First there was millennial minimalism. Then came Gen Z maximalism. Anytime there’s a clearly defined “new market,” an aesthetic ultimately follows. But what about life’s later stages?
Historically, trendy branding has been a young person’s game, but in recent years, there’s been a surge in companies marketing to women entering menopause. From telehealth startups, including Alloy and Evernow, to celebrity-endorsed (and -founded) beauty and wellness brands, such as Stripes, the menopause market, once largely ignored by investors, is now estimated to be worth $16 billion by 2025.
This influx of funding and social awareness has motivated brands to rethink their design strategies so they can speak more authentically to women entering menopause and carve out a slice of the booming menopause economy. Today, there’s a veritable “menopause aesthetic”—defined by vibrant color palettes, organic forms, hand-drawn illustrations, friendly serif typefaces, and refined wordmark logos.
This approach to design stands in stark contrast to the first wave of menopause marketing, which dates back to the 1940s when it was still considered a disease to be cured, and advertising was overtly sexist. (Menopause self-care brand Womaness even re-created vintage ads for their social channels to show how far the industry has evolved.) “We know that our audience is very aware of marketing,” says Emily Oberman of Pentagram who led the brand strategy, naming, identity, and packaging design for Phenology, a menopause-relief brand. “We had to come to the design from a place of truth that made you feel like menopause wasn’t an end, but rather another chapter in your life.”
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