26 Menstrual products have historically prioritised absorption and convenience, rather than women’s biology. Yet menstruation is a time of heightened vulnerability for vaginal microbiome disruption and common conditions such as bacterial vaginosis (BV), which affects around one in three women globally and is associated with a range of downstream gynaecological and reproductive health complications. Despite this, there has been little meaningful innovation focused on protecting vaginal health during menstruation. Current approaches to BV rely heavily on antibiotics, but recurrence rates are high and treatments can further disrupt the vaginal microbiome. The Daughters of Mars was founded to challenge this status quo. The women’s health company is building a new category centred on vaginal microbiome health, responding to a clear unmet need for smarter, preventative products designed to actively support intimate health during periods. The company is developing next-generation period care products, including a patented bioactive tampon and wider menstrual innovations, alongside evidence-led consumer and future medical products designed to support women through every phase, every stage and every cycle. Their long-term vision is to become a go-to platform for proactive vaginal health, helping women prevent problems before they start through products designed around biology, not outdated norms. At the point of engaging with NBIC, the concept was still at an early innovation stage. The team had identified a significant unmet need, with relevant underlying intellectual property foundations and a strong hypothesis for how advanced coating technologies could be applied within women’s health. What was needed was independent technical validation, access to specialist facilities and multidisciplinary scientific expertise to assess feasibility and establish a credible Proof of Concept. The NBIC project became the first external validation of the idea and a crucial foundational milestone. It provided the first meaningful proof point that the concept was more than a strong hypothesis, demonstrating genuine scientific and commercial potential. Redesigning Period Care Around Biology Lucy Hope, Founder of The Daughters of Mars said: “NBIC’s support was instrumental at a formative stage and played a foundational role in what would later become The Daughters of Mars. It enabled our first formal Proof of Concept programme and brought together expertise across biomedical engineering, life sciences and formulation science.” The collaboration generated valuable early feasibility data, refined the product concept and materially de- risked the opportunity at a moment when external validation was critical. It gave the team the confidence and evidence base to progress into a dedicated women’s health venture and led directly to the incorporation of Daughters of Mars Limited. To this day, the company continues to reference its work with NBIC as an early marker of scientific credibility. Since the initial project, The Daughters of Mars has evolved rapidly. The company has secured significant follow-on innovation funding, strengthened its IP position, built strategic academic and commercial partnerships, engaged national retailers, raised equity investment, created jobs and developed working prototypes as it progresses towards final product validation and market entry. Looking ahead, the potential impact extends beyond the business itself. For the public sector, better preventative women’s health solutions could reduce demand associated with recurrent conditions and help advance wider conversations on women’s health equity and product standards. For women, the future holds something simpler but more powerful: greater choice, and period products designed around health as well as function. Bioactive Tampon. Lucy Hope, is the Founder of The Daughters of Mars and a healthtech entrepreneur and Innovate UK Women in Innovation Award winner. Previously part of the founding team behind Virustatic SHIELD®, she helped scale pioneering antiviral filtration technology during the COVID‑19 pandemic. Named one of Business Insider’s 42 under 42, Lucy has secured over £1 million in non‑dilutive funding and is a recognised voice on gender health equity, innovation and design bias in women’s health. Lucy Hope CASE STUDY
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