Ask any woman or girl and they will tell you inserting a tampon is not always the most comfortable experience.
But a group of women is looking to change that.
Marlo, a feminine care product company, was founded by a team of six people, predominantly women from Western University’s Ivy Business School who are working on getting a new type of tampon into the marketplace.
The company is focused on making tampons easy to wear and easy to buy while also working to break down the stigma of talking about menstruation.
The ladies are currently in the process of crowdfunding to get their lubricated tampon off the ground.
“There are a lot of people older than that — even in their 20s — who are still uncomfortable using tampons, and they don’t cater to their needs,” said Natalie Diezyn, co-founder and project lead.
“We talked to gynaecologists who said their best solution for their patients was to spit on their tampons or to go out and buy their own lubricant, and we like to say, do arts and crafts in the bathroom stall.”
Diezyn said the idea came from one of their founders who used to swim competitively and was told she had to use a tampon. She said the transition, like it is for may other girls switching from pads to tampons, was uncomfortable.
From that idea came Marlow, a lubricated tampon kit that the company says allowed for a smoother and more comfortable insertion process. Buyers have the option of purchasing a monthly subscription of tampons, tampons and lubricant, or just the lubricant.
How it works is buyers get a discreet bottle of lubricant that is designed to smoothly coat the tampon before using it.
Diezyn said the team has worked with a medical professional throughout the process to create the product.
“We found the industry had been pretty stagnant with no too much innovation besides the DivaCup,” she said.
To get the business going, the team has started an Indiegogo crowding campaign that has already raised over half of its $20,000 goal.
Another part of Marlow is creating an open discussion about periods and educating people about menstruation on their social media accounts and blog.
Diezyn said they also learn from the open discussions on social media to improve the brand and learn from what’s impacting women most.
“For painful incidents or for other issues women experience, there aren’t too many solutions we are really excited to be at the forefront of that.”