Sustainability and its Importance to Femtech

There has always been a huge need in the marketplace when it comes to products marketed to and “designed for” women. You’ll notice we put that phrase in quotes. 

That’s because for so long, the companies making products haven’t taken into account so many issues that predominantly affect the people most often buying them. Apparel, especially, seems to focus either too much on fashion or function and leave much to be desired on one end of the spectrum. 

Why had no one come up with a well-designed, supportive and sustainable solution that is designed to work with and shape your body exactly how you need it to? 

Well, one major reason is that the business and development sectors are largely dominated by massive corporations, traditionally run by men. There hasn’t historically been a huge voice behind a movement educating people about why products like these are not just wanted but needed by so many. 

Plus, if we’re being honest, to explain why femtech is such an important corner of the market, we have to talk about things that might make some people - especially investors and retailers - uncomfortable. 

We don’t think it needs to be that way, though. 

The truth is, everyone with a vagina needs to work to not only de-stigmatize but also prioritize vaginal health. Millions of people have spent years of their life dealing with sweat, moisture, and overall discomfort that was affecting their ability to perform at a high level - whether that’s on a court, in a field, or just in day-to-day life. 

When OYA first started, this is the problem we wanted to address. However, we also wanted to start a conversation and make a real social change. During this process, we found that a few of our biggest values actually went hand-in-hand.

Just a little bit of online research will tell you that the average woman uses more than 10,000 feminine hygiene products in her lifetime. And infamously, those products trade convenience for compostability. Again, we found ourselves asking a similar question. 

“Why are the products that we need so bad for our environment?” 

Because of that, it was important to us that our products were made using sustainable fabric and dyes that would not contaminate water sources. We also started an up-cycling program initiative that allows customers to send back leggings that have reached the end of their life - not only do we donate them for you, we give you 20% off your next pair. Plus, we make sure that our investors share the same values we do. 

Of course, even those things aren’t enough. But it is a start. And if we can connect with our customers on a deeper level to solve problems - both big and small - well, we feel pretty good about that.