Westfield launches 5-year partnership with Unilever to introduce sanitising stations

Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield has launched a five-year partnership with Unilever to provide hygiene soap brand Lifebuoy to all 66 centres in the group’s UK and European property portfolio.

Launched yesterday at Westfield London and Westfield Stratford, the partnership with Lifebuoy will feature in key centre marketing campaigns and initiatives, plus media campaigns on digital screens across the shopping centres.

Lifebuoy, Unilever’s top selling hand sanitiser brand, will provide sanitisation units in 66 centres across 11 countries including the United Kingdom, France, Germany, Spain, Sweden and Austria.

Lifebuoy is an integral part of the Unilever portfolio of brands, founded in 1894 to help fight the cholera pandemic, and returned to the UK in 2020 in light of the COVID-19 pandemic. The hand sanitiser gel kills 99.9% of viruses and bacteria, and is accredited by the Royal Society of Public Health.

Dispensers will be positioned at multiple points around the centres including lift lobbies, escalator points and within the food court areas.

Grace Charge, Head of Brand Experience for UK and Europe at URW, commented: “We are delighted to launch our five year partnership with Unilever, giving Lifebuoy the ultimate platform across our European centre portfolio with access to 800m customers each year. This partnership reinforces our commitment to the health and safety of visitors and retailers within our destinations, creating a safe, welcome and enjoyable experience for all.

“Brand’s choose to partner with us as we create unique opportunities to deliver innovative, memorable experiences that customers can engage with which offer mutual benefits for both our customers and brands. We look forward to providing the world’s number one hygiene soap brand at our centres.”

Benoit Roger-Machart, Managing Director, Lifebuoy UK & Ireland, added: “By providing the millions of people that visit Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield destinations each month with our state-of-the-art dispensers and sanitiser we’re able to provide shoppers with the reassurance they need to be able to return to shopping venues across Europe.”