Sun Screen Seeks Exposure

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The latest innovation in skin care will have to wait a couple of more weeks to have its day in the sun.

Sun-screen dispenser Sun Shield, which works the same way as automatic hand-sanitizer dispensers found in hospitals, will be placed in more than a dozen locations around events at the 2015 Special Olympics World Games later this month.

Sun Shield is the brian child of Tyler Haggstrom and Allen Starnes. The idea came to Haggstrom, former chief executive and creative director at toy designer Symbiote System Studios, when he was biking in Manhattan Beach a few years ago. Although he had applied sun screen earlier that day, it started to wear out a couple of hours into his ride, leaving his face and arms vulnerable to the scorching sun.

“He thought it would be nice to have a dispenser available for him to use,” Starnes said. “At that point, the idea clicked in his head and he thought, This should be something every location should have.”

Each unit will hold enough sun screen for about 500 people before needing a refill, Starnes said.

Sun Shield will earn revenue from selling units and ads. The partners also will charge customers for sun-screen refills.

The partners formed Sun Shield in 2012, and the company hasn’t generated revenue yet. They are donating the units to the Special Olympics, figuring the exposure will help ramp up sales.

Starnes envisions dispensers in parks, beaches, hotels and schools all over California, eventually rolling out nationwide. Sun Shield has been in talks with the city of Los Angeles since June to have dispensers at public venues, Starnes said.

– Covey Son

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