Building a business with your best friend

“Never mix business and friendship.” It’s an often repeated bit of business advice, but it couldn’t be less true for Hello Period cofounders Robyn McLean and Mary Bond. 

Having met at 11, the two grew up sharing almost everything and had even planned to start a business together, but, as is the way in life, they initially followed different paths: McLean became a journalist and Bond, a nurse. 

One day, McLean tried a menstrual cup for the first time. It was a period game-changer, but she knew it could be done better, so she called Bond. By 2017, they had launched their first menstrual cup. 

In the years since, they have expanded the Hello Period range to offer something for anyone who menstruates, from discs and cups to undies and pads, with products distributed worldwide. 

The company generated $1 million in revenue in March 2021 and expects to turn over $3 million this year. In 2022, it raised $2.4m in an oversubscribed seed round with equity crowdfunding platform Snowball Effect.

McLean and Bond’s long-term goal for Hello Period is to be the world’s best and biggest sustainable period products company, providing better options for those managing periods.

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McLean shares her founder story with Caffeine. 

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What do you wish you knew starting out?

When Mary and I founded Hello Period, we were flying blind. If we’d known the challenges of starting and growing a business, we might never have done it. 

At the start, and still today, we’ve been motivated by wanting to make high-quality products that make managing periods easier, more comfortable, and better for the planet. We were frustrated by the lack of innovation in period care and decided to do something about it. So, starting from a naive place has actually worked for us. 

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What did you learn from things going wrong? 

It’s not something that went wrong, but rather that we didn’t foresee the long-term impact COVID-19 would have. 

We were considered an essential service during Covid and could continue trading, which was amazing. So, during lockdown, things ticked along fine. The impact came later. 

Looking back on it, I realise how hard it was to accurately forecast post-Covid. So many people had stocked up during Covid, which skewed everything and gave businesses confidence that would turn out to be false. 

On top of that, stores closed, and shipping rates and the cost of manufacturing increased dramatically. 

The lesson was that you can never rest on your laurels. Things can change, and they can change fast, especially if you have big targets you aren’t reaching. You have to be able to pivot when needed. 

We decided to take a breather from the markets furthest away from home because the cost of doing business there was more expensive than we could afford. We needed to stick closer to home and build up more cash reserves.

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Who has helped you succeed? 

In the early days, having my best friend working alongside me day in and day out helped not just me but also the business. We could laugh and cry together; it never felt lonely. 

Mary doesn’t work in the day-to-day business anymore. She is the most amazing palliative care nurse, and the world needs her. 

We didn’t have formal job titles for years, but after Mary left, someone said I needed to start being the CEO, which was a bit daunting. Not long after, I hired my now COO, Kat Sprowell. 

I worked with Kat many years ago in Wellington, and we worked well together then. I had always thought it would be amazing to work with her again. When the opportunity came up at Hello Period, she said she was keen. She is a fab human to have as my sidekick, supporting me but also questioning me. She keeps me grounded and has been a pivotal part of the business moving to new ground.

As a CEO, you don’t want staff who always say, ‘that’s a great idea’. You want people who will love the good ideas and question the bad ideas; she’s that person. 

I don’t want this answer to sound like one of those long Oscar acceptance speeches, but so many people have been helpful. We have an amazing team that is passionate about our mission, fantastic shareholders who support us, and customers who spread the word about how amazing our products are. 

I feel fortunate to have so many people encouraging us along the way. And thanks to the Academy. 

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What is the best advice you received? 

Take time out to switch off from work. While it’s the best advice, I should confess it’s advice I still struggle to take.

Owning a business is really 24/7. I am the absolute worst at setting boundaries and not checking emails at night and on weekends, but I love what I do, so working isn’t a grind for me. 

That said, I took a few weeks off last year and made a conscious effort to be less ‘on’. I felt so refreshed. It was a revelation and made me realise working all day every day doesn’t do you any favours. I need to keep reminding myself of that. 

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What advice would you give an early-stage entrepreneur? 

If your idea is something you need, chances are others do, too. Keep going and don’t listen to the people who will question you and try, whether intentionally or not, to instil a sense of fear. 

Test the waters slowly. Build your own website and social media, take photos on your phone. Become a Jack or Jill of all trades until you feel confident that you are onto something viable. 

If you start slow, you can start a business relatively cheaply. Of course, you need to be prepared for the fact you won’t have an income for a while, possibly years, if you are reinvesting everything back into growing your business. 

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What was your first entrepreneurial moment? 

I remember making friendship bracelets at school and selling them for $2. Almost every other girl at school was making them too so it was a crowded market with very little opportunity to secure any IP!

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