WUKA’s First Teen Period Starter Kit Has Landed In Tesco

The first-period kit has always been a homemade object. A makeup bag with a couple of pads in it, shoved into the bottom of a school bag by a mum who remembers exactly how unprepared she felt. Every generation improvises its own version.

WUKA and Tesco have decided to just make it properly. The WUKA Teen Starter Kit – the brand’s first – launched on 19 August in 372 Tesco stores at £25, running until 29 September as part of ‘The Perfect Period Pair’ campaign with Tesco and WaterWipes. It is the first time reusable period pants have been available not only in supermarkets, but in everyday local shopping.

Why This Matters More Than It Sounds

The numbers behind the launch are damning. YouGov research found that 45% of women felt unprepared for their first period. Seven in 10 of those women describe the experience as negative – compared with just 16% of those who felt ready. And the single biggest variable is not school. It is a parent. Women who felt prepared were more than twice as likely to have learned about periods from a parent: 65% versus 29%.

Other context worth having: a 2024 Menstrual Cycle Support survey found 30% of young people did not understand what a period was before their first one. Plan International UK reports that one in four girls is unsure what to do when her period starts, and more than half are too embarrassed to talk about it. Meanwhile a 2024 JAMA Network Open study found the average age of first period has fallen to 11.9, with early onset – before 11 – nearly doubling over two decades. So: it is happening earlier, to children who often do not know what it is, and preparation is the thing that decides whether it becomes a bad memory.

Why we care: WUKA has made excellent period pants for years. The innovation is the shelf. Femtech’s hardest problem has never been engineering – it has been distribution into the places where ordinary families actually shop, without a specialist website, a subscription, or a conversation anyone finds awkward. Putting this in the back-to-school aisle of 372 Tescos does more for access than another beautifully art-directed launch ever could.

The Technology Bit

WUKA period pants work like regular underwear but feature a built-in, multi-layer gusset that absorbs menstrual flow, locks in moisture, and prevents leaks.

How It Works:

• The Multi-Layer Technology: Top moisture-wicking layer: Sits next to your skin, rapidly pulling fluid away to keep you feeling dry and fresh.
• Absorbent middle layers: Captures and locks in fluid (blood, sweat, or light leaks) using capillary action.
• Leak-proof barrier: A secure bottom layer stops fluid from passing through to your clothes while remaining breathable to promote airflow and prevent heat buildup.

WUKA’s Stretch Technology means each pair adapts across three sizes and is designed to last up to two years, so a growing child does not outgrow them in a term. The innovative design that allows a single pair of reusable period pants to flex and adapt across 3 to 4 different clothing sizes.

How It Works:

• Multi-Size Fit: Uses super-stretch microfiber fabric and a suspended, flexible gusset that molds to changing body shapes, weight fluctuations, and cycle bloating without digging in.
• Absorbency Options: Available in varying capacities, ranging from medium flow (holding 15ml / 3 tampons) up to super heavy flow (holding 60ml / 12 tampons) with fast-wicking layers.
• Seamless Design: Built without side seams to ensure an invisible fit (no VPL) under clothing for up to 12 hours of leak-proof protection.
• Lifespan: Each reusable pair is machine-washable and designed to last for up to 2 years.

The sustainability maths is genuinely striking: every pair saves 196 disposables from landfill and carries a carbon footprint five times smaller than single-use products. Two pairs at £25, worn for two years, against two years of buying pads – the household budget argument makes itself.

What’s Actually In The Box

• 2x WUKA Stretch™ Express Fit Midi Brief – a Tesco exclusive and the most affordable WUKA period underwear ever sold. Medium flow, absorbing 15ml (equivalent to three tampons or two pads), with a built-in absorbent, odour-proof gusset rated for up to 12 hours of leak-proof protection.
• Rebel Girls’ “Growing Up Powerful” – a colourful guide to puberty and girlhood with expert advice, Q&As and quizzes.
• A two-pocket reusable changing bag that keeps fresh and used pairs separate, for mess-free changing at school.
• A sticker sheet, all packed in a clear WUKA travel bag.

The kit comes in two teen size ranges – XS-S-M and L-XL-2XL – on the sensible premise that young bodies develop at different rates.

£30.00 – SHOP NOW

The Sensory-Friendly Detail Nobody Else Is Talking About

WUKA’s pants are designed without rustling, tags or a sticky feel, and the kits carry ‘sensory friendly’ stickers so families can identify the feature in store. It builds on WUKA’s ongoing work with the Autistic Girls Network to improve period awareness and resources for autistic girls, who can experience heightened sensitivity to textures, sounds, seams and labels.

Think about what a conventional pad actually is from that perspective: a crinkling, adhesive, seamed object worn against the skin for hours. For a child with sensory sensitivity, that is not a minor inconvenience. Designing it out – and then labelling it clearly enough that a parent can spot it on a supermarket shelf – is thoughtful product work.

What WUKA Says

“We prepare our kids for the first day of school with everything they need – a first period deserves the same. Nearly half of women say they felt unprepared for theirs, but when parents step in early, that experience can change,” said WUKA Founder and CEO Ruby Raut, “Mums have been improvising first period kits for generations. Our first-ever starter kit in 372 Tesco stores means the kit is now sitting right there in the back-to-school shop, affordable, ready to go and stigma-free. It’s about girls supporting girls, and making sure no one feels alone when they get their first period.”

About WUKA

A B Corp certified business founded in 2017 by Ruby Raut, WUKA – it stands for Wake Up Kick Ass – was the first brand to make period pants for heavy flow that fully replaced pads and tampons, and went on to create the world’s first multi-size period pants with Stretch™ Technology. The range now spans underwear, swimwear, sportswear, accessories and care products, and the brand holds Marie Claire’s Sustainability Award for Best Period Brand and the Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development.

The WUKA Teen Starter Kit is £25, available in 372 Tesco stores from 19 August until 29 September 2026.