Tech meets nature in identity for first flushable period pads

Mother Design has created the brand identity and packaging for “the world’s first fully flushable period pad”, built around the idea of “engineered simplicity”.

The company, originally named Planera, first approached Mother London’s incubator arm, Broody, which works with entrepreneurs to help launch new brands. Mother Design was then brought in to collaborate on the brand and strategy direction, renaming the brand Fluus.

Fluus’ pads are flushable thanks to patent-pending technology called FlushtecⓇ. The company’s co-founder Dr Olivia Ahn defines it as “a microplastic-free technology which combines biodegradable materials and a first-of-its-kind manufacturing process”, which enables the product to pass the UK’s industry standard flushability guidelines.

The pad comprises three materials: “a super-soft top sheet made of cellulose plant fibres, a patent-pending absorbent core and barrier made from biodegradable polymers and cellulose plant fibres, and a bottom sheet made from cellulose plant fibres”, says Ahn. She adds that the product also uses “a non-toxic, plastic-free adhesive derived from tree sap”.

When subject to “the volume and hydraulic action” of the flush, Ahn explains how the pads tear apart and break down as they travel through the drainage system. By the time they reach the water treatment centre, Ahn says a pad will be broken down into cellulose plant fibres “half the size of an eyelash”.

“Then it can safely pass through the screens where it is used as biogas and fertiliser, creating a circular product lifecycle”, she adds.

Mother Design set out to draw attention to the products’ unique selling point and “radical innovation and sustainability” offering, which is not often seen in the period care space, says the studio’s creative lead and senior art director Jo Tulej.

The core design concept was to combine “a down-to-earth personality” with “a reassuring, scientific underpinning”, she explains.

Tulej felt the original name was too generic and lacked “distinctiveness”. The name Fluus is a condensed version of the phrase “Flush Us”.

Mother Design created a bespoke wordmark which seeks to “evoke the curves and u-bends of pipes, says Tulej. As well as these “subtle nods to the journey and lifecycle of the product”, Tulej says the studio also wanted the type to have “a tall, bold silhouette” to convey “innovation and performance”.

Using “dispersal” animations the studio sought to reference the product’s flushability. Shapes and words take on qualities of the product, “breaking into particles” to represent “transformation”, says Tulej, while “continuous flowing movements” were incorporated to indicate circularity.

A halftone pattern appears across the identity and on packaging, seeking to reinforce the idea of “the dispersion of particles”, according to Tulej.

Tulej says Mother Design wanted the “strong, bold logo” to feature prominently on the outside of packaging, with the inside merging “a flash of blue” with the duotone pattern. The “knowing and relatable” message on the packaging reads, “Finally, a pad you really can flush”, she adds.

Fluus’ colour palette takes cues from the plant fibres that the pads are made from and features nature-inspired shades such as charcoal, stone, linen, pebble and cotton. Mother Design opted to include a Flushtec “digital” blue to reinforce “the future-facing innovation of the technology”, says Tulej.

As well as trying to eradicate the use of microplastics and permanent waste in the period product industry by expanding Fluus’ distribution channels, Ahn says that Fluus “has some exciting product developments on the horizon”.