These days we’re pumping out handsoap like it’s tap water. Personal hygiene is a daily ritual that feels so natural and intrinsic to the human body, that we might not recognize the impact it has on the environment. Packaged soap relies heavily on non-renewable resources to create plastic containers which cannot be broken down after getting disposed of, polluting our waters and continuing a harmful cycle of toxic production and waste. Japanese design firm, Nendo designed a hand soap dispenser called Carton + Pump to combat that waste.
The Carton + Pump comprises a fixed pump and base and a disposable, paper body that can be switched out for one filled with soap once finished. The carton, which is made from paper and takes the shape of a classic milk carton, gets positioned upside down into the dispenser’s base so that the pump can be inserted. Carton + Pump’s final form sandwiches the carton between the pump and its separate base to appear as a typical handsoap dispenser. The carton’s shape allows users to use up the dispenser’s contents to its last drop as all the extra handsoap collects into the carton’s triangular roof. To avoid the carton collapsing with frequent pumping, the designers behind Carton + Pump designed it so that the dispenser’s top and bottom covers evenly disperse pressure.
Bathroom storage cabinets can quickly fill up with plastic containers, toilet paper, and cotton pads. Carton + Pump’s shape makes it so users can stack extra cartons directly on top of one another, without creating yet another disorganized pile of bathroom supplies. The creators at Nendo have so far designed two types of pumps, one for liquid soap and another for foam soap, and two sizes of replacement cartons are currently available: 250ml and 400ml.
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