Lauren Nelson
Case Western Reserve University - Weatherhead School of Management
Chris Laszlo
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SHE28 and the Go! pad transform Rwandan communities, enabling women and girls to contribute fully during their menstrual cycle by providing a low-cost and high-performance menstrual pad. They also work to reduce taboos on menstruation and women's health through educational campaigns, and provide economic opportunities for the suppliers and producers of their product. This multi-stakeholder approach is being prepared to be scaled globally, to truly leverage the full potential of women and girls around the world.
SHE Innovates' initiative SHE28 has enabled over 6,000 women and girls in Rwanda to attend school and work during their menstrual cycle. Not only this, through the creation of Go! menstrual pads, SHE Innovates is empowering 600 farmers and 12 production workers, with their sights set on global growth.
Their distribution channels include wholesale, direct sale, and school partnerships. Wholesaling the Go! menstrual pads has enabled SHE to reach women and girls in some of the most difficult-to-access areas across Rwanda and beyond. Offering Go! pads in direct sales kiosks improves women and girls' access at a rate that is 30% more affordable than the traditional product offerings. In some cases this is 15% more affordable than the low-cost product and up to 60% more affordable than the premium products, while approaching product parity to the more premium options.
Go! menstrual pads, formerly called SHE28's LaunchPad, was born of the need that exists not only in Rwanda but around the developing world. Discussing, let alone devising a sustainable market-based business solution to, women's menstruation and issues surrounding it was completely taboo before She Innovates came in with their multifaceted solution. 50% of Rwanda's population (along with women around the globe) couldn't afford menstrual pads so they were using bark, cloth, and mud during menstruation, and often missing school when these solutions wouldn't suffice. The pads that were available in local stores were heavily overpriced, at least 30% over the current price of Go! pads. Having accessible and affordable pads not only was appealing to allow girls to attend school, but it was also an opportunity to create impact surrounding women's employment. SHE Innovates knew they would be able to employ local people to create and distribute the pads, and that's just what they've done. As Connie Lewin mentioned, products designed for extreme affordability "must meet the need and have the desired features of the target consumer." Just being cheap was not enough, "girls wanted a pad that provided no leaks and no smells." These were taboo topics that actually proved to be key in the creation and desirability of Go! pads.
The Go! model lifts up the suppliers, producers, and women and girls who use their products. SHE28 has impacted the entire community in which they serve including stakeholders, such as the women and girls who use their product, those who create the product, their suppliers, and even the environment. The original goal was to employ as many local people as possible. They knew this meant they would have to look for opportunities across the entire supply chain. Banana fibers was one of the unexpected ways they would do this. Banana fiber is a commonly discarded material during the banana farming process, however because of its prevalence in Rwanda, it presented itself as the perfect material in consistency to be incorporated into a functional low cost menstrual pad.
Tremendous economic benefit is brought to a society when women can go to work and school. From this macro level, SHE is positioning itself to contribute to the $12 trillion that is going to be added to the world economy by advancing women's rights by 2025, as predicted by McKinsey and Co. From a micro level, they are converting women who once used mud and rags during their periods at no cost to consumers of the Go! pads. There is a much larger market and they have received many business inquiries from people across developing countries like India.
SHE28 has been fortunate to build relationships with partners in the private and public sectors. A leader in global health solutions, Johnson & Johnson, proved to be an excellent partner, helping to increase efficiency of production and reduce costs of product inputs, while also achieving certification from the Rwandan Bureau of Standards to begin market commercialization in their initial stages.
By utilizing banana fibers in the production of Go! menstrual pads, SHE reduces the dependence on imported materials while also offering a 33% increase in income for their farmer-suppliers. This also provides advantages for the end users. By constantly modifying the design of the product with consumer inputs and using a scrupulous design process, they have been able to create a pad that does not sacrifice in the key elements desired by women and girls - eliminating the odors and leaks during menstruation. The excellent performance and eye-catching professional packaging make the Go! pad the most attractive menstrual solution on the market.
SHE28 addresses the UN Global Goal 5 on Gender Equality which seeks to end gender discrimination and ensure women's full and effective participation in the world economy. This goal is met through several avenues including an educational outreach marketing approach, empowering female banana farmers, employing women in production, and offering an affordable menstrual solution to women and girls of Rwanda.
Aside from the obvious benefit of using banana fibers, which is to create economic viability from a former waste product, several elements of the production process also provides environmental benefits. By utilizing recycled water in their production facility, they are able to use 10 liters per day, compared to the average paper company which uses 10,000 liters per day. In addition, significant energy is saved through the use of outdoor drying racks, taking advantage of the heat and sun of the Rwandan climate. As SHE looks towards the future, Rwanda is considering a plastic bag ban, so they are experimenting with a packaging solution that will be more sustainable while also getting ahead of this potential regulation.
In addition to fulfilling a need in the market and doing so in an environmentally sustainable way, SHE has also helped develop an ecosystem of public and private partners along the way in support of women. SHE has partnered with research universities, health organizations like Johnson & Johnson, local officials like the Minister of Education in Rwanda, leading social entrepreneurship organizations like ASHOKA, Forbes, as well as global advocates like UNICEF and UNESCO. To top off their tremendous contributions, SHE has also worked to abolish the 18% value-added tax on menstrual pads in Rwanda.
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Connie Lewin, Director of Strategy
