Say hello to Giki, your sustainable shopping companion

As consumers, we may have the best intentions when it comes choosing products that tick our boxes for ethics, sustainability and for our health, however making those decisions has by no means been a simple task, until now!

We’re thrilled to announce the launch of Giki, the app designed to make sustainable shopping simpler.

When you buy a product, magazines and online aren’t necessarily the quickest and easiest way to gain information.

That idea of wanting to make the right decisions but being overwhelmed or even baffled by the information, or lack thereof, formed the basis of James and Jo Hand’s vision in 2017. The husband and wife co-founders wanted to create an app that equipped consumers with all the information they needed to make those decisions, all in a few taps and in one convenient place. Jo explained to us in a recent interview, “There’s a lot of information out there already in magazines and online…but I don’t think when you buy a product that’s necessarily the quickest and easiest way to gain the information.”

At Simpleweb we invest in people and ideas and we love how committed James and Jo are to creating a more sustainable future. Over the past 12 months, we’ve been working closely with them to develop the Giki app, from the initial MVP release, which allowed a group of test users to scan products and return data, to an updated version which allowed users to find alternatives more in line with their values. Now finally, this product launch that beautifully brings together data on 12 different categories and awards badges for each that the product meets.

Put simply, here’s how Giki works:

1. Scan a product in-app using the camera.
2. Giki tells you how many badges out of possible maximum number it’s awarded that product.
3. You can learn more about the reasons why badges were or weren’t awarded.
4. Giki offers some alternatives for you with an equal or better score.

   

Whilst the team at Simpleweb have been busy putting the finishing touches to the app, James and Jo have been out there telling people about Giki, and getting some amazing feedback.

James presented to over 150 people at TechHub London in May with 80% of people eager to use the app, meanwhile, sustainability blogger Jason Wicks reviewed the app saying, “Whether we like it or not, most people won’t shop responsibly if they have to go out of their way to do so. I think Giki solves that problem.”

We’ve been scan-happy this week in the Simpleweb office, having scanned most items in sight it turns out we’ve got a fairly sustainable kitchen, but there’s definitely some room for improvement.

Giki is available on iOS now in the App Store, download it and discover how sustainable, ethical and healthy your home really is.