Can “Design” really save lives? Project #SafeHands was part of Colgate-Palmolive’s response to the Covid-19 pandemic.

In partnership with W.H.O., a small group of very senior Colgate-Palmolive leaders came together to create, execute and deploy 25 million bars of soap to people without access to basic hygiene – the first line of defense against the COVID-19 virus.

We designed bright red packaging with with iconic messaging on the front, and ‘proper’ hand washing instructions on the back as icons, so everyone, no matter what language they spoke, could understand how to correctly wash their hands.

Outcome
Because of the urgency, this project went from inception to distribution in under two weeks – a record for the Colgate-Palmolive marketing and supply chain.

In total, Colgate-Palmolive donated 26.5 million bars of soap and saved countless lives in the process. When I think about Design making material positive impact at global scale, this is what comes to mind.