Smartfill’s next-generation technology makes packageless retail a reality
Smartfill has announced two new dispenser models to help fight the scourge of household plastic and packaging waste and improve consumer affordability for developing markets.
A shampoo and bodywash dispenser co-developed with Transform, Unilever and BOPinc aims to reduce sachet usage in low-income markets. This innovative design will be released as an open-source project, and should cost less than $50/product dispensed to produce with off-the-shelf electronic components. This approach to an industry-wide initiative has not been done before and will help reduce the costs of dispensing units, which have historically been expensive to produce. The dispensers will now enter their second set of trials in Bangladesh with Unilever in small, informal stores.
A new version of Smartfill’s dry food dispenser is also being released, with two key innovations in the design. Enhanced user experience touches make it even easier for consumers to select the precise quantity they want to dispense and fill a paper bag or container with nuts, grains or powders. The dispenser weighs the amount and prints the barcode once completed.
The new design also enables a large-scale circular bulk packaging model by adopting standardised food-safe containers as product hoppers. These hoppers can be refilled at the manufacturer and shipped to retailers easily. Following an open-innovation model, the hoppers use existing plastic containers that are already in the market from multiple suppliers and are easy to stack and transport.
The technology evolution of Smartfill comes off the back of numerous pilots. These include pilots with Unilever in Kenya dispensing Sunlight washing powder; a pilot with SPAR in South Africa dispensing rice, sugar, coffee granules and coffee creamer, and a pilot dispensing chocolate-covered almonds, cashews and muesli in London, funded by UK Research and Innovation (UKRI), to name a few.
“With four years of R&D under our belt and learnings from extensive pilots, we have built a powerful technology platform that enables rapid innovation,” says Marc Wetselaar, COO of Smartfill. “We did more than 16,000 customer transactions in 2023 across a range of products and retail environments, enabling us to hone our products with real-world feedback.”
The IoT-powered smart dispensers connect to the Smartfill packageless stick management platform, giving manufacturers and retailers powerful real-world data, no matter where the dispensers are located. This informs both logistics and marketing.
Food affordability is a key issue in developing markets. By using smart dispensing technology, manufacturers and retailers meet a growing consumer need for smaller purchase sizes, without having to incur the additional cost of new packaging lines.
“We approached our technology with the mindset to scale, so our focus is on making the hardware and operating costs as cheap as possible,” says Smartfill CEO Nevo Hadas. “We understand that the dispensers have to achieve a positive business case, and this comes from three areas. Firstly, we increase sales because we meet the consumer demand for affordability. Secondly, we increase margins as retailers and manufacturers are dealing in bulk, but charging small package prices. We increase brand market share. Up to 40% of repeat purchasers in our trials were infrequent purchasers of the product before.”
“Packaging is an industrial age concept that is polluting our planet. It's only going to get more expensive, as greater responsibility is placed on manufacturers. Recycling cannot fix the problem. In some instances the packaging is more expensive than the materials inside - which doesn't make sense. By re-imagining retail to have “packaging” at the edge (retail) versus at the centre (manufacturing), the entire system changes. Many costs that go into packaging and logistics are avoided, adding value to manufacturers, retailers and consumers,” says Hadas.
Hadas emphasises the need for rapid, widespread adoption of these solutions. “The time for manufacturers, brands and retailers to move to packageless retail is now. The technology is available, the business case is compelling and the environmental imperatives are undeniable. Customers want it, and our planet needs it. It takes brave and future-facing organisations to embrace new technology, and lead the charge towards a more sustainable and responsible future.”
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