Period products social enterprise expands down south

A MUSSELBURGH-BASED social enterprise has expanded into a new warehouse hub down south.

Founded in 2018, Hey Girls’ mission is to end period poverty in the UK.

A Plan UK study in 2018 found that one in 10 women and girls find themselves unable to afford period products from month to month, so Hey Girls set up on a kitchen table and moved into action.

Now working from Newhailes Business Park in Musselburgh, it has also opened a new 13,000-square-foot distribution centre in Diss, Norfolk – nearly five times the size of its former English base in Norfolk.

Celia Hodson, the driving force behind Hey Girls’ rise, said: “We are absolutely thrilled to have moved into this incredible new distribution centre. This new space will allow us to significantly increase our operations and help us in our fight to achieve period equality nationwide.”

Collaborating with a myriad of businesses nationwide, Hey Girls has orchestrated the distribution of over 38 million donations to its extensive network of more than 350 community partners since its inception in 2018.

The social enterprise has consistently achieved year-on-year growth, averaging 59 per cent.

A team of 40 individuals work from Musselburgh and Norfolk.

The Musselburgh office, which will remain, is a combination of office, packing, distributing and some warehouse space.