When A Shoe Brand Talks About Menstruation
Strong Move in Women Empowerment by HOKA
How HOKA Tap Into This Issue
International Women’s Day was celebrated when I stumbled upon a post by HOKA about women’s period. It’s an online conversation video of Emma-Pallant Browne, an IRONMAN World Champion and triathlete, and Nadya Okamoto, Co-Founder of a lifestyle period brand called August, author of PERIOD POWER: A Manifesto for the Menstrual Movement, and Founder and former Executive Director of PERIOD, a non-profit menstrual movement. At that time, I was surprised at how brave HOKA was to bring this issue to the table.
The segment is called Tape Disruptors, in which guest stars are extraordinary female runners who defy norms, redefine possibilities, and pave the way for future generations. Three videos will be posted in March, the women’s history month. The first episode that I watched was about the period. From the segment’s trailer video, the other two episodes will cover other stigmas embedded in women in the athletic world. I immediately felt motivated and inspired by only watching the snippet.
Women Athletes and Period Issue
Women are designed differently from men, both physically and mentally. Menstruation or period is one of the significant differences, which sometimes can limit women’s activities. This monthly cycle is influenced by hormones, which are triggered by many factors. Excessive or infrequent physical activities and an unhealthy diet are some of them.
Menstrual dysfunction is a common problem experienced by women athletes due to hormone level changes. It’s also happened to Emma as she had to adjust her physical exercises and diet with the sports industry. As a result, she lost her period during the beginning of her athletic career and then struggled to get it back. After about 4 years of trying, she has now had her normal menstruation back.
This period cycle can be predicted but often is unpredictable. In the first episode of Tape Disruptors, Emma shared her experience getting her period during a race. The moment was captured by a photographer. That photo showed herself running in a bright-colored swimsuit with a slight red stain between her legs. Sadly, when she posted the photo on her Instagram, many audiences, including women, pushed her to take the post down because it’s considered disgusting and inappropriate.
Despite all the negative comments she received from that post, she proudly said that it was not an embarrassing moment. This is a reality faced by all women in sports. She refused to take the post down because she wanted to share the awareness with a broad audience. As a role model, she aims to show the highs and the lows of her journey, which makes her human, so that the younger generation feels related to her.
Strong Campaign with The Right Approach
I think HOKA made a great move to tap into this issue. HOKA has successfully created awareness of this important topic and gained its brand love through storytelling. HOKA also chose the right moment to launch this powerful campaign. It successfully distinguished itself from other sports shoe brands by dedicatedly celebrating International Women’s Day—something that was surprisingly not done by Adidas and Nike, which have a dedicated page for the women's audience.
I’m not a professional athlete, but I can relate to the story as I also experience a similar struggle. Growing up, I’ve always been an active girl, and at some point, I felt some insecurities about changes in my body that made sports less enjoyable, especially during pre-period and period phases when my hormones fluctuate. Watching this campaign video made me feel good as a woman and embrace it. I really appreciate HOKA as a shoe brand that supports women-related issues.
Do you think HOKA did a good job on this campaign? Let me know what you think in the comment section!
Stay connected,
Annisa
