Edinburgh and Musselburgh businesswomen on a menopause mission with new business

Leith marketing executive joins forces with Musselburgh nurse

Two local entrepreneurs have made it their mission to improve options for women experiencing menopause after watching their friend go through the life-changing transition at 25. 

Jessica Watson and Isla Telfer, both 28, had their eyes opened after their close friend was chemically induced into the menopause in her mid-twenties. They became acutely aware of the lack of knowledge and support surrounding menopause – as well as the lack of products available to help manage the transition.

It prompted the pair to found GLORIAH, a menopause-focussed personal care brand that creates luxury products to help people manage the first signs of the menopause. The innovative concept has proved so impressive it was recently awarded £80,000 by the Scottish EDGE programme.  

GLORIAH’s products include Liberation Oil, a hydrating vulva oil which has sold out due to high demand on the firm’s website. Coming soon is a water-based intimate gel – a lubricant with a 100 per cent natural, vegan and plant-based formula set to be released May. 

Designed specifically to support body changes and needs that increase throughout the menopause, the products are designed to sit alongside skin care, beauty products, and perfumes. The brand has also created a ‘safe and inclusive’ community that shares education and empowers other people through this key transition in life. 

Jessica, a marketing executive from Leith, said: “The stereotype of a ‘menopausal person’ has been stuck in time for as long as we can remember, but with more and more people entering menopause early, the stigma needs to be broken.

“We were conscious that we were in our early 20s and didn’t know enough about it – and we knew that wasn’t right. This is something that affects 50% of the population, and there is a shocking lack of support or knowledge available.

“More and more people are entering menopause early. Whether it’s through surgical menopause, POI, Endometriosis, they share one thing in common – a lack of recognition by professionals, friends, family, and society.”

Isla Telfer and Jessica Watson have created menopause-focussed personal care brand GLORIAH. Photo by Jack Currie.

Isla, an NHS nurse from Musselburgh, said: “We saw an urgent need for products that can help with the symptoms of menopause – there just wasn’t a lot out there, and the designs were largely medical. Early menopause makes up 10 per cent of all menopause cases, so that’s an unspoken market even if it’s a buzzword at the moment.”

Isla and Jessica started GLORIAH during lockdown while working full-time, but the Scottish EDGE funding will enable the duo to put more time into developing new products, and ultimately dedicate all their time to the business. The award will also allow them to lay the foundations for expansion into new markets, as well as scaling up educational resources. 

“Being a nurse, especially throughout Covid, taught me resilience,” said Isla. “I’ve learned to work in some pretty extreme circumstances – and I’ve seen the women’s health gap first hand.

“We’re doing something to help close that. It’s made me realise how needed a brand like GLORIAH is and how powerful it can be. Our mission is to break down barriers and make it easier for people to access the support, products, and education they need. 

“We want to normalise conversation about menopause – particularly at an early stage. I don’t think I’d even have talked to my mum about it if we hadn’t started GLORIAH. It shouldn’t be that way.”