An Australian design is set to finally offer a sustainable alternative to the millions of shopping bags which are still used each year by Aussie consumers and solve the headache of abandoned shopping trolleys which costs the retail industry *an estimated $50 million a year.

Made from recycled milk bottles and weighing only 12kg, the environmentally friendly Shoppa Cart is a personal shopping trolley which shoppers are able to effortlessly load to and from their car boot, providing a seamless supermarket to pantry experience without the need for plastic bags.

The concept for the Shoppa Cart came from Perth woman Jeanne O’Donnell who became frustrated at continually leaving her reusable shopping bags at home. Conscious of the detrimental impact plastic has on the environment, she suddenly thought, “why can’t people just have their own personal shopping trolley and then they wouldn’t need bags.” 

Jeanne took her idea to industrial designer, Edward Khoury at Form Designs, who has created some of the country’s most innovative products including the Aquarius Shark Barrier, Licetec Lice Comb, Cyclevision Bike Helmet, Blazaball, and the Fly6 Bicycle Camera.

They then spent a year designing, testing and refining the trolley, using state-of-the-art 3D printing to create fully functioning prototypes.

According to Edward, Jeanne’s insights combined with clever design elements have led to a final product which not only delivers an easy to use and navigate trolley, but one that re-imagines shopping.

“Today shopping is all about the experience and we’ve included features such as a coffee cup holder, a secure space to keep your purse and keys and a mobile phone mount which allows you to refer to your smart phone for a shopping list or recipes.

“The phone mount also lends itself perfectly to the new smart technology which is currently being trialled by supermarkets,” he said.

Not surprisingly, Jeanne has been the first to road-test the Shoppa Cart and she has been amazed with its functionality and the ease of sliding in and out of the car boot.

“It’s lightweight, stylish and really easy to navigate which is a departure from the supermarket and discount department store trolleys which seem to have a mind of their own when it comes to direction.

“There’s plenty of room to accommodate a family shop and I love the idea of being able to take it to a shopping centre and go from retailer to retailer too,” she said.

The Shoppa Cart has a life span of at least ten years and is expected to retail for around $149 making it a cost-effective investment in saving the planet. It fits easily into the boot of most cars with smart retractable legs and ingenious elastic straps protecting vehicle interiors and exteriors.

Edward said initial feedback on the trolley has been overwhelming.

“While we plan to launch in Australia, we can see Shoppa Cart having a global market, so we have decided to give people a chance to get onboard for our initial manufacturing run through a Kickstarter Campaign,” he said.

“This is the chance for environmentally-conscious shoppers to be the first to own the future of shopping, now.”

The first Shoppa Carts are expected to be available in mid 2020.

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