Research Findings

Phase: Qualitative Interviews

Agenda

• Research Briefing
• Understanding the Profiles
• Findings
  • Inferences/hypothesis 
  • Scope Proposition

Research Briefing

• Goals
• Constrains
• Recruitment/Interview method

End Goal: 

Deliver solutions to improve women's intimate health

Generate New Offers

Research Goals: 

Explore the Problem​

Get Insights​

Narrowing the scenario

&

Attention!

1. Not a marketing/focus group Research
2. Not a quantitative/statistical Research
3. We have to take care with preconceived ideas
4. And take care with the theme's limitations

INTIMATE

HEALTH & WELLBEING

EXPLORE FEMALE 

*

*cis women

*transmen w/vagina  (passive research approach)

Recruitment Form

+ Active mapping/invitation

5+1 Interviews (~6:30h)

BIAS DISCLAIMER: These women accepted to talk about the subject, it shows a minimum comfort about it. We can't infer their visions reflect the population. 

Methods

Understanding the Profiles

Link to the Profiles' file

* The icons/avatars source: https://www.flaticon.com/packs/avatars-92

• Profiles' listing
• Profiles' Scale

Profile 00-L. 

Why this profile was invited to the interview?

-

An M.D (neurologist) that besides doesn’t being a gynaecologist, understand and can help us understand the medical training and how the female cycle impacts some conditions. Helping us to get some insights and also share her view as a woman (special work routine)

(extra & directly invited)

33yo

Profile 01-I. 

Why this profile was selected?

-

Caught our attention the religious upbringing/home while declaring the interest in women’s health and also that she loves to menstruate and even how she had control of her cycle (having just condoms as contraceptives). But she also seemed a more mainstream user as she didn’t use a cup or reusable pads (so she had to use tampons or common pads). We thought she could bring insights to us about the vaginal care path to the more traditional portion of the population.

28yo

Profile 02-J. 

Why this profile was selected?

-

The recurrent infections together with the other problems as PCOS, endometriosis, etc. Seemed she suffers from very important and, unfortunately, very common female problems. As also being pregnant (non-planned at a young age) and declaring that, at some time in life, she was under antidepressants (what interfered with the use of contraceptives) could bring also other insights about some very common situations.

24yo

Profile 03-B. 

Why this profile was selected?

-

A mainstream user with a job (on a construction site) that somehow disrupted her intimate well-being and care. Expressing hygiene as a great issue for her and declaring the use of intimate soap was also a big reason. Together with her expressed desire to use (unsuccessfully) a cup, using mainly disposable pads.

This profile could bring us insights into the day-by-day female workforce challenges.

25yo

Profile 04-A. 

Why this profile was selected?

-

A law student but also a belly dancer. A deep diver on the holistic, more natural approaches. This profile has a foot on a very traditional societal segment (law) while following another disruptive path. She also expressed the use of lunar mandala as a way to keep up with her complete cycle

So this young profile could give us insights about some important trends.

25yo

Profile 05-M. 

Why this profile was invited to the interview?

-

A young holistic therapist, a yoga enthusiast, very focused on womanhood and the healthy relationship with the body. She collaborates with feminists publications, movements and even leads groups of women. A very talkative person, very open on talking about the subject.

Besides so young, her life seems to revolve around the study, practice and spread of philosophies and methods on holistic female care and the divine feminine.

26yo

Profiles Scale

Subjective method to explore the personas' understanding

Structured Routine

-

"How much they have their day/week organized"

+

Physical Activity

-

"How much they keep themselves active"

+

Dogma Scale

-

"How their dogmatic position impact getting other views"

+

Product awareness

-

"How much they care about the product origin/impact"

+

Conservative background

-

"How much the conservative view impacted them"

+

Cycle Self-awareness

-

"How much they keep up with themselves"

+

Divine Feminine

-

"How much the divine feminine guide their vision"

+

Insights

Insights

ABOUT MAINSTREAM PRODUCTS

Daily pads, even the name is absurd.

“...Only at the end of menstruation, but I think it stifles everything. And I cherish it for always being very healthy"

“...daily pads, even the name itself is absurd, to use something of this type daily."

“I never liked wearing daily pads."

“Or even in other products like Carefree, which we know is not suitable, especially in a warm country."

Contraceptives pills, once seem as tool to sexual revolution...

"For me to be healthy is not to use any hormones in my body, I don't want any hormones of any kind."

"I stopped taking contraceptives and my face was filled with pimples, blackheads (...) and I have been taking contraceptives since I was 13, when I menstruated. I'm feeling a lot of difference, I'm considering the possibility of returning.”

“I never took contraceptives (...) but I think it's important to review what you pass on to your daughter, be careful to research a little more so that something so wonderful does't get lost. ”

Intimate soap, controversy?! maybe not much

"I use some intimate soap, but I don’t  use it all the time, I saw that it is not very good, a matter of the pH of the vagina"

“I have an intimate soap, but I don't even use it every day."

"I do not wash with intimate soap, I wash only with water and at the end I put a spray."

"I haven't used intimate soap in a long time because of the smell I mentioned before and because I believe it’s not good."

Insights

ABOUT NUTRITION

Food (and exercises) as a very important path to their health in general.

“(...) eating very sugary, ultra-processed foods… this is something that makes me feel unhealthy.”

"What I understand as general health ... food ... everything we eat, will have some effect for good or for bad ..."

“But there are purely physical things that are to be eating well, to be drinking water... and in my life, it has always been closely linked..."

Understanding the direct impact of what they eat on their intimate health.

“I have cramps too. I know it has a lot to do with my eating and inflammatory processes that I'm kind of aware of ... I’ve spent a month once without lactose and my cramps reduced by more than 50% ... I keep some lactose-free products, but not all (as they are expensive). And I'm also trying to not eat red meat, but I haven't stopped eating 100%.”

Insights

ABOUT HEALTH

Gynaecologist as the health milestone and certification

"I think it is important ... because it is one thing to do things my way, because I believe that it is right ... but another thing is to talk to someone who has studied this. There is no way I dispense the traditional medicine, but I adapt it how I solve it for myself. ”

"(...) I used to go to several doctors, several gynaecologists to have a better direction"

Important to keep the area airy/breathing

“I use cotton panties and let it as ventilated as possible ... don't use tighter things…”

“The intimate area is already stuffy...I don't wear panties at home ... when I'm working, I spend a lot of time in very closed and heavy clothes. One of the precautions I was taking was to get home and give my body that freedom. Stay free. ”

CANDIDIASIS - A Recurring fear and discomfort

"Candidiasis, going out on the street, getting agonized and itching, this is very uncomfortable."

“...it’s about not having candidiasis, especially for those who work all day in pants.”

“Whoever has some kind of intimacy with me has heard me complain about a candidiasis crisis”

"I have a routine of going to the gynecologist."

"I menstruated at 13… so I ran to the gynaecologist"

"Seven out of ten women have the gynecologist as their doctor to take care of the specialty (intimate health) and also to take care of their health in general."

-César Eduardo Fernandes, president of Febrasgo

Source : Brazil Company of Communication (Agência Brasil- EBC)

Health seen as an integral concept.

“Consciousness! Mental health, body health. ”

“[Feel healthy] Feel good about my body and my mind”

"For me, to be healthy is to be well physically, emotionally, mentally and also socially."

“Physical, mental… I think it’s a combination of everything”

Insights

ABOUT AWARENESS

The relevance of self-knowledge and self-experimentation in the management of intimate health.

“I think that if you know yourself, you don't despair about nonsense. Well, I'm kind of a desperate person"

“For me, intimate health is much lessor a product and much more for you to know your body”

“(...) learn, it's all about ourselves. I have some processes that I'm trying to understand…

Taboos and being comfortable talking about intimate care

“If I was at school and I had my period, there was no problem because I thought it was natural. This comes from my upbringing ... and my mom always talked about it naturally. ”

“It was taboo, really. I am not a Protestant, but I come from a Protestant family. ”

“Today, I usually speak practically without taboos because having a routine of intimate care / undergoing specific treatments is something very present in my life, so it often becomes inevitable to speak. ”

About their transition process

"I lived in a bubble, then I saw an advertisement for a retreat for " women who run with wolves "(...) That's where I discovered the feminine in me."

"It started to change when I started to understand the sacred feminine."

“This break came through medicine school and also due to the opportunity to have had an elementary and high school, at a reference school [Federal Public School].”

Following their cycle, lunar mandala

“Every day, I write how I feel and what the day of my cycle is, how the cervical mucus is. As I get deeper on these cares, that I made these changes and observing my menstrual cycle, I feel that my health has improved, and I have a lot less cramps today. ”

"I do not do the mandala, but I am studying, because I believe in this cycle of women, that some external things interfere in our life, I do not know much in depth."

Insights

Desire and enthusiasm to share their views/knowledge with other women

"I always try to talk to women about intimate care, to learn more and share what I know."

“Since I started my sex life, I wanted to understand myself and to teach my friends. They came to ask me for advice.”

At the end of the interview B. (04) express that she was very grateful for the opportunity to share her point of view on intimate health. M. (05) said that she made some notes about menstruation before the interview, so she wouldn't forget to talk about some things that wanted to share.

The environmental impact of the products as a decision factor in the choice.

“I feel lack of pad that I feel comfortable using in relation to the environmental impact.”

“When I buy or get a product, my focus is that when using it in addition to doing good for me, it somehow has to reduce my environmental footprint.“

“I use products such as moisturizers, soaps, etc., as long as they have a good composition and the company actually has socio-environmental responsibility.”

Relationship of the women with their mothers - coexistence and generations sharing of experience.

“Mother, I also help you, let's be happy, we have to give ourselves pleasure, we can’t wait for no man, we have to go forward ”

“I think my mother taught me a lot about having this freedom with our own bodies.”

“This comes from my upbringing… and my mother always talked about it naturally”

SEARCH FOR MORE NATURAL PRODUCTS, NO INDUSTRIALIZED

"So I try to use just products that don't have parabens, silicones, etc."

"There’s another thing, natural gynecology, which I’ve never done, but I desire to do: it's vaporization."

"With the [essential oil] spray the effect is much better! Because it is bactericidal, germicidal, all of that. And I am also reducing my environmental footprint with this. I have never used a soap that compares ... even the point of smell, well-being.”

Break the “shame” of being a woman. They are empowering themselves, being proud of their feminine.

“I once asked the gynecologist:“ am I always going to be wet? Why does my panties get wet all the time during the month? “. (...) Then I went to study about the issue of lubrication and today I have no problem getting anything in my panties. It's natural."

“It bothers me when talking to women. We are bombarded with advertisements that say that women need to use perfumed intimate soap, that blood is blue in ads for tampons/pads... and all attempts to be themselves ... that normal is wrong, that we always need to be perfumed because their natural smell it is wrong and unpleasant.”

Obrigada.

Gabriella Martins

hi@werkbund.club

www.werkbund.club