CYCLE BY FREDA

Short List
TitleCYCLE BY FREDA
BrandFREDA
Product/ServicePERIOD CARE
Category B01. Challenger Brand Strategy
Entrant McCANN SPAIN Madrid, SPAIN
Idea Creation McCANN SPAIN Madrid, SPAIN
PR WEBER SHANDWICK London, UNITED KINGDOM
Production CRAFT Madrid, SPAIN
Production 2 BLUR FILMS Madrid, SPAIN
Production 3 GREAT GUNS London, UNITED KINGDOM
Post Production CRAFT Madrid, SPAIN
Additional Company McCANN New York, USA
Credits
Name Company Position
MÓNICA MORO MCCANN MADRID Copywriter
ADRIAN BOTAN MCCANN LONDON CCO MCCANN WG
RAQUEL MARTÍNEZ MCCANN MADRID Copywriter
BORJA DIEGO MCCANN MADRID Art Director
RAFAEL MARTÍNEZ MCCANN MADRID Copywriter
XAVIER OCAÑA MCCANN MADRID Art Director
CATARINA BARCALA MCCANN MADRID Art Director
LUCAS CRIGLER MCCANN NY Creative Consultant
ALEXANDRA VON PUTTKAMER MCCANN MADRID Business Director
CARMEN BISTRIAN MCCANN ROMANIA Creative Excellence Manager Europe
BILLY LEPAGE MCCANN NY Strategist
JUAN MANUEL RAMÍREZ MCCANN MADRID Head of Planning
RODNEY COLLINS MCCANN LONDON UK & Europe Truth Central Director
THEIS ANDERSON MCCANN LONDON Truth Central Intern
JENNY WAKEFIELD WEBER SHANDWICK LONDON Senior Manager
ROSANNA SACKS WEBER SHANDWICK LONDON Account Director
AFSANEH PARVIZI-WAYNE FREDA CEO
KASEY ROBINSON FREDA Inclusion Lead
ISABELLE SOSKICE FREDA Marketing & Strategy Director
PALOMA ADRIÉN CRAFT WW MADRID Agency Producer
YASMINA SORIANO CRAFT WW MADRID Producer
JUAN TORRES CRAFT WW MADRID Producer
MAR DEL CORRAL BLUR / GREAT GUNS Film Director
LORENA PAGÉS BLUR / GREAT GUNS Director Of Photography
ALIX ROUSSEL BLUR / GREAT GUNS Director Of Photography
MARIO FORNÉS BLUR Executive Producer
LAURA GREGORY GREAT GUNS Executive Producer
SETE LEDO BLUR Producer
TIM FRANCIS GREAT GUNS Producer
SARA DEL TÍO CRAFT WW MADRID Post Production
ISMAEL NAJJAR CRAFT WW MADRID Editor
SEBASTIÁN ANTICO CRAFT WW MADRID Editor
PABLO ASET CRAFT WW MADRID Sound Design

Why is this work relevant for Creative Strategy?

Gender representation in the period care industry is unfair. This was a opportunity not to be missed to further gender inclusivity. Transgender and non-binary people form a sizable community whose needs are poorly understood by the period care industry and society at large. An estimate published in The Lancet* suggest a prevalence of 0.3%-0.5% of transgender in the general population. This puts a conservative estimate at between 23.4 M and 39 M of the world population, with roughly 60% of this as trans men (i.e. approximately 16 M).

Background

As this community has to deal with discrimination in all ways of life, period care is no exception. These individuals face a polarized understanding of what it means to be a person who bleeds. The gendered codes and conventions in addition to the lack of inclusivity in the period care category make trans men and non-binary people relive the trauma of transition, shame, and fear every time they have their period.

Interpretation (30% of vote)

Period inclusivity refers to the equal availability of affordable and suitable period products and associated support, including reproductive education and healthcare, to all those who need them.

Insight / Breakthrough Thinking (30% of vote)

Our research – conducted by YouGov** – revealed that more than 50% of adults who have ever menstruated admit having experienced a lack of period inclusivity. A result that drastically increases amongst trans men and non-binary people. A separate ground-breaking qualitative study*** conducted with transmasculine individuals, confirmed that hyperfeminine packaging contributed to period inequity for trans men and that discreet packaging would reduce fears of being ‘outed’ by the product. Finally a research from VICE**** found “41% of Gen Z respondents from western countries identify themselves in the middle of the masculine to feminine scale”, showing that “gender fluidity is going to become more mainstream as Gen Z grows up”. All this proved that the category is ripe for disruption and added urgency to the need to move from words to action.

Creative Idea (20% of vote)

A traditional solution would have been to create a PSA highlighting the inequity of the category. But the groundbreaking decision was to create the first product meant to challenge the category conventions and narratives. Menstruation is more than a feminine phenomenon — it’s a human one. Grounded in this insight, the agency’s idea was to create a product and a product experience designed to address the lack of inclusivity in the category. We partnered with Freda, a company that fights period inequity and believes that access to period care is a basic human right. Freda is using their platform to advocate and campaign for period inclusivity and donates a product to charity for every product purchased. Minimalistic and neutral - a radical break from the industry assumptions about periods - CYCLE is free from plastics, pollutants, preconceptions. With its packaging, Cycle is designed to everybody who menstruate into consideration.

Outcome / Results (20% of vote)

Freda’s sales, and donations, have increased 27% while receiving widespread acclaim from the LGBTQI+ community and beyond. The e-commerce website grew 60% with visits and orders from 95 countries including places like Iran and Iraq. The campaign has achieved a combined organic reach of 135 million and was covered by major titles like Glamour UK, Forbes, Metro, Trend Hunter, HypeBae, Yahoo News, Refinery 29, Metro and more*****. With 0€ media investment the launch video amassed +150,000 views only on Instagram, with a 98% positive sentiment. The idea inspired organic partnerships: hotel chains - Hilton Seychelles, Retreat Palm Dubai, Citizen M London - are partnering with Freda to offer free Cycle products for their guests. Fortismere School in London are introducing the study of the Cycle campaign in their curricula. Finally, The English National Opera are partnering with Freda to offer Cycle products at their location.

Please tell us about how the work challenged / was different from the brands competitors

Freda’s differentiation strategy is to fight period inequity. New Freda research** revealed that half of adults who have ever menstruated admit having experienced a lack of period inclusivity. This result drastically increases amongst trans men and non-binary. The period care industry has always been highly gendered and almost exclusively focused on women, making trans men and non-binary feel shame, fear and question themselves every time they buy period products. With Cycle we wanted to break with the category conventions and launch a product that opposed the assumptions about periods. 1. Reframe the societal narrative around periods - women are not the only gender that needs access to period care 2. Create positive impact on the acceptance and well-being of the transgender and non-binary community. 3. Spark meaningful conversation about the importance of period inclusivity and by extension of period inequity in for all walks of life.