GOS, in partnership with Parimer Scientific and Birds Fly South Ale Project (BFS), recently debuted locally-produced and FDA-registered hand sanitizing gel available for sale online. Originally produced and distributed in March 2020 for local hospitals and essential businesses to aid in the COVID-19 pandemic, GOS is thrilled to offer this necessary product online for the general public, and hopefully, contribute to virus reduction efforts in South Carolina and beyond.
Hand sanitizing gel is available via two options:
- 2oz and 8oz bottles of gel hand sanitizer are now available online at http://shop.gos1.com/Product/BFS/HANDSAN8OZ/BFSHANDSAN8OZ
- 2oz bottles are available at the Birds Fly South brewery at 1320 Hampton Ave Ext., Greenville, SC 29601
“Working with two established Upstate South Carolina companies to make and distribute hand sanitizer during a global crisis has been a beacon of hope during dark times. We are very thankful for the creativity and hard work of Birds Fly South Ale Project and Parimer Scientific,” said McLain Scales, Director of Janitorial and Facility Sales for GOS.
GOS leads the latter end of the product development process, providing the necessary marketing and business strategy, as well as order fulfillment, ecommerce, and distribution infrastructure to support product launch. Parimer, a medical and chemical service laboratory located in Easley, SC, manufactures, refines, tests and bottles the ethanol provided by Birds Fly South, a local craft brewery.
The partnership produces 60 liters of gel hand sanitizer daily, equivalent to 250 8oz bottles or 1,000 2oz bottles. Unlike the thousands of breweries and companies across the country now selling the 80% alcohol liquid version of hand sanitizer, this product is the same as popular, name-brand gel hand sanitizers. Only FDA-inspected and FDA-cGMP compliant facilities, such as Parimer, can make this pure gel version approved by the FDA.
Relying on the established marketing experience and distribution system at GOS, the partners began providing their gel hand sanitizer to large hospitals and essential businesses in March 2020 to support the response to COVID-19. The statewide impact was swift and the appreciation immense:
- “Thank you for coming through for us!” – Dylan Lawlor, Manager VA & Contracts at Prisma Health
- “I wanted to reach out to thank you for allowing our agency to purchase hand sanitizer.” – Doreen Stubbs, BSN, RN, at Access Health Services d/b/a Caregivers
- “Thank you so much. I’ve just shared with numerous hospitals who indicated that they are in need of hand sanitizer. Again, we thank you!” – Lara Hewitt, Vice President of the SC Hospital Association
The product idea took shape in early 2020 when Scales connected with childhood friend Richard Pace, PhD, Owner and Principal Scientist at Parimer, to discuss mutually beneficial ventures to address the business challenges and operational gaps presented by COVID-19 shutdowns.
“We each started brainstorming solutions to our individual business problems at the beginning of this pandemic,” said Pace of the collaboration. “It just so happens that the solution to all our problems was working together.”
Each year, GOS supplies hundreds of essential businesses with necessary personal protective equipment (PPE) and cleaning supplies. With skincare manufacturing supply chains interrupted due to early COVID-19 product demand, GOS couldn’t provide products for their customers, leaving essential businesses in a lurch, and pausing work for various internal teams. Given the surplus of beer at BFS that could not be sold during the impending lockdown, and the scientific knowledge and distilling equipment at Parimer, producing a high-quality sanitizer was a natural progression for these three Upstate companies.
“Providing ethanol for hand sanitizer production has been a shining light in an otherwise dark period for our industry. Our tasting room was shut down and beer distribution was directly impacted by COVID-19. As a result, we had to rely strictly on to-go sales,” said Lindsay Johnson, Co-Owner of Birds Fly South Ale Project. “From a community standpoint, we are grateful for the support the Upstate has shown, and this partnership with GOS and Parimer was an unexpected way for BFS to give back.”
Until the recent public launch, GOS primarily managed large, enterprise-level product needs for essential businesses, while BFS managed individual needs. With the online expansion for general customers, GOS hopes to bring this product to thousands more across the Southeast and beyond. The partners plan to manufacture the product as long as there is demand.
“The GOS administrative and operational team has been both indispensable and exceptional in maintaining service and delivery of necessary supplies. We are proud of our staff, and collectively grateful we can support our community during these unprecedented times,” said Scales of his GOS colleagues.
Ready to buy our hand sanitizer online? Simply visit our Shop site, login or create a new account, and we’ll ship or hand deliver directly to your home or office.
