Menopause was once a taboo subject but in recent years, we’ve seen celebrities like Davina McCall and Lisa Snowdon opening about the trials and tribulations of the tough life stage and attempting to break down that stigma.
We've also seen celebrities like Kelly Holmes and Denise Van Outen open up about the perimenopause, which is the transitional time before menopause that can hit as young as 40.
Amongst the many symptoms of menopause, including anxiety and mood changes, women can often suffer debilitating hot flashes. And with 8 out of 10 menopausal women in employment, it means that they’re having to endure these challenges at work.
But Louise Nicholson is on a mission to make menopausal women more comfortable and launched her own clothing range, Fifty One Apparel, in 2018 that catered specifically for hot flashes. Five years on and business is booming with a legion of loyal customers and a celebrity fan base.
Here, she tells OK! her story…
I was approaching my fifties and menopause had become a common discussion point amongst my friends and I. I remember a trip to Iceland when one of my friends stripped off in sub-zero temperatures to battle a hot flash. I also recall a pal telling me about the time she had practically buried her whole head in her handbag when a hot flash struck in the middle of a work meeting with all men.
We laughed and joked about the many horrors of menopause but it still felt taboo. It wasn’t something discussed at work. Like so many things in the life of a woman, we had learned to put up and shut up.
My background has always been in textiles and in 2018, I was running my own textile agency that supplied materials to businesses. I was on my way back from a meeting in the car when I turned the radio on in time to catch Woman’s House.
A man was discussing his wife’s menopause and seemed emotional when he said how much he wished he could find a solution to her uncomfortable hot flashes.
That was my lightbulb moment. In the back of my car were boxes of material designed to regulate body temperature. They were for a men’s clothing company for sports apparel. But it occurred to me at that moment how beneficial the material could be for menopausal women.
The material was originally designed for NASA and the fabric interpreted the body's heat, stored it and then released it back when the body started to cool.
I Googled as I was so sure this product must already exist on the market. Menopausal women make up a large proportion of the workforce. How could this not already be a thriving industry? But it wasn’t. Body regulating materials were only available for sporting brands, usually targeted at men.
There was nothing designed to ease the symptoms of menopause. As I said, perhaps women were just expected to put up and shut up.
I worked with a number of focus groups to see if this product was something they actually wanted and received an overwhelming amount of positive feedback. I created a few products, such as lightweight trousers and vests. Things women could wear around the house and also under work clothes.
I started hosting parties to sell the clothing to women in their own homes. And soon after, I launched a website and we were in business.
Since then, the business has grown and I’ve gained such a loyal customer base. One thing that makes me feel so good is how many customers continue to repurchase our products. Their reviews tell me how much the products mean to them. It’s by no means a cure for hot flashes but it can help them deal with it. For so many of my customers who struggle with them at night, it’s helped them get better quality sleep.
I have celebrity customers too, such as Michelle Heaton. She went through early menopause after having a hysterectomy due to discovering she had the BRCA2 cancer gene. She’s also posed as a model for our clothing.
It was a risk to launch a business in my later life. You have to have balls to do it but I do. And why shouldn’t I fill an obvious gap in the market? Women’s discomfort should absolutely be a top priority. I’m so glad that my clothing can help to a degree but I think we should all be talking more about menopause.
It’s a life stage that’s inevitable for many of us. It shouldn’t be discussed in hushed tones and dark corners.
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