Strongbow updates packaging for visually impaired consumers
Heineken’s Strongbow cider brand has increased the accessibility of its packaging for blind and visually impaired consumers by adding NaviLens codes to its cans.
The Heineken-owned brand has partnered with Purple Goat, an inclusive marketing agency led by marketers and creatives with disabilities, to add an assistive technology feature directly to its packaging.
Strongbow’s cider products now feature a NaviLens QR code – a high-contrast, smartphone-readable marker that helps blind and partially sighted shoppers locate products.
The codes allow consumers to scan bottles from several meters away and hear ingredients, usage instructions, and responsible drinking guidelines via the NaviLens app, without needing to locate or focus on the label.
Dom Hyams, global client director at Purple Goat, said of the accessible packaging: “There is a huge opportunity for brands to connect with what is often an untapped customer base by simply thinking through an accessible and inclusive lens from the outset.”
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Nine in every 10 people with sight loss have reported finding packaging information difficult or impossible to read, according to the Royal National Institute of Blind People.
This is the first time Strongbow has introduced an accessibility aid like this to its physical product.
Rachel Holms, Strongbow’s cider brand director, said: “This wasn’t just about adding a QR code, it’s about understanding how people actually experience our product.”
She added: “Hearing directly from blind and visually impaired creators helped us see the gaps we hadn’t considered, and that input has shaped something far more meaningful. It’s a clear reminder that inclusive design isn’t optional, it’s essential.”
NaviLens, originally developed by the University of Alicante in Spain, was designed assist visually impaired people find their way around railway and subway stations, museums, libraries, and other public spaces.
The technology has been adopted by public transport operators in the UK as well as some supermarket products. However, Strongbow has said it hopes to encourage NaviLens usage within the wider FMCG industry.
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