MTick is a program run by GenM.
Products such as health supplements, skincare, cosmetics, clothing and apparel that have met the certification criteria will be printed with the MTick symbol on the front-of-package.
To qualify, the product must be supported by evidence-based claims, consumer trials, or innovative technology to prove its efficacy in helping with at least one of the 48 recognised menopause signs and symptoms.
These symptoms include brain fog, irritability, loss of concentration, hot flushes, and loss of bone density.
According to GenM, the main idea is to help women easily identify and access menopause support products.
Since its launch in October 2021, 120 brands and nine retailers have come onboard in the UK. The brands include Haleon, Holland & Barrett, Menopace Vitabiotics, and Optibac.
Having achieved success in the domestic UK market, the company now wants to introduce MTick into other parts of the world, including Australia and Canada by next year.
“It has always been our vision to make the ‘MTick’ as recognisable as the ‘Vegan-V’ symbol globally in the next five years.
“As a result, we have exciting plans to launch into two new international markets in 2026, Australia and Canada,” Heather Jackson, CEO and co-founder of GenM told NutraIngredients-Asia.
Australia is a market of interest as it is deemed to be more advanced in its understanding and retailing of menopause products.
“We have chosen these markets in particular as they are just behind the UK in their awareness and visibility of the menopause, and their consumers are demanding trusted solutions to support their menopausal journey, which we know we can deliver through the GenM collective and the MTick,” said Jackson.
The company is working on engaging with one major retailer in Australia. Brands potentially onboard in Australia would include Australian brands selling in the UK and vice versa.
Plans are also in place to expand into more markets in 2027, as the compay is said to have received queries from around the world, including Asia.
A way to build visibility, trust, and loyalty
Brands and retailers can stand to build loyalty and increase their market shares by making their products more visible through the MTick symbol, said Jackson.
Boots UK is one of the retailers onboard, and has trialled the initiative in 1,000 stores and 150 products over the last three years.
“Over the last three years, we have built to having 120 brands onboard and nine of the biggest retailers in the UK, Boots, Tesco, Sainsbury’s, QVC, and many more, with some huge giants to be announced shortly,” said Jackson.
Tesco, for instance, having completed a three-month pilot program, has dedicated 98 permanent aisles for MTick certified products, she added.
“We’ve started to show that actually by bringing these designated spaces in, giving consumers better signage is actually upselling. It’s building loyalty, it’s taking market share,” she said.
The company has so far seen a 13 per cent sales volume increase in products with the MTick symbol, when compared to those without.
Jackson said that this showed that brands displaying the symbol has fostered greater trust amongst consumers, leading to more sales and repeat purchases.
Not about NPD, but making existing products more visible...
While there is a set of criteria that brands would need to fulfill to qualify for MTick, the idea of the program is not so much on developing new products, but to increase the visibility and consumer communication of menopause-friendly products.
This is based on the consumer research that women experiencing menopause felt underserved and overlooked when searching for menopause-support products.
“Eighty-seven per cent of women in menopause felt underserved and overlooked by retailers and and brands and 66 per cent couldn’t find what they were looking for.
“We also knew that more women than ever before were self diagnosing menopause and actually looking to actually find ways to have a better lived experience, but there was nothing out there.
“We realised that this was about igniting the brands and retailers to understand what their role was to serve this menopausal audience better,” said Jackson.
The role, she explained, include giving consumers greater trust, visibility, and choice when purchasing for menopause-support products.
“It’s not about necessarily about creating menopause specific products, but enhancing and showing what your great products are and what they’ve got in them in helping, relieving, supporting, or easing any one of the 48 signs of menopause that a woman could be experiencing.
“Women don’t want to be overwhelmed with products, they want to be signposted to those which are trusted and can genuinely improve their everyday experience of menopause.”
