Single mother invents disposable shopping cart liner, inspired by her daughter
CHERRY HILL, N.J. -- Lisette Padilla-Diamond is a businesswoman and inventor of sorts. But one of her creations stands above the rest: her daughter, Erika.
"It's the best thing that's ever happened to me," said Lisette, brimming with tears of both joy and pain.
The single mother's relationship with her teenage daughter is one of the few constants in her life untouched by the clutches of COVID-19. Her recently-founded business, on the other hand, was not so lucky.
Lisette started Partners in Grime Cleaning Company in January 2020. The incoming global pandemic was no friend to a house-hopping cleaning career and kept her out of work.
"So, I decided to keep on using my noggin and came up with shopping cart disposable liners," she said.
The portable paper-thin protection unfurls into a shape fit to fill a grocery cart's front basket and the attached handlebars.
She tested it out at Wegmans in Cherry Hill, New Jersey, where shoppers are required to wear masks and stay "one cart's length" away from one another.
Lisette worked down to her last penny to file a patent for the invention and is hoping to partner with an investor or large manufacturer to spread the product across the community.
"I will continue until everyone understands how important it is to have extra protection while shopping," said Lisette.
But that's never been an easy task to continue.
"She's lost a lot of sleep because of it, for sure, and spends countless hours putting her mind to it," said her daughter, Erika Diamond. "She sacrifices a lot for me, for sure."
It's her daughter's love in return that keeps Lisette going.
For more information or inquiries about the disposable cart liners, you can contact Lisette at partnersingrimecl.co20@yahoo.com.
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