Last month we reported that Sheebah Karungi was quietly planning to launch a sanitary pad brand. Aptly called ‘Holic pads’, coined out of ‘Sheebaholics’, the name of her legion of fans, the brand was finally launched on Sunday evening at Pearl of Africa Hotel in Kampala. While the name of the brand is inspired by her fans, the brand was created for every woman out there.
“I want to fight for you ladies, you deserve to have the best quality of pads. I want us to have good hygiene because great hygiene is essential to us women,” she shared in a statement. “I am very certain that my team and I did everything we could to bring you the best product. I promise you this product is going to make your red days better. I am not saying this because this is my brand, but I am saying this because it’s true,” she shared in a tweet.
Away from the quality of the brand, the pads are also fairly priced. Each pack is priced at Shs. 4000 and comes with 10 pads and 2 panty-liners. This favours women and young ladies who are either in school or cannot afford other brands on the market that are more expensive. According to a study done in 2019, 86% of girls in Uganda miss school because of menstruation.
Sheebah shared her own menstrual experience too
“I come from a less privileged background as a little girl. I got my first period at the age of 13. I remember my very first day on my menstrual cycle, my mother cut a piece of cloth for me to use. And I remember going to school and seeing other girls using the pads that my family and I couldn’t afford and thinking of how privileged they were. Fast forward, later on I left home started working as a dancer, I gained a little income just enough for me to finally afford the pads for myself. But I remember my first pads I used would burn me and leave a lot of discomfort. As if that wasn’t bad enough, they also had an odd scent to them. At first, I thought maybe I am just allergic to that brand because I naturally have allergies. So, my instinct was to switch to another brand and yet same thing happened, and I was left with no option. Later on, in life (2007) when I joined the obsessions singing group, I learned about tampons because my then manager would not let us perform on stage with pads on. At that time, I was 16 going to 17 and ever since then I never really used pads again because each and every time, they would burn me and leave me irritated. So I paid attention to all these issues that we all find in some of the sanitary pads we use and made sure we get the best”
Holic pads is part of Sheebah Establishments, the singer’s new entrepreneurial effort.
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