Boots is renaming its feminine hygiene aisle to 'period products'

Boots is giving its long-named feminine hygiene aisle a new identity.

Following the decisions of other retailers to move away from using the term ‘feminine hygiene’ to refer to tampons, pads and other period essentials, Boots has announced it will rename the section as ‘period products’.

Boots confirmed the decision after Tyla reported that the feminine hygiene section on Boots’ website and app had been renamed.

The labelling for the in-store aisles is currently being reviewed and is set to follow suit later in the year.

This decision follows years of campaigning against the term ‘feminine hygiene’ which implies that periods are unhygienic and adds to stigma around menstruating.

Jamie Kerruish, beauty director at Boots UK, said: ‘When it comes to periods, we know retailers can play an important role in changing people’s perceptions, including the words we use to describe products.

‘We are proud to be implementing this change at Boots, starting with removing words like ‘hygiene’ and ‘sanitary’ and much more proudly saying ‘period products’ on boots.com and the Boots App.

‘We are currently reviewing signage in store too, which will be updated later in the year. 

‘Period products are essentials, and we want to ensure our customers can find and access all of the products they need with ease at Boots.’

Beyond breaking down taboos, the move could also signal a shift to more gender neutral language around periods, something that has been a growing conversation in recent years.

Either way, the shift to more neutral language around periods, whether in terms of hygiene or gender, has been welcomed by campaigners.

When Asda made the decision to use the term ‘period products’ last month, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said: ‘We welcome Asda’s move away from the term “hygiene” when talking about period products. 

‘Periods are not dirty or unhygienic, they are normal and natural and we would urge more retailers to do the same.’

An Asda spokesperson said: ‘We’re proud to have made this change in our stores to better reflect shoppers’ attitudes around period products. 

‘These items are an essential part of the shop for so many, so this change in wording helps us move towards removing the stigma from periods and period products.’

Do you have a story to share?

Get in touch by emailing [email protected].

Source: Read Full Article