Boots has launched a nationwide initiative to spark conversation and rekindle memories for those affected by dementia.

The UK’s leading health and beauty retailer has created over 1,000 multi-sensory memory boxes which are being distributed to care homes and communities across the UK this Dementia Action Week (19 – 25 May 2025).

The initiative follows research by Professor Victoria Tischler and colleagues from the Universities of Surrey, West London and Nottingham that supports the connection between smell, handling familiar objects and memory,¹ conducted using the Boots Memory Boxes.

In many people with dementia, handling familiar objects that combine distinctive smells and attractive designs can provide wellbeing benefits including enhanced mood, social inclusion and memory retrieval. Simple prompts like familiar smells from a person’s past can stimulate recall and bring people into the present moment.

The Boots Memory Boxes are filled with items carefully selected by the team at the Boots Archive and include familiar smells and sounds to trigger memories. For example, popular toiletries and soaps can remind them of a loved one and cough medicine or bath salts can help them remember times they looked after themselves or others. The boxes will also feature items with familiar sounds, like the click an old powder compact, or camera. Many items for the boxes have also been donated by Boots team members, partners and suppliers.

Sophie Clapp, Boots Company Archivist, said: “With over 175 years of history, Boots is a brand that has been part of people's lives through generations. Through our memory box initiative, we can use our rich history and extensive archive to spark connections between those affected by dementia and their loved ones and carers over shared memories and experiences. It has been great to see the positive impact the Boots Memory Boxes have had through the research project with Professor Tischler and her team and to see how much the boxes have meant to the care home residents that have received them so far.”

Professor Victoria Tischler, Professor of Behavioural Science, University of Surrey, said: “Our research showed clear connections between sensory simulation, memory and wellbeing. We built on the established connection between smell and memory to create memory boxes that use recognisable Boots products that stimulate engagement and enhance mood in those affected by dementia. It’s really great that Boots is now rolling out its memory boxes to reach more people with dementia as well as creating a resource for their carers – a group it’s so important to support. It’s such a simple initiative yet it has a powerful impact that’s backed up by research.”

One care home that was among the first to receive a Boots Memory Boxes held an interactive session with their residents.

Lucy Atkinson, Director at Church Farm Care, Nottingham, said: “During the memory box sessions we’ve held, I’ve seen the most remarkable transformation in the people who live with us here. People living with dementia light up when they smell something familiar from their youth, sparking memories that last beyond the session. One lady was flooded with happy memories seeing items she remembered from childhood, which prompted her to animatedly share stories with the group. The sessions have not only brought a lot of joy but also help to access memories that were otherwise lost, memories that help people to remember who they are.”

Alongside the 1,000 Boots Memory Boxes that the health and beauty retailer is sending to care homes, Boots has also created a bank of free online resources with guidance for carers on how to create their own memory box at home and spark memories and conversations with loved ones.

Boots has a long-standing history of supporting those living with dementia. It has supported Alzheimer’s Society since 2017, during which time over 15,400 colleagues have become Dementia Friends. Dementia Friends are able to help make the shopping experience easier for those impacted by the early stages of dementia as well as offering them, their families and friends information advice, support and understanding when it’s needed

Dara de Burca, Executive Director of Dementia Support and Partnerships for Alzheimer’s Society, said: “Around one million people are living with dementia in the UK and more than a third don’t have a diagnosis. That’s why, this Dementia Action Week, we’re encouraging anyone worried about themselves or someone they love to use Alzheimer’s Society’s symptom checklist.

“It’s wonderful to see initiatives like the Boots Memory Boxes sparking memories and starting conversations with familiar scents and objects. Dementia can affect a person’s senses especially in the later stages but even then, sensory activities can be a powerful way to connect with someone.

“We’re delighted to be working with Boots through Dementia Friends to help their colleagues to better understand dementia and support people living with the condition.”

The boxes will include:

Packaging which has been reproduced using original artwork from the archive:

• Bottle of Tincture of Iodine
• Bottle of Syrup of Figs
• Bottle of Gripe Water
• Bath cube box
• Soltan box
• Cold Cream box
• Slick Shaving Cream box

Common items people might recognise from the home:

• Toiletry bag
• Hair brush
• Hair slides
• Hair bobbles
• Flannel/facecloth
• Hair rollers
• Bar of soap
• Lavender bag
• Lipstick

Boots has also included a selection of images from the archive collection (product labels, counters in our stores, adverts etc), a reproduction 1960s Christmas gift catalogue, reproduced photograph wallet, and a baby weighing card.

1  D'Andrea, Dening and Tischler (2022) Object Handling for People With Dementia: A Scoping Review and the Development of Intervention Guidance | Innovation in Aging | Oxford Academic