Copied down to the logo. Now checked at the stall.
Chillington has made hoes and machetes for more than a century. When precise copies appeared in its markets, buyers could not tell them apart. Now every tool carries a code they check on their own phone.
- ~1 s
- per check, at the point of sale
- Offline
- with the app, where there is no signal
- No app
- for the first authentic check
- 1 per tool
- own serial number on every tool
In early 2023, copies of Chillington hoes and machetes surfaced, accurate down to the logo. Dealers stopped reordering.
A copy-evident code with its own serial number on every tool. Any phone checks it; with the app, also offline.
Buyers check before they pay. Dealers can prove they sell the original. And verified scans bring Chillington new social media followers.
One bad purchase costs a season.
A hoe or machete is bought again and again, often at a rural stall far from the manufacturer. In early 2023 copies bearing the Chillington logo surfaced, made with alarming accuracy. Buyers were frustrated, warranty fraud rose, dealers stopped reordering – and nobody could check a tool at the point of sale.
A check before paying. Even with no signal.
- 01 · Scan
At the stall
The buyer points their own phone at the code on the tool.
- 02 · Know
An answer without coverage
With the authentic app, the check also works offline. The scan is still counted.
- 03 · Avoid
A copy fails
However good the copy looks, it does not pass.
Screens simplified for illustration.
The check that grows a following.
After a successful check, the buyer is invited to follow Chillington on social media – at the exact moment they have just confirmed they bought the original. That moment converts: Chillington’s follower numbers jumped.
- Built into the scanThe invitation sits on the result screen. No extra campaign, no extra step.
- Real buyers, not reachNew followers come from buyers who have just verified a genuine Chillington tool.
- A direct line to the fieldChillington can talk to the farmers and traders who use its tools – across Africa, Asia and Europe.
Every tool can prove itself.
- For buyersA check before they pay, on their own phone. The first check needs no app.
- For dealersProof they sell the original – and an answer when a customer doubts it.
- For ChillingtonEvery scan counted with time and place – and a fast-growing community of verified buyers on social media.
About this project.
Which products are protected?
Chillington’s agricultural hand tools, such as hoes and machetes, sold in markets across Africa, Asia and Europe.
Does the check work without mobile coverage?
Yes, with the authentic app. It verifies offline, so a buyer at a rural market gets an answer with no signal. Every scan is still counted.
Does the buyer need an app?
Not for the first authentic check: the phone camera reads the code and shows the result in about a second. For checks without a signal, the authentic app is used.
What does Chillington see?
Every scan is counted with its time and place, so Chillington sees where its tools are checked and where copies appear.
Does the check do more than prove a tool is genuine?
Yes. After a successful check, buyers are invited to follow Chillington on social media. Because the invitation comes at the moment a buyer has just confirmed an original, Chillington’s follower numbers grew sharply.
Make your tools provable.
Tell us which products are copied and where. We show you how a check at the point of sale works for your markets.
Real impact.