Holland & Barrett invests £2m in inclusive menopause support campaign

In the 30-second spot (the health and wellness retailer’s first audio-visual ad in 18 months), women from different backgrounds share their emotional menopause stories.

In reaction to YouGov research that showed half of women from Black, Asian and minority ethnic backgrounds believe menopause support is too focused on the experience of white women, Holland & Barrett decided to put inclusivity at the heart of the campaign.

A 15-second Hindi edit will run on YouTube and paid social, targeting consumers who have their language set to Hindi, while there will also be social and digital out-of-home ads in Urdu, Punjabi, Gujarati and Hindi.

Sarah Moores, head of customer and campaign planning at Holland & Barrett, said: “To close the care gap, we need to find different ways to support women with the information they need in a way that works for them.“

To amplify the campaign, Holland & Barrett has enlisted the help of Olympian and menopause campaigner Michelle Griffith-Robinson and expert Meera Bhogal for PR and social. The retailer has also partnered with the Wellbeing of Women charity to launch a community fund that will provide small grants to groups or individuals who are improving education around menopause.

The campaign follows Holland & Barrett’s menopause initiative unveiled in October 2022, which trained over 4,000 store staff to recognize symptoms of menopause and advise on lifestyle and diet options.

• Brands can now put an ‘M’ logo on products that help menopause symptoms

• Holland & Barrett wins TfL diversity contest with ads tackling the menopause

The campaign promotes Holland & Barrett’s extended menopause training to educate staff on the cultural differences in approach to dealing with menopause symptoms. The health retailer has also rolled out a free multi-language menopause online consultation service in Hindi, Urdu, Gujarati and Punjabi.

“We’ve worked closely with colleagues from different communities in H&B and with menopause campaign groups and charities to design further ways we can help and this campaign demonstrates how H&B can help women find the solutions that are right for them with care and understanding,“ added Moores.

Holland & Barrett has been investing in menopause awareness for some time now – in 2019, it won a Transport for London (TfL) competition for its ’Me.No.Pause’ campaign and is one of the founding brands of the GenM menopause group.