How We Got Here

Morgan here, long-time Aisle employee - nice to meet ya! I've been a part of the Aisle story since the early days when we were known as Lunapads (shout out to the OG Lunapads users!) As a long-term member of the team,\xa0I wanted to take a moment to share a bit more about our journey as a company, our campaign to #savetheperiodaisle, and how we got here.

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If you’re a supporter of small, sustainable businesses, you know that it’s been a struggle out there. The recent closure of many sustainable fashion brands has been a shock to many, but the reality is that we’re all struggling, and Aisle is not immune.

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Relentless consumption is trashing the planet and leading to the abuse of workers around the world, and with the rise of fast-fashion and homeware brands like Fashion Nova, Shein and Temu, convenience and low cost have put a spell on consumers. Couple this with inflation, downward pressure on wages and the high cost of housing, people are finding themselves less able to save, and less able to afford quality, sustainable goods.

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So where does that leave Aisle? After ourrebrand launchedon March 12th 2020 (yes, that’s the very same day that COVID-19 was declared a global pandemic) we sold out our first few runs of period underwear, and things were going pretty well despite, welleverything. We were recognized for oursize range, andLife Cycle Analysis, and our customers seemed to really resonate with what we were trying to achieve. But when we looked around at the competitive landscape, our competitors' prices seemed to be getting lower and lower. Eventually they started being bought up by the big disposable brands. The very brands that we were trying to offer alternatives to, were now making profit off the product category that we built!

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Then thePFAS scandalhappened, and despite the fact that Aisle’s products were, and have always been safe and found to have no detectable levels of PFAS, it seemed like customers' trust in the whole concept of period underwear was damaged forever.

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As for us, we haven’t given up hope. We still think that safe, sustainable menstrual products are necessary, and that ethical manufacturing is the only way to do business on a planet that is burning. Aisle is committed to making it work, but as with any small business, we can’t survive without customers buying our products. In the spirit of radical transparency, we are asking our community to “Save the Period Aisle” by helping us sell 20,000 pairs of underwear in 60 days. It’s an ambitious goal, but one that will help us get out of debt, address some of our supply-chain inefficiencies, move through our inventory and set us up to develop new, even better products.

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When you purchase Aisle products you’re also supporting our mission to provide access to menstrual products to individuals experiencing period poverty. Every year we donate 2% of sales to ourDignity Projectpartners who work with communities across Canada. So follow along onInstagramandTiktokfor daily updates and behind the scenes content, tell your friends &get your pair today.

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with gratitude,

Morgan & the team @ Aisle ✨