Loop PR

New stats revealed from UK’s first male grooming monthly box delivery scheme, Men Are Useless

78 per cent of men admit to stealing their partner’s toiletries in the bathroom, according to a new website service, menareuseless.com.

Launching this week, Men Are Useless is the UK’s first male grooming subscription service which delivers a letter-boxed sized, high quality, monthly toiletries pack designed to solve one of the more irritating male habits.

The service, which surveyed hundreds of men across all age ranges, found they frequently run out of their own toiletries, with the highest proportion (38 per cent) admitting to stealing shampoo, ten per cent their partner’s razor and another seven per cent owning up to using their partner’s toothbrush.

Asked to name their most desperate bathroom moments, one in five admitted washing all over with conditioner, with seven per cent saying they’ve resorted to using washing up liquid.

Paul Johnson, Men Are Useless founder, said: “The idea behind Men Are Useless is very clear – we’re here to cover the boring, but important, bits of men’s lives and we’re starting with the UK’s first monthly male toiletry delivery scheme. Let’s face it - men would rather be out there catching baddies or practicing wheelies than browsing the shopping aisles. Our service will bring relief to men and women alike – great brands brought together on a monthly basis either as a way of avoiding that last minute dash to the shops or as a gift for someone useless.”

Packs start from £9.99 per month (including delivery) and contain everything from shower gel and shampoo through to razors and shave gel.

Guy Jeremiah, entrepreneur and Chief Executive of Aquatina, has already joined up. He said: “I love taking care of my appearance but I just don’t have the time to consider which products I need and I never remember to keep the bathroom cabinet stocked up. I love the Men Are Useless idea – it just gives me one less thing to worry about and several less shops to visit.”

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Notes to Editors

· More details of the service at www.menareuseless.com

· The survey, conducted in June 2010, questioned 400 men via Survey Monkey.

· A 2007 report from the market research firm Mintel found that between 2002 and 2006 the male grooming market in the UK tripled in value to an estimated worth of £781m, and sales of men’s body lotions, body toning gels, depilatories and suncare products increased by 77% over the same period.

All media enquiries to Louise Evans at Loop PR, 07891 242476

Well hello again!

Aquatina, the world’s first collapsible pocket bottle, sold out in just three days after going on sale at Howies flagship store on Carnaby Street on Monday. Howies were London’s first retailer of the bottle, initially dismissed as ‘impossible to make’ by design experts, and also the first shop to appear on Aquatina’s Find-a-Fountain map which shows Londoners where they can fill up their bottles for free.

“Aquatina is a perfect fit for Howies - its stylish and eco-friendly making it the perfect accessory for sale by the water fountains in our stores. We’re delighted to be London’s first retailer to stock it”
said Adrian Gunn, Commercial Director at Howies.

The first unique batch of Aquatina bottles costing under £5 each went on sale in Sheffield in June. Paul Iseard of The Famous Sheffield Shop on Ecclesall Road said “They’re really handy and light and the design is amazing. You can just put it in your bag and forget about it until you want to refill. We are delighted to have sold the first 400 Aquatina! We opened specially on a Sunday to sell them at the Sheffield Half Marathon which passed in front of our shop.”

The Aquatina pocket bottle has been devised to provide an environmentally-friendly and economical
alternative to disposables: a collapsible bottle that can be filled with water from a tap or fountain when needed. Each refillable half-litre bottle is made of food-safe plastic, and collapses to 30% of its size.

“It’s designed to fit into a pocket or handbag so that like your keys or mobile, you can always have it with you.’ Unlike many re-usable bottles, the Aquatina is free of BPA chemicals that have been implicated with a range of health problems.”
Said William Parsons, Wares Design MD and Aquatina designer

The creation of the Aquatina was initially dismissed as impossible by design experts, because of the problems inherent in blow-moulding technology. But following a year-long process, a patent pending design has been created by Wares Design and manufactured by William Becketts Plastics, both in Sheffield.

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Notes:
The average person in the Europe buys 85 bottles of mineral water a year, at a cost of over £100. A typical UK local authority disposes of up to 10 million bottles a year at great cost to tax payers. Last year, humans worldwide threw away 5,000 bottles a second - 150 billion bottles a year, enough to circle the world over a 1000 times or stretch to the moon and back 50 times. Watch the Aquatina movie on www.aquatina.net and view photos on the Aquatina Facebook page.

A Torbay father, whose two year old daughter has recovered from a brain tumour, is taking part in a cycle ride to raise money for the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust.

Alex Lioubine, 31, is getting together a team of six to take on the Bontrager 24-hour endurance cycle race.

They will race around a 12 to 14km offroad course at Newnham Park in Plymouth on 24th July 2010.

“I am new to mountain biking so this is going to be a huge challenge for me. My daughter has been very lucky but there are too many people that don’t get a second chance. Research into brain tumours must continue and the funding must increase, which is why I have chosen to support the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust. ” said Alex

Alex is raising money for the Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust, the biggest brain tumour charity in the UK. It currently spends around £1m per year on much-needed research in this field.

Paul Carbury, CEO of the charity, said: ‘We are so grateful to those people who take time out of their lives to raise funds for The Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust. Our fundraising efforts support vital research which helps the medical profession shape their understanding of this devastating and complex disease. In 2009, we funded a record £1m of research and our projects were responsible for announcing a range of significant breakthroughs. It’s thanks to the support we receive from the general public that we can continue to do this.”

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Notes to editors

About Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust (SDBTT)

Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust is the leading adult and childhood brain tumour charity dedicated to research in the UK. The charity’s aim is to raise awareness, support and funds for brain tumour research to help fight this devastating disease and give hope to brain tumour patients in the future. It also offers support and information to patients and their carers.

The charity has been working to find a cure for brain tumours since it was set up in 1996 by Samantha’s parents, Neil and Angela Dickson.  Since then millions of pounds have been raised for brain tumour research and support services for patients and carers, and the charity has become the largest dedicated funder of brain tumour research in the UK.

More information on Samantha Dickson Brain Tumour Trust is available by calling 0845 130 9733 or visiting www.braintumourtrust.co.uk

General Statistics

Out of the £420million spent on cancer research in the UK per year, less than 1% is spent on brain tumour research.
6,500 people are diagnosed each year with a primary brain tumour.
3,400 people lose their lives to a brain tumour each year.
Despite being the biggest childhood cancer killer and causing more deaths among the under 40s than any other cancer statistics show that brain cancer has received only a fraction of the funding of higher profile cancers. Statistics also show that high profile cancers have received up to 20 times the investment of brain cancer and have seen survival rates almost double in 30 years.
Often dubbed the ‘forgotten cancer’, the UK’s brain cancer survival rates have barely changed in 30 years whereas other cancer types have seen clear improvements.
Brain tumours cause the greatest reduction in life expectancy of any cancer - at over 20 years of life lost on average - and are the biggest killer of adults under 40.
People affected by brain tumours can suffer long-term adverse effects as a result of the tumour and treatment they receive – this adds 12,000 disabled life years in the UK each year.

SDBTT Statistics

Record year from 1st April 2008 – 31st March 2009

Record income of £1.3m for the year
Record research expenditure of £1m
Three major research breakthroughs:
University of Newcastle – our research team have pinpointed characteristics of medulloblastoma tumours that could help to determine the severity of an individual child’s cancer. A new project is now trialling a UK-wide system for testing tumour samples and will assess whether this could be used routinely to improve diagnosis and tailor treatment for individual patients.
Queen Mary University, London – our research team has made a major breakthrough with regard to the childhood brain tumour pilocytic astrocytoma. Research has identified certain genetic changes that are frequently found in these tumours, and which relate to a pathway that is likely to be involved in the development of the tumour.

National Hospital University College London – for the first time in the UK adult high grade brain tumour patients are having a chromosome test on their tumour samples. The test identifies approximately one in three patients whose tumour is far more reactive to chemotherapy
6,500 people are diagnosed each year with a primary brain tumour.
3,400 people lose their lives to a brain tumour each year.

A well-known theme park has announced a new kind of venture involving monkey business! Chessington World of Adventures has linked up with the Good Natured Limited smoothie brand Happy Monkey, to provide a strong marketing offer in a match facilitated by TouchDown,The Brand-Dating Agency ™.

A 2-for-1 offer for admission to Chessington World of Adventures features on Happy Monkey’s 4-pack boxes of Kids Smoothies to all retailers.

This best in market brand affinity offer will run until at least October 2010 and features in a front-of-box flash plus full details on the side of the box. Inside are two data-capture vouchers for customers to redeem.

Chessington World of Adventures opened as a theme park and animal adventure park in 1987. It now has a total of 27 rides and attractions at, suitable for everyone from tiny tots to experienced theme park fans, as well as over 1,000 animals and a SEA LIFE centre. New for this year is the KOBRA, a spinning disc ride that rockets through the air on a 90m track at a dizzying 43mph!

The Good Natured and Happy Monkey brands are promoted as offering health and well-being. Happy Monkey is positioned as an all-natural product – GMO and pesticide-free, with no artificial colours, flavours, sweeteners, flavouring or preservatives – developed for children aged from pre-school to 13. Their 24- to 40-year old mums are the target market and make an ideal co-promotional match for Chessington’s family orientated customers.

TouchDown - The Brand Dating Agency™

TouchDown leads the market in brand partnerships with its BrandMine™ service.

Their service helps clients across UK and European markets reach new audiences through cooperation with other brands – at a fraction of the cost it would take to do it

independently.

“There are a huge amount of businesses whose customer demographics crossover.  We help these companies work together with each other to both enhance their own offering and get access to new customers in the heart of their target market.”

Gavan Stewart, TouchDown Founder

They hold a unique in-house database, BrandMine™ that contains most of the UK and Europe’s top brands. All have registered with TouchDown to work with other companies and organisations.

Men Are Useless delivers ‘all the things that men can’t be bothered to remember through their letterbox every month’.  It’s mainly toiletries and things loads of chaps only realise they don’t have once they’re in the shower.  We think it’s a great idea and look forward to representing them when they launch in late July.  For now you can follow their rather funny, sarcastic facebook page by ‘liking’ over here