After noticing a glaring lack of more ecological and easily accessible menstrual products in public places, Roxane Champagne-Duval wanted to initiate change by launching Alea Protection.
Founded in 2022, the young company offers completely organic and biodegradable tampons and pads that are sold online.
The entrepreneur has also developed a turnkey solution for companies that want to make these products available to their employees.
An offer that is in line with the new law that requires government-regulated companies to provide menstrual products free of charge in their workplace.
Roxane Champagne-Duval welcomes this new regulation, which will come into force on December 15, 2023, and hopes that it will be extended to all employers.
“It’s only a matter of time before this becomes the norm,” she believes. The benefits for employers are numerous; Studies have shown that when women have access to the menstrual products they need at work, there is less absenteeism from work.”
After just three months of pre-sales, the brand is already in more than 400 corporate restrooms across Canada, including Northvolt, Intelcom, Lambert Bags and several government institutions.
The Business Development Bank of Canada (BDC) will also offer Alea products in its 170 bathrooms across the country.
In addition, the entrepreneur leads discussions in educational institutions; A pilot project is also running at the Collège André Grasset in Montreal.
Alea Protection offers monthly or quarterly delivery of its products depending on the needs of companies. Packages start at $150.
“We also distribute displays and even promote our products to employees,” she explains.
Photo agency QMI, Mario Beauregard
Fill a gap
Roxane Champagne-Duval was on maternity leave when the idea of starting Alea Protection came to her.
“When my period came back, I looked for menstrual products with natural ingredients. However, all the ones I found were made of chemically treated materials and plastic. There was therefore a lack of disposable products that were better for health and the planet,” says the entrepreneur, who had just sold the shares in the previous company she ran with a partner, the jewelry manufacturer Pilgrim.
Together with a European partner, the company has developed a range of tampons and pads made from organic cotton that are not only healthy but also decompose faster, in 90 days instead of hundreds of years for traditional products.
The new regulations obviously provide impetus for Alea Protection, which needs to expand its facilities.
A move and new hires are planned for the beginning of 2024.
“We want to hire between three and five people,” explains Roxane Champagne-Duval, who has no shortage of projects to expand Alea Protection.
In particular, the club and community sector should be further developed. She has also just signed an agreement with Maison Simone Monet-Chartrand that welcomes women in difficulty.
By 2025, the brand could be enriched with new products that are also made from natural and environmentally friendly materials.
And more or less in the long term, the entrepreneur hopes to bring the production of her products, which currently takes place in Europe, back home.
“You have to reach a certain production volume to be profitable,” she says.
Alea protection
- Founding date: 2022
- activities: Personal care products
- shareholder: Roxane Champagne Duval
- Number of employees:2
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