Your Brand to the Rescue: Innovative Disaster Relief

At Boxman Studios, we believe in the idea of betterment – improvement through change, not maintenance. Nowhere is the need for innovative solutions greater than in the aftermath of natural disasters. Every day, we imagine what we can do to improve our shipping containers and enhance the experiences we create for our clients. Now we’re thinking about how we can use our know-how in creating immersive branding environments to improve disaster response and help immerse victims in safe spaces.

Mobile Relief: Deployed Anywhere, Anytime

In 2011, a mile-wide EF5 tornado crashed into Joplin, Missouri. It caused nearly $3 billion in damage and was one of the most severe tornadoes in U.S. history. While the city received a $1 billion aid package from the federal government, relief funds are always under pressure. Agencies like the Red Cross do tremendous work to help communities, but they too are stretched thin.

Here’s what we envision: mobile units, fully equipped with medical supplies, blankets, clean water, cots, and other staples that can roll out to areas affected by natural disasters. Sponsored by responsive brands, mobile relief units could fill in some of the gaps and provide critical services to help people get back on their feet.

The precedent exists. After Hurricane Katrina, Tide created a mobile laundromat with 32 energy-efficient washers and dryers capable of handling 300 loads of laundry a day. For many Gulf Coast families, the clothes they were wearing were the only ones they had left. “Loads of Hope” provided free help and a lot of comfort.

Filling a Need for Communities

Today, with advances we’ve made in shipping container technology, we can expand the possibilities even further: mobile medical units, temporary shelters, kitchens, command centers. The variety of functions for modified shipping containers is virtually limitless with the core goal of providing essential services to those in need.

This is an excellent opportunity for brands to get involved in their communities and play a part in helping people rebuild. And, the best part is, it’s implementable across the country and across the globe. With very little notice, brands can deploy and help people begin to rebuild, starting with rebuilding their hope.