the pouch will be in the shape of our Green Earth Ambassador, Sopo the Frog. The instructions will be to push on SOPO’s bellybutton and the product comes out the rear-end,” Goldfarb says.

“The applications are wide and varied and include, Minis (1 oz. for hotels), sanitizer for cars, strollers and hospital items,” he concludes.

Sustainability in personal care was highlighted during a number of international events such as the in-cosmetics Formulation Summit in London in November 2019 and the Cosmetics Business Packaging Live conference in Barcelona in October 2019. With environmental sustainability as the end goal, innovative packaging is expected to spearhead change in the industry.

By Kristiana Lalou