Originally developed by one of our MSc students, Haritha Udayan Ayanikkad, for her dissertation at Swansea University, and then tested at various smaller settings such as primary schools and public libraries, we used the treasure hunt concept to invite visitors to explore our pop-up shop in a new way.

Players were encouraged to find six ‘nasty germs’ that had ‘escaped’ and that were now ‘hiding’ in the shop. These pathogens comprised bacteria (E. coli, Staphylococcus aureus, Clostridioides difficile), viruses (rhinovirus, SARS-CoV-2) and the parasite Trypanosoma brucei. Cartoon characters were designed by our intern Georgina Sparling.

Visitors who found all six germs could choose a prize from our Superbugs-branded merchandise (pens, bookmarks, rulers, wristbands, ballons, keyring torches).

Over the course of four weeks, a total of 753 visitors successfully completed the treasure hunt.