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Chain Drugstore Daily 1 5 Sunday, April 26, 2020 How to Choose a Probiotic: A Blueprint for Retailers Who Want Repeat Purchases The proliferation of probiotics has creat- ed opportunities for retailers to grow sales. Yet, the breadth of products makes it hard to select which SKUs to stock. Probiotic ingredient leader DuPont shares a blueprint for picking products that drive repeat purchases. More and more consumers are inter- ested in using probiotics, but that strong interest only translates into repeat pur- chases some of the time. Consumers who stop buying probiotics cite confusion about which products to take as the main barrier to long-term use, creating an opportunity for retailers to grow sales by providing clarity. Retailers that stock their shelves with high-quality, viable, clinically vali- dated probiotics narrow consumer choice to the products that are most likely to have consistent health benefits. In doing so, retailers increase the likelihood of repeat purchases. The challenge for retailers is to know which probiotics are most likely to deliver health benefits. At first glance, that challenge can appear daunting, par- ticularly given the use of scientific and industry jargon, but in practice the task of picking probiotics can be split into three simple steps that inform all purchasing decisions. The first step is to identify the strain or strains on the product label. High- quality products provide clinical data specific to the probiotic strain included in the product. The clinical study should list the genus, species and the strain and reflect what is included in the product at this efficacious dose; such as Lactobacillus acidophilus ABC, rather than just more general information such as the genus and species. Seeing that a study makes a claim at the strain level is one way that retail- ers can quickly gauge the quality of a clinical trial. Other key aspects to a quality probiotic product include the design of the clinical study, including number of participants, as larger trials can often give more robust results. Clinical trial results should also be run using Good Clinical Practice (GCP) and published in a peer-reviewed journal. All efficacy endpoints promoted on the prod- uct label as benefits should demonstrate p values of less than 0.05, indicating that the findings are statistically significant and unlikely to be explained by chance. Additionally, confirmation that the probiotic product contains the same amount, or more, of the probiotic strain(s) demonstrated in the study to provide health benefit(s) is of utmost importance. That can easily be done by comparing the CFU – Colony Forming Units – amounts in the product and the study. Finally, the retailer should ensure that the CFU figure listed on a product label refers to the amount of probiotic strain that is present through to the end of its shelf life, not just at the time of manufacture. A CFU figure given for the time of manu- facture can fall significantly by the expi- ration date, resulting in dead cells and rendering a product less effective than expected. Retailers that follow those three steps stand to stock products that deliver health benefits consumers can recognize and trust, thereby raising the chances of repeat purchases. Learn more at www.dupontnutritionand biosciences.com. HurryCane Still No. 1 in United States With a growing group of senior citizens in the United States, the demand for durable medical and mobility equipment continues to rise. This group of senior cit- izens is the wealthiest this country has ever seen, resulting in an all-time high demand for quality and stylish equip- ment. These customers are shopping in retail stores and looking for products that meet their needs. Since the introduction of the HurryCane ® on television in 2012, it continues to be the No. 1 selling walk- ing cane in the United States (Nielsen Total US XAOC Canes – 52 Weeks Ending 01/20/20). The HurryCane highlights great features such as stand- ing on its own, the patented flex base that maintains contact with the ground for stability and folding for easy trans- port and storage. The HurryCane also comes in four colors: Black, Roadrunner Red, Trailblazer Blue and Pathfinder Purple. These features, com- bined with nationwide television and print advertising, have made the HurryCane a house- hold name. The majority of all HurryCanes are sold from retail store shelves. HurryCane nationwide advertising drives customers into stores to make their pur- chase. Their targeted destination shopping combined with higher-than-average spending power makes for a valuable consumer coming through store doors. More than 25 percent of HurryCane pur- chases are made by repeat customers buying additional colors and accessories. Grow your HurryCane sales by offering all four colors on your shelves. HurryCane also has multi- ple display options. Standalone displays have been shown to increase sales by three times over the standard on-shelf or pegged inline products. Millions of customers love their HurryCanes and trust the HurryCane mobility brand. For more information, email hurryretail@ drivemedical.com. Spot-Not Glass Cleaner & Polisher We all have those glasses that are hard to clean, especially champagne flutes or glasses that are so thin the bowls break easily when you accidentally apply too much pressure with the towel. Spot-Not is here to make the job easier and safer. With its long flexible fingers supporting its dedicated drying pad, you can quickly and easily dry and polish the inside of any glass. Its flexibility allows you to use just the right amount of pressure which is spread evenly on a large section of the bowl, helping to reduce accidental break- age during drying. After use, the drying pad can be machine washed and dried. Spot-Not is a great gift for any wine lover you know. Spot-Not comes in retail-friendly packaging and master packs of 12, so it is really easy to buy. CDU Packaging is available. Spot-Not is a product of the Wine Lovers group, a consortium of profes- sional-grade wine accessories. Wine Lovers is introducing a new decanter drying rack, The Swan, that folds up to save space when not in use. Wine Lovers welcomes independent gourmet/kitchen stores, gift shops and importers from other countries. You are the preferred customer and Wine Lovers loves working with you! Remember, every wine lover needs a Spot-Not! For more information, go to www.wineloverscollection.com. The World's Most Advanced Robot Cleaner Just Got Even Better With 100 percent ownership of its R&D and manufacturing, and a 20-year history in smart home robotics, ECOVACS has become one of the top three market lead- ers in the smart home cleaning space. The company continues to grow and innovate with the DEEBOT OZMO T8 AIVI™ (Artificial Intelligence & Visual Interpretation). T8 AIVI takes the 2019 award-winning DEEBOT OZMO 960, the first AI-powered floor cleaning robot in the industry, to another level. Its upgraded AI engine and a new "true map- ping" laser-based navigation technology make it the most advanced vacuum-plus- mop robot on the market. It adapts to home environments two times faster, while reducing the risk of getting stuck on typical "robot unfriendly" items by 60 percent. The idea of "no cleaning before cleaning" has never been so true. In addition to vacuuming, DEEBOT OZMO T8 AIVI mopping functionality can remove up to 99.26 percent of bacte- ria with its adjustable and precise water flow control (according to a study from the Hygiene ＆ Microbiology Research Center of Japan). The robot features three hours of battery life – enough for one full cleaning pass, and 30 to 170 percent more than competitive robot vacuum cleaners. For the first time, large homes now have the perfect cleaning assistant. DEEBOT OZMO T8 AIVI also comes with live video streaming on demand. For people who've ever wondered if they've left the iron plugged in or want to check in on their beloved pet, the T8 AIVI can be a great help whenever it may be needed. Finally, DEEBOT OZMO T8 AIVI was designed to be launched at an afford- able price point of $799.99. ECOVACS has also announced the rebranding of its popular DEEBOT OZMO 950 to DEEBOT OZMO T5, as it begins moving its premium family of cleaning robots to the T ("technology- driven") nomenclature. DEEBOT OZMO T5 is a more affordable version of the T8 AIVI, with an estimated price of $599.99 at launch. With a lower bar- rier to entry, sophisticated technology and approachable pricing, ECO- VACS remains singularly focused on making daily lives easier and more efficient with intelligent and connected robot- ics for the home. For more information, go to www .ecovacs.com.