MARYSVILLE — What’s become an online business started out when Marysville’s Tara Bruley realized that she could use a special sort of support as the mom to a teenage girl.
“When she came of age, I wanted something that would prepare her for the changes to come in her body, but that wouldn’t gross her out,” Bruley said of her daughter’s first period. “I wanted to give her something that celebrated this part of her growing up, but I couldn’t find that, and neither could the other parents I know.”
This unserved need inspired Bruley to put together kits of feminine hygiene products, complete with guides for both girls and their parents on those girls’ first periods.
“I wanted to give families something they could use if they didn’t feel comfortable having that conversation, but also something they could use after they’d had that conversation,” Bruley said. “I wanted it to be a guide for parents who might not be sure how to approach that subject, but also a resource for girls to go back to after they’d talked.”
In addition to these separate informational materials targeted toward parents and their daughters, each “Be Prepared Period Kit” also includes a sequined travel bag for storing supplies when girls are away from home, a heat patch for cramps, four individually wrapped pads with wings, two panty-liners, two Always feminine wipes and a Safe Spot keychain to store medicine or jewelry, all packaged in a gift box.
Since starting BePreparedPeriod.com with this kit, Bruley has branched out to provide a “Period Pack To Go” for both girls and adult women, so that they’re never caught without the appropriate products for an emergency. This pack includes two individually wrapped pads with wings, a panty-liner and a feminine wipe, also in a sequined travel bag.
The website features a diverse selection of feminine hygiene products, with tampons, sanitary pads and panty-liners all available for a variety of individual preferences to accommodate light to heavy periods. The site also provides the complete line of Natracare organic feminine hygiene products, that are plastic-free and made of certified organic 100-percent cotton. If customers can’t find a product that they’re interested in, Bruley is willing to accept suggestions and will consider adding it.
“Our goal for the site is to change the way women buy their monthly feminine products,” Bruley said. “We offer a subscription option that allows customers to sign up to receive their organic and non-organic products automatically every month without the hassle or embarrassment of going to the store. Convenience is king in a busy life, so offering an option that eliminates one more thing off the to-do list is one way we hope to help.”
Bruley can be reached by email at info@bepreparedperiod.com, or via the online form at www.BePreparedPeriod.com. She also maintains a Facebook page at www.facebook.com/BePreparedPeriod, and those who “like” the page will receive special discounts on the products they purchase.
