This company is fighting period poverty for us all

All we have to do is buy a box of sanitary towels…

From the editors of LOOK Words by Bridie Wilkins

Period poverty is a problem. Fact.

Charity Plan International UK reports that 1 in 10 women aged 14 to 21 in the UK struggle to afford sanitary products, so what can we do about it? Granted, there’s no simple solution, but Scottish-based company Hey Girls are going the right way about making a difference.

Founded by single mother Celia Hodson and her two daughters, the brand Hey Girls is selling boxes of 10 ‘daytime’ pads and eight ‘overnight’ pads at £3.25 each. For each box bought, the company will then donate another pack to disadvantaged women through organisations including food banks and charities. What’s more, Hey Girls products are all environmentally friendly and chlorine and bleach free.

Speaking to the Evening Standard, Hey Girls Founder Celia says: ‘Hey Girls will provide free sanitary towels and educational resources with the aim of assisting girls in the UK to manage menstruation in a way that doesn’t put them at risk of infections.’

At the moment, Hey Girls products are only available to buy online via the Hey Girls website, while some major UK supermarkets are looking to stock the brand within the next few months. The company also hopes to expand from sanitary towels to tampons by the end of 2018.

How did Hey Girls start?

Founder Celia told Buzzfeed she had struggled to provide sanitary products for her daughters as a single parent.

‘You can only ask for favours a certain amount of times,’ she said. ‘Having to ask someone ‘Can you give me a pack of pads?’, or ‘Can you give me even one?’ – there’s a social stigma even asking that.’

Well if Hey Girls is anything to do with it, it looks like a lot less women will find themselves in said situation from now on. Let’s do this.