Proximity's Hope Locker makes splash for WaterAid

As the fall-out over charity marketing refuses to die down, Proximity London has come up with a novel fundraising idea, dubbed the ‘Hope Locker’, and has signed WaterAid as its first client.
The initiative marries a video display with a coin-operated changing room locker. Consumers insert a pound to secure their belongings and release the key. When they return to get changed, instead of simply releasing the coin consumers are first asked if they would like to donate it to charity.
In trials, Proximity London partnered with WaterAid and targeted the fitness industry. When consumers returned to their lockers, they were then served a personalised message telling them that in the exact time they were swimming, dirty water killed one child per minute in the developing world.
The video stated: “Your £1 could give a child safe drinking water for 4 months”, and included a prompt to return the coin, or donate it.
By allowing the donor to register their details with the charity it also facilitates an ongoing relationship with the cause. Working with the production agency MediaMonks, the first prototype locker was tested in Richmond at the end of 2015 and was designed using bespoke 3D software.
Using a 3D printer, MediaMonks created self-contained hardware that connected the mechanics of the lock to an Android tablet, joining hardware and software together.
Proximity is planning to roll out the technology to other venues in London once funding has been finalised.
Proximity London executive creative director John Treacy said: “Would any of us choose to drink swimming pool water? No. Yet it’s cleaner than what most of the world are forced to drink every day. The Hope Locker really dials up the empathy – and our trials have shown this to be a powerful spur for donation.”
WaterAid special projects manager Charlotte Forrest added: “I love this idea – It’s really different and innovative, and there’s a clear link to our vision and values as an organisation. We’re really excited to see how the idea can be further developed after the encouraging test results.”