Bloodstains: Alyssa Bertram’s Period Entrepreneurship

Words and Audio: Amanda Cupido

At the age of 22, Alyssa Bertram started sending emails to herself.

These emails included ideas for a business that would deliver feminine hygiene products. "I knew that it was an idea that had legs,” she said, “and that other women would appreciate it."

She also had the vision of creating a new narrative around menstruation. "Growing up, a lot of the content that I saw was very aspirational and [had] images of girls that didn't look like me," she said. "As a consumer I want to see stuff that feels real and honest."

But after graduating from Ryerson University's psychology program, she got a full-time job running clinical trials in hospitals. Years passed and the business idea sat on the back burner. "It was something I had just talked about forever... but I didn't take any action on it."

Until one defining moment led to her creating easy.

Hear Alyssa's story here: