If you’re looking for a period care product that is both sustainably made and safe to use, a new Black-owned brand has entered the chat.
Best Periodt, a brand by Gayneté Jones offering two different sizes of menstrual cups, is now available at 3,000 CVS stores nationwide. Devised with Black women and their flows in mind, Best Periodt’s cups differ from some of the initial cups to hit the market. Jones has considered all things — from fibroids to heavier flows to even period poverty — that impact Black women and girls disproportionately.
Jones first launched the brand in 2020 during lockdowns, when she personally wished for a more sustainable approach to period management. At that time, she recalled not wanting to go into stores as frequently and also cataloging a growing list of things she didn’t like about menstrual cups then on the market. A light bulb went off when she got her period while having various conversations with fellow female entrepreneurs.
“My period came on, and it hit me like, ‘I want to change everything I hate about menstrual cups that I used in the past,’” Jones, a former private banker, told theGrio. “I knew with a menstrual cup, it’s better for the environment. It saves you money. You aren’t constantly purchasing period products. So I said, You know what? Let me create a list of all the things I hate about period cups and try to change that with one of my own.”
Best Periodt was born. It has since entered the market with two different sizes of menstrual cups in the brand’s signature shade of lemon yellow.
“And, of course, I knew that while period cups were going to be the first thing we created, by all means, we were going to be a menstrual care company,” Jones continued. “I always say it’s the genesis of a mega brand. Period cups just happen to be what we start with.”
Best Periodt joins several other Black-owned brands in the personal care aisles of stores nationwide and online. One of the first was Honey Pot, launched by Beatrice Dixon in 2012, which offers organic menstrual care products such as washes, wipes, pads, and more. Since then, more and more Black-owned feminine care brands have cropped up, offering a wide, diverse range of products.
In 2019, Abigail Murdock founded Her Juice Bar, a brand focused on targeting vaginal health for women of all ages, especially as they age. There’s also Niima, which offers organic pads, and Ebi, which offers postpartum care products. Meanwhile, Moozii, founded by Tiffany Johnson in 2020, offers feminine care products like period undies, cups, razors, and panty liners.
Ruby Love, founded by Crystal Etienne in 2015, specializes in period undies, and Kushae, founded by OB-GYN Dr. Barb and Kimba Williams, specializes in feminine hygiene products like washes and protective skin balms.
Beyond having Black women founders in common, these brands also all largely share prioritizing safety in their product ranges, which has become crucial as longstanding major brands are increasingly being called out for toxic chemicals and metals in their products.
“The problem [is] even beyond just the products themselves,” Jones said when asked about recent studies revealing heavy metals in tampons and pads. “It’s just the lack of research done on all feminine care products in general, and just women’s medicine in general … Because even with these studies showing that there’s chemicals and toxins, and heavy metals found in tampons, we still aren’t sure what the implications of those chemicals are in the tampons.”
She noted that experts and physicians have had mixed reactions to the new findings, with some suggesting there may not be any implication at all.
“But we don’t know. So because of that, it’s really frustrating because we need to get more research done, and in order to get that done, we need someone on the back end who can push for it,” she added.
Jones noted how these products don’t just come into contact with women’s vaginas; they are also in contact with the body’s largest organ, the skin. Her cups, she said, are made from medical-grade silicone and are completely safe for the body and skin.
After releasing her cups in two sizes, Jones said consumers can expect “unique” menstrual products, including washes, that they haven’t seen on the market before. Ultimately, Jones is aiming to create a brand that helps people have their best periods. When asked how she would describe someone having their “best period,” she said, “If you can forget it.”
Jones describes a period that is so well managed when it comes to pain, products, bloating, and convenience that it’s forgettable.
“To me, that’s a good period,” she continued. “That’s your best period.”