Voices of Tomorrow: How the co-founder of August is trying to eliminate the stigma around periods

Voices of Tomorrow is a recurring monthly feature highlighting PoC who are reshaping the retail industry.

Period poverty and the pink tax continue to be not only a global issue, but also a huge problem here in the US. A 2023 study by NCBI found that “16.9 million menstruating women in the United States live in poverty.” For Nadya Okamoto, social entrepreneur and co-founder of August, a sustainable menstrual care brand, it is somewhat her life’s mission.

Not only is Okamoto dedicated to eliminating the “tampon tax,” aka the sales tax on tampons, but also the stigma around periods. Formerly the founder of nonprofit PERIOD., which works to promote increased access to menstrual hygiene products, the 26-year-old is also known for her judgment-free TikTok videos that educate young people through the process of menstruation.

In an exclusive chat with Retail Brew, Okamoto discussed the challenges of running a mission-based retail business and her advice to young women of color in the retail industry.

This interview has been lightly edited for length and clarity.

What inspired you to launch August?

I had written this book called Period Power, where I was really answering the question of, “Why does period stigma exist the way it does today?” And the reason that I really felt strongly about it was that it was actually very much the consumer industry that shaped the narrative, because it was the consumer industry that introduced periods into the mainstream market and made this kind of relationship with buyers, and then also, introduced advertising into mainstream media. I think writing the book and having that out…I just felt like I was really studying the issue from all angles [of] nonprofit impact and then consulting on the marketing and next-gen products side and the influencer [side] that led me to this conclusion of we need to create a better period care brand that makes better products and can really be the change in terms of, “How do you change the narrative around periods in mainstream media? And what does it look like to create a next-gen social impact driven business?”

Why is period poverty and the stigma around menstruating still such a big issue in the US?

We still live in a patriarchy, and the majority of lawmakers are old white men…Those are the guys making the laws.

The period stigma has been deeply ingrained for thousands of years…The period stigma we have today is the result of so much history, and sociological things, and thousands of years of patriarchy.

What were some of the biggest challenges for you?

[When we started the company], people were talking about how fem-care and fem-tech was the big, hot, new space, but not consumer fem-tech. Period products were…less interesting. Also, until very recently, we didn’t have successful examples of exits in the space. That’s one of the first things that investors look at, which is: What is the history of investing in this space? At the time, Lola, Cora, Rael—those new ones hadn’t existed. But now we have [brands] like The Honey Pot and Knix, both startup companies that have exited and had strong exits. That’s really good for this space. It’s probably one of the examples where I really do cheer for so many of the other new brands out there because their success helps all of the small businesses in the space.

What needs to change in the industry right now?

More funding, but I also think it’s about just creating opportunities to level that playing field. That’s part of why I feel so strongly about TikTok staying because medicine is so expensive. It’s so hard to compete. And so a platform like TikTok, which is very much valuing organic growth…can be really, really essential for a small business.

What advice do you have to other young WOC who are aspiring to be business owners?

It’s so much about building a community around the kind of people that are the caliber of where you’re trying to go. For me, surrounding myself with founder friends who’ve done this before has been so essential. They’ve been the most helpful in terms of creating that network for fundraising introductions, just being able to have people around me who have done this before. I think it’s been really essential.