Munich Startup: What does your startup do? What problem do you solve?
Pheline Huber, founder and CEO: Free tampons for everyone – financed by advertising revenue. Despite rising media budgets, traditional advertising formats are increasingly losing relevance. Brands are investing record sums just to be visible for a fleeting moment in overcrowded feeds – only to be forgotten just as quickly. Meanwhile, the platforms profit from the competition: The more intensively brands fight for attention, the more they pay and receive less and less impact in return. That's why we're focusing on an alternative advertising space: tampon boxes. At the same time, we're tackling a very big problem: period poverty and are actively working to ensure that it There are free tampons in public spaces (cafés, restaurants, gyms, co-working spaces, etc.)For each box distributed, donations are collected for homeless women and aid projects, so that everyone has free access.
Munich Startup: But that's been around for a long time!
Pheline Huber: Surprisingly, no. Almost everything is printed these days: from condoms to water bottles to USB sticks. But tampons and tampon boxes are still untapped territory—even though they are at least as relevant to everyday life. At the same time, there are repeated attempts to make free tampons available in public spaces, but these usually fail due to lack of funding.
Founding idea arose from personal experience
Munich Startup: What is your founding story?
Pheline Huber: The idea arose from a very personal experience: At a networking event, I actually had a different concept in mind—free water, funded by advertising. I wanted to use the evening to approach potential partners, investors, and other interested parties. Unfortunately, my period came on unexpectedly heavily, so I had to leave the event early. Unfortunately, no one I asked had anything with them, and there were no supplies available on-site either.
While I was sitting on the subway, I realized that I couldn't miss out on important opportunities and be unable to advance my business just because I'm a menstruating person and have my period.
That’s why I came up with the idea of transferring the concept of advertising-financed products: Free water is cool, but free tampons would be simply amazing. When I discovered that there actually wasn't a provider for it yet, I decided to simply implement it myself.
Munich Startup: What have been your biggest challenges so far?
Pheline Huber:
- to secure funding
- To create visibility for a topic that is often taboo
- Overcoming your own perfectionism and just getting started
Lyfe.ads aims for major collaborations
Munich Startup: Where would you like to be in one year, where in five years?
Pheline Huber: In one year, I would like to have a cooperation with Flixbus, Deutsche Bahn and an airport in Germany.
In five years, I want advertising space to be so established that it is included as standard in marketing strategies and is taken for granted.
Munich Startup: How have you experienced Munich as a startup location so far?
Pheline Huber: Munich is open, well-connected, and offers exciting contacts. However, the social entrepreneurship scene in other cities—such as Hamburg—is even more accessible and offers more opportunities.
Munich Startup: Outsource or do it yourself?
Pheline Huber: Core competencies always belong in-house. We are happy to outsource everything else to partners – provided the quality and trust are right. For us, cooperation is not a last resort, but part of our strategy.
