Who decided that? Well, the German parliament of 1963, which was almost all male. Until very recently, in Germany tampons, pads and other menstrual products were taxed with the so called “luxury tax” of 19 percent, whereas real luxury like oil paintings, truffles or caviar would attract the reduced rate of 7 percent. And this wasn’t only the case in Germany! Many other countries like Canada or Kenya abolished the tampon tax after protests. But the German government refused to slash the sexist law. At least until very recently …
Books are taxed at 7 percent. Therefore, The Female Company sold tampons hidden inside a book. Thus, avoiding the tampon tax. With this legal stunt, the company created awareness for structural discrimination against girls and women.
Our story was covered by almost all German TV networks, countless papers and websites. A petition on change.org got the necessary 150.000 signatures. A broad alliance of influencers, journalists and politicians started supporting our claims. When even Germany’s largest drugstore chain DM decided to sell The Tampon Book, the pressure on the Government became too much.
On November 7, 2019, Germany abolished the tampon tax.
It’s not easy to get hands on a Tampon Book these days. The forth edition is completely sold out and there will be no more copies. Sorry! And while that may sound a little sad, it is actually pretty cool. Since the tampon tax is gone, the world doesn’t need the Tampon Book. But if you do, you might try on eBay!