Case study

Red Button www.thisisredbutton.co.uk

RED
BUTTON
Products designed exclusively for
the aid and humanitarian sectors
INTRODUCTION
Amanda Jones and James Brown saw the
United Nations Millennium Development
Declaration in 2000 as a call to action. They
turned their creative talents to tackling social
issues and saving lives in developing countries.
Red Button Design was set up in 2007 to make
meaningful products that could improve lives.
SAFER WATER FOR THE
DEVELOPING WORLD
ROSS is an appropriate water transport,
sanitation and storage device for communities
lacking a local source of safe water. This might
be due to a disrupted water supply or where a
sustainable water infrastructure hasn’t yet been
established.
ROSS contains a 50-litre tank set on a rotating-
wheel device that drives the water filtration
system. Amanda explains: “It’s pushed like a
lawn mower, making it easier than traditional
methods of carrying 10-15 litres of water. It can
be filled from any surface water or nearby lake,
which is convenient for communities where the
nearest clean water supply can be more than 6
km away.” By the time the unit is rolled back to
the community, the water is safe to drink.
Around 1.2 billion people worldwide lack
easy access to safe drinking water, leading to
around 10,000 unnecessary deaths every day.
It’s estimated that over half this population
could benefit from the ROSS range.
DOING BUSINESS IN THE
HUMANITARIAN SECTOR
Red Button Design is a for-profit social
enterprise and operates in partnership
with a network of local co-operatives who
will  manufacture and distribute the products.
This collaborative way of working ensures local
communities benefit not only from the products
themselves but also, as shareholders, through
profit sharing.
The company’s mission is to design,
manufacture and supply products for the
humanitarian market. “We wanted to take up
the challenge of making products that make
people stop and think. Products that meet
human needs, rather than their desires,”
says Amanda.
Amanda and James have successfully raised
£72,000 through business competitions,
and grants to finance product development.
Product sales are expected to ramp up from
12,000 units in 2010 to 20,000 units in years
two and three. They’re also a pre-registered
supplier for the Red Cross.
KNOWING THE COST OF
RUNNING A BUSINESS
A three-year research and development
phase, combined with high set-up costs,
made it difficult to scope the business using
the standard pro formas of many business
support agencies. NESTA’s visual tools and
models allowed the Directors to explore their
business idea in a way that suited their creative
backgrounds.
Fake Evidence helped clarify the mission
statement, with Financial Modelling being
particularly useful. Amanda says: “We greatly
underestimated the cost and time it would
take to get the product to market. By creating
a cash flow model we realised we were
haemorrhaging money, and this made us
change the way we run the business. Business
is all about cash flow – it lets you see issues
before they become problems.”
WHAT’S NEXT?
Following meetings with the UN and World
Health Organisation, field trials are underway in
Ghana and India.
The directors’ ambition is two-fold: to develop
more products of social benefit; and to extend
their network of manufacturing cooperatives
with whom they can co-create products to
mutual benefit.
WORDS OF ADVICE
“If you’re willing for your business to be the
hardest work in your life; it will be the best fun
you ever have!”