Dive Brief:
- Actor Gabrielle Union has been named global brand ambassador for period care brand Knix, per a company press release. Union will be part of a new ad campaign, as well as events and other initiatives.
- The partnership kicks off with an ad campaign called “Knix For Life.” The 30-second video spot sees Union talking about her personal experiences and how “every body has a story.” It ends with Union saying Knix’s products are “for every stage, for every age” of a woman’s life.
- The brand has brought on high-profile celebrities in the past to serve as brand ambassadors, including model Ashley Graham who served in that role from 2021 to 2023 and was also an investor in the company.
Dive Insight:
Union has worked with Knix in the past, having contributed to the brand’s book, “Life After Birth” published in 2021, which also featured Graham.
“I'm proud to be working with a brand like Knix,” Union said in a statement. “Their mission to inspire people to live unapologetically free, at any age and any stage is what resonated with me most. Because when I stopped caring about what everyone else thought, and leaned into what I thought — that's when I felt empowered and free.”
Adding Union as a brand ambassador comes as competition in the period care space heats up. Among Knix’s top competitors is Thinx, which has recently expanded the distribution of its more affordable line and rebranded its teen line. The company at the start of the year announced it would lay off 95 employees, effective May 1.
Knix launched in 2013 as a leak-proof intimates brand with an emphasis on inclusion. “We fit our products on every single size we make which is very uncommon for the industry and conduct thorough wear testing for all of our products,” Joanna Griffiths, Knix president and founder, said in an email.
Knix launched as a wholesale brand but in 2016 changed strategies by pulling out of hundreds of retail locations and switching to a DTC model. In 2022, Knix was acquired by Essity, an international health and hygiene brand, in a deal that sold 80% of the brand’s shares for $320 million. Knix was valued at $400 million at the time.
“I created Knix because I was tired of brands limiting women to one narrow image,” Griffiths said in a statement. “We're more than just sexy or sporty; we're multifaceted. Gabrielle is the quintessential modern woman proving that we exist outside of a singular definition.”
According to Griffiths, Knix is the leading North American brand in the leakproof space and has sold over eight million pairs of period underwear. Earlier this year, the company relaunched its wireless bra after working on it for two years. The company also released a new Knix and Kt by Knix swim collection in February. Last year, the brand introduced leakproof shapewear.
