The first destination for Zippsafe at the beginning of the year was Dubai. You read that right. We presented our smart alternative to lockers to a broader market there at Arab Health and were particularly on the lookout for potential distribution partners. In addition to Polytex in Israel, we were also able to acquire Certmed from Poland over the course of the year. Space shortages and chaotic changing rooms are obviously a global phenomenon. To our delight, there are already other potential partners in the pipeline.  

In March, we moved on to the USA. The PDC Summit in Phoenix was followed by further shows in San Antonio, Charlotte, and New Orleans over the course of the year. We even won the Nightingale Award for the Most Sustainable Product at the Healhcare Facilities Symposium in Charlotte. In addition, our disruptive locker set was included in Fast Company magazine's "Innovation by Design" list.

In addition to our intercontinental ventures, we were of course also on the road in Europe. For example, we acquired our first customers in the Netherlands and Belgium. Since this year, the CHU de Reims in France has also been home to one of the largest Zippsafe installations in the world. In Germany, we are once again able to equip new construction projects with our smart locker systems at the university hospitals in Freiburg and Schleswig Holstein and the municipal hospitals in Brandenburg and Solingen. In our home country, we are particularly pleased to be equipping the children's hospital in Zurich, which is due to open this year.

We were also able to gain several new references beyond the hospital world last year. Whether cosmetics, food, chemicals, or industry - the new changing rooms at La Prairie, Milei GmbH, IFLb Laboraoriumsmedizin Berlin GmbH, or the Hamilton Company's logistics center are definitely something to be proud of. Last year, our team put a total of 553 systems or 135 tons into operation during 63 installations. Over 60,000 kilometres were covered. The effort paid off - 7,090 people received a new ZippSpace locker bag in 2023, and 2,976 square meters were saved.

Zippsafe is not only expanding its customer base, but the product is also evolving. Towards the end of the year, our latest product generation ZippSpace 3.0 was delivered for the first time (more information). We are doing everything we can to further develop our solutions and drive innovation. Our team is also growing steadily. It now consists of 58 bright and creative minds and is supplemented by additional boards and advisors. With Daniel Pauli as an additional member of the Innovation Board and Christian Schuhmacher on the Strategic Advisory Board, we have gained two very experienced men with extensive knowledge of the healthcare industry. 

The Swiss Entrepreneurs Foundation's Upscaler Program has also given us access to an incredible wealth of experience in recent years. We successfully completed the program at the end of 2023 and can now really take off. Thanks to our new headquarters on the top floor at Bernstrasse 39 in Schlieren, the conditions are right. We are looking forward to 2024!