I actually bought them! Trying out absorbent shorts, menstrual cups, and delicate zone soap
~A report on femtech in Paris, Part 5~
This is the fifth installment of our Femtech Report from Paris, which has been delivered in four previous parts. In this report, I will share my experience using femtech items actually purchased there. The three items I bought were absorbent panties, a menstrual cup, and a delicate zone soap. All of these are items I regularly use, so I'd like to look at what makes them different.
Absorbent Panties Purchased at a Supermarket
First, let's start with the absorbent panties I got at the supermarket I visited in Report ①. As mentioned in the report, there was a wide variety of absorbent panties displayed on a large shelf, and I chose one with lace around the waist. The price was 15€ (approximately 2,200 yen), which is relatively affordable for absorbent panties.
The package clearly shows an image of someone wearing the product, its size, and the fact that it has lace. Other items in the lineup included simple designs and those with snap buttons on the sides.
The package includes statements promoting zero waste (eliminating waste and reducing garbage) and the back of the box serves as an instruction manual, clearly indicating its eco-friendly nature.
Lately, I've seen cosmetics with similar combined packaging and instructions, and as a consumer, it's great to reduce household waste.
As for the absorbent panties themselves, the design is quite simple. I usually wear absorbent panties made in Japan, and compared to those, these felt a bit thicker.
While Japanese manufacturers often specify and promote the amount of absorption they've measured, I didn't see any such claims here.
Although I don't have a heavy flow, when I actually wore them, I felt a bit uneasy on the second or third day when my flow is heavier, but they seemed fine for the beginning and end of my period. The absorbent part extends up to the waist, so I didn't feel particularly anxious while sleeping.
Considering the price and accessibility, if similar products were available in Japan, the barrier to using absorbent panties might be lowered even further.
French Brand Menstrual Cup & Delicate Zone Soap
Next up is the item I bought at the "gapianne." pop-up store, held at Le Bon Marché as featured in Paris Report ③: a menstrual cup from "jho,".
"jho," is a femcare brand founded in France in 2017, offering products related to menstruation such as sanitary pads, tampons, and absorbent panties. I've handled many menstrual cups, and this one's silicone is softer than average.
This is the larger of the two available sizes, but perhaps because of its softness, I experienced some leakage. Choosing a menstrual cup can be difficult as the right shape and softness vary from person to person, but after inserting this one deeply enough, the leakage stopped.
The stem part is long and has grooves for gripping with nails, making it the easiest to remove of any I've used! The price is 24.90€ (about 3,700 yen), which is slightly cheaper than menstrual cups available in Japan.
I also got a delicate zone soap from "jho,". The sophisticated package design (this is the old packaging) boosts my mood.
It contains shea butter and orange blossom, making it excellent not only for keeping the delicate zone clean but also for moisturizing it. The price is 8.9€ (about 1,300 yen) for a large 250ml bottle, which is a great value compared to products available in Japan.
The texture is slightly viscous; rather than lathering it up to cleanse, it feels more like applying a beauty serum to care for the skin.
It's pump-dispensed for easy use, and being fragrance-free, it offers a natural user experience. Incidentally, "jho," donates 1.7% of its sales to organizations supporting women in vulnerable situations, including care for migrant women and victims of human trafficking in Côte d'Ivoire.
Over the course of five reports, I've covered the femtech situation in Paris, and what I felt in France is that femtech is an intimate part of daily life, something that helps achieve physical and mental well-being.
In Japan, the term "femtech" was nominated for the New Words and Buzzwords Award in 2021, but looking at the situation in France, it seems there's still a lot of room for growth.
In this era, often called the "100-year life," physical and mental health are truly essential! Let's listen to our bodies, sometimes be disciplined, sometimes indulge, and take care of ourselves with the help of femtech.
Profile
Azu Sato
Born in 1992. While studying at Waseda University, she traveled to France, where she was profoundly impacted by Paris Fashion Week, leading her into the fashion industry. While working at a fashion IT company, she also organized the SNS media "ROBE." In spring 2020, she became independent and began writing fashion and femtech articles for fashion web media and managing social media.
Official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/azunne0217/
