You don’t have to go through menstruation alone! That time of the month just got easier, thanks to the woman-led businesses and companies that continue to revolutionize organic menstrual items, period cramp relief, and tampon and pad disposal.
In an industry that spent years hidden away behind the pharmacist counter – these solutions will help you trade shame and discomfort for confidence and relief. These days, what’s really flowing is innovation!
Here are the top five companies that have your back during menstruation – and the women at their helm who are leading the charge.
1. MaskIT – Founder and CEO Shallan Ramsey
We’ve all been there – stuck in a public restroom, the sanitary napkin receptacle is filled to the brim, and all we’ve got to wrap our tampons and pads is a roll of single-ply toilet paper. We’re not MacGyver, so why do most facilities leave us to cobble up a disposal solution on the fly – while expecting the problem to simply go away?
Or maybe you’re at home – where nobody wants to be the one who is the reason for a plumbing problem, or the one to empty the bin in the shared washroom.
This problem caught the attention of the founder, CEO, and inventor Shallan Ramsey – MaskIT was her innovative solution. With MaskIT – a single use disposal bag – removal and disposal is contact free. It fits on your hand to provide glove-like protection during removal of your item – then quickly inverts to contain and forever seal shut.
Did we mention that it’s made from plant based bio-film? That’s right! It is a priority to Shallan that MaskIT solves the problem in the most sustainable way possible.
From their headquarters in Oregon, Ramsey and her team have taken their product nationwide. MaskIT’s full facility solutions can be found in the restrooms of notable Fortune 500 companies, along with airports, universities, and hospitals. They benefit from mitigated restroom maintenance costs – while their staff and visitors enjoy the dignity, safety, and cleanliness they deserve.
For at home use, MaskIT has you covered. Their shop has all you need to keep your disposed items scent free and private – offering sanitary disposal solutions for tampons, pads, and even liners. MaskIT has also prioritized using inclusive language in anything they put their name on, making sure menstruators of all genders are included in the conversation.
You may have already encountered a MaskIT dispenser “out in the wild.” Get used to it – as this so-simple-it’s-genius product from inventor Shallan Ramsey is quickly becoming the standard. Menstruators, facility managers, and custodians rejoice!
2. Flex – Founder Lauren Schulte Wang
When our periods come, we can sometimes feel robbed of our agency and freedom. For those of us who lead active lifestyles, it’s not just the cramps keeping us on the sidelines – it’s the bulk of certain tampons and the steady need to switch them out. Or maybe Aunt Flow makes a premature visit on the eve of a romantic getaway – what menstruators deserve is control and flexibility.
This is where Lauren Schulte Wang, the founder of Flex, comes in. She and her team have revolutionized the menstrual item, promising “the most liberating period of your life.”
We all have different needs, which is why Schulte Wang’s company offers two distinct products designed with the user’s lifestyle in mind. The Flex Disc and the Flex Cup are suited for 12-hour wear – whether you’re sleeping, swimming, exercising, or simply doing you.
The Flex Disc is a disposable device composed of hypoallergenic and body-safe material. Known to reduce cramps and dryness while affording unparalleled freedom of movement, a single Flex Disc can replace over five tampons – while doing it better. An added benefit: its users can enjoy mess-free period sex – who would have thought we’d see the day!
The Flex Cup is proudly the only menstrual cup there is that can be removed like a tampon. This is made possible by a patented pull-tab. Easy to clean and durable for whatever lifestyle you want to live – you’ll feel good about using a zero-waste product that will stand by you for years.
With the user and mother earth in mind – Lauren Schulte Wang and Flex are giving us the means to live with freedom – even when we bleed.
3. Aunt Flow – Founder and CEO Claire Coder
When it comes to that time, nobody should be without the menstruation products they need. Many of us know the feeling of starting our period in public–where a worn-down relic of a coin-operated tampon and pad dispenser is our only option. But who carries loose change anymore–and shouldn’t these products be freely accessible in the first place?
Fortunately, the tampon and pad dispenser of the future doesn’t want your money. Such a dispenser has been made possible by Aunt Flow. The company’s founder and CEO, Claire Coder, is on a mission to sustainably provide period products to everyone who needs them. At 25-years old, Coder is proof that together we can change the world.
Need a tampon? Walk into the restroom, press a button, and there’s one for free. That’s the future Coder envisions–and one that numerous universities, schools, and Fortune 500 companies have already subscribed to. These institutions have found that by bringing in the reliable and accessible options that menstruators need, the door is opened for everyone to remain engaged, present, and confident.
Aunt Flow proudly serves products made by menstruators, for menstruators. This shows in everything from the friendly design of their dispensers, inclusive languaging on their packaging, and the quality of 100% organic cotton of their tampons and pads.
The Aunt Flow team and community is committed to leaving nobody behind. For every 10 period products sold, one goes to a menstruation in need. To put that in perspective, that was 1.6 million in 2021.
The greater discussion of access to free period products has gone on long enough. Now’s the time to act–for this we’re grateful to find Aunt Flow at the center of the shining restroom on the hill.
Pair it with a MaskIT dispenser–and we’ll be ready for Aunt Flow, whenever she may come.
4. Femly – Founder and CEO Arion Long
Behold the mother of all pads! Femly is a company that believes that menstruators deserve nothing less than products that overachieve. The label reads premium pads with wings, and it’s bound to fly above what you’ve come to expect from your average pad.
Three times the absorption. Certified organic cotton (grown without pesticides). An innovative longer shape that can be trusted to prevent leaks that go up the back. There’s a lot that you’ll find to love about Femly–and a lot to like about its founder, Arion Long.
Long has a story that will resonate with many. Experiencing the heaviest periods of her life while working full-time in the healthcare industry, Long was struggling to find a doctor who would properly stand for her concerns. Finally, she found one–and was made aware of the chemicals hiding in popular pad and tampon options. These toxins, additives, and bleach cause great harm–and have no business around our most intimate area!
Long knew she had to go organic–but the market was lacking a reliable option. This is where the story of a single woman becomes an inspiring example of a meaningful entrepreneurial journey. She worked to create the safe, comfortable, and reliable pad that we all deserve–resonating with over 25,000 people who consider Femly a go-to solution. Long has even stocked restrooms around the country–offering this magnum opus of a pad freely to anyone who needs it.
Whatever your flow requires, there’s a Femly pad for you!
5. Nomisk – Proudly Women Owned
This ain’t your mother’s hot water bottle. Cramp relief has been needing a tech boost for a while–thanks to Nomisk, we now have one! Through their line of self-care products, you can enjoy soothing heat and massage therapy on demand–with lightweight designs that maximize your freedom and convenience.
No more pills. No more leaky rubber water bottles. Simply relief, arriving at the push of a button. No cramp is too intense: the three unique modes of Nomisk’s mainline Maia product offer all you need to say goodbye to discomfort and hello to relaxation. Pair it with Luna, Nomisk’s neck massager, and every room in your house can become a spa.
Women-owned and driven, Nomisk is a powerful answer to the specific needs of menstruators, because they know the needs of menstruators.
Maia has already been a game changer for thousands–and it wants to be ready for you when that need appears. It’s hard to put the feeling into words, we’ll leave it for you to discover!
The Future Of Menstruation Is Here
These are the five most exciting and impactful women-led companies coming together to stand for the needs of menstruators everywhere.
Serving more than tampons, pads, dispensers, and products, these women are bringing dignity (where there was once shame) and comfort (where we once were expected to power through our pain). Keep your eye on these brands–they’re just getting started!
