A launch strategy to increase awareness and availability of MakaPads in rural Uganda

Master thesis (2022)

Authors

M. Barrientos Paras Industrial Design Engineering

Contributors

J.C. Diehl Design for Sustainability - IDE (supervisor 1)
C.B.A. Kobus Responsible Marketing and Consumer Behavior (supervisor 2)
Tessa Fij (coach)
Faculty
Industrial Design Engineering
Copyright: © 2022 Mariana Barrientos Paras
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Published Date

22-08-2022

Language

English

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Faculty

Industrial Design Engineering

Abstract

Girls and women in Uganda lack Menstrual Hygiene Management (MHM) information, and proper tools and facilities to manage their periods. There are different methods that girls in rural areas use to manage their menstruation such as cloths or pads. This project focuses on menstrual pads as they are hygienic, absorbent, and comfortable. Therefore, pads enable girls to have a better experience during their period. Girls who live in rural areas of Uganda are the main users this project focuses on. Older women in rural areas are considered as the target consumers who purchase the pads.
Currently, the women who live in rural areas of Uganda only have access to the commercial expensive pad brands. Therefore there is a need of affordable menstrual pads to be accessible in the villages. MakaPads produces affordable menstrual pads. However some years ago they lost their biggest client who was doing the distribution of the product and they were left to rethink their distribution strategy. Presently, MakaPads wants to change their strategy from B2B to B2C and therefore, distribute the pads directly to the end consumer in the rural areas of Uganda.
Thus, the goal of the project is to design a launch strategy for MakaPads to increase the availability and accessibility of menstrual pads for women and girls in rural areas of Uganda. The project was scoped using the framework of the four A’s of marketing: Acceptability, Awareness, Availability and Affordability. Acceptability and Affordability were left out of the scope. Awareness and Availability were subdivided after desk research and context interviews were conducted. Awareness subdivisions were MHM communication and product communication, and Availability was subdivided into information distribution and product distribution.
Interviews were conducted in Uganda and a workshop was performed with the MakaPads team to decide on the direction of the project. The project findings brought key partnerships with opinion leaders in the villages and added crucial consumer groups for the company. By adding these two stakeholders, MakaPads can increase their reach in the villages using less resources. The strategy created is designed for MakaPads to establish in new markets and replicate in rural villages of Uganda. Finally, communication directions were created to increase MHM and product knowledge in the communities of rural Uganda.