Socking it to our Nurses
GLASGOW TRAVEL RETAILER DONATES 5,000
COMPRESSION SOCKS TO HELP FRONTLINE SCOTS NURSES
Firm pledges to give away further 5,000 to London nurses over next week
bringing total to 10,000
A Glasgow online travel retailer whose sales have dropped 95 per cent in the past
two weeks has donated 5,000 pairs of compression socks to help Scots nurses
combat Covid-19.
Worth £125,000, the colourful knee-length socks will help 5,000 acute nurses in six
hospitals across Scotland fight fatigue in the coming weeks.
And the firm has pledged to give away 5,000 more in the next seven days to nurses
in London , bringing the total to 10,000 (£250,000).
Trtl (pronounced ‘turtle’) has donated the compression socks to acute nurses at
Glasgow Royal Infirmary, Royal Alexandra Hospital (Paisley) and Queen
Elizabeth University Hospital in Govan. Each hospital has received 1,000.
In addition, nurses at The Royal Edinburgh Hospital will take 1,000 while Trtl has
given 500 to nurses at Dundee’s Ninewells Hospital and 500 to Aberdeen Royal
Infirmary.
The award-winning company, which employs 30 people in Glasgow, had stockpiled
thousands of the socks in advance of its peak summer season.
But with sales stalling due to the Covid-19 pandemic and little prospect of travel bans
being rescinded any time soon, CEO Michael Corrigan decided to use them to
support frontline nurses in his home city, across Scotland and in worst-hit London
instead.
He explained: “Although the compression socks have been most popular with airline
travellers, at the start of this year we ran a small campaign with nurses around the
world and they were really happy with them.
“Over the past few days, I’ve been thinking about how we can contribute in what is
the biggest crisis many of us will face in our lifetimes.
“When something like this happens it very rapidly puts things into perspective.
“Nurses across the UK will be tested as never before in the coming weeks and if we
can do something to help make the time they spend on their feet more comfortable,
we must.
“I couldn’t just see these socks sitting in a warehouse when they could be helping
people saving lives. That’s what’s important, and nurses need all the help they can
get just now.”
John Stuart is the chief nurse at Glasgow Royal Infirmary. He said: “We are
under no illusions about what we are going to face in the weeks to come.
“Our nurses work incredibly hard and can spend hours and hours on the move
during every shift.
“With these compression socks we can help our staff alleviate some of the
discomfort and aches associated with being on your feet for long periods of time and
help them better face the challenges that are coming our way with Covid-19.
“Any gesture like this can help boost morale and hopefully the colourful designs will
help brighten the days of our nursing staff.”
A 2015 study found that the average NHS worker walks 3.6 miles a day with some
recording up to 11 miles.
Nurses regularly work 12-hour shifts and wearing compression socks reduces leg
soreness, swollen ankles and varicose veins.
Established in 2013, Trtl is majority-owned-and-run by founder Michael Corrigan
(32), who was born on Glasgow’s south side.
He added: “This may be the biggest challenge we will ever face as a generation and
how we react as individuals and collectively could define us in the years to come.”
Best known for its Trtl Travel Pillow , which has sold 1.6M worldwide, Trtl sells a
range of travel items from compression socks to packing pods.
Most of its products are bought online through trtltravel.com and retailers such as
Amazon.
The company, which won Small Exporter of the Year at the Scottish Export Awards
in 2018, is expert at using social media and messaging apps to drive sales.
Press pics taken by Peter Devlin
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