What Ruby did next
The inspirational Ruby Raut is on a mission to make managing perimenopause and menopause a kinder, comfier and more stylish experience.
Happy Tuesday, all!
I’m thrilled to welcome Ruby Raut to the MBE today. Ruby is the founder and CEO of WUKA, the trailblazing health and wellbeing brand designed to sustainably support women’s health, “from their first period to their last and beyond”.
"WUKA stands for Wake Up Kick Ass, and from the very beginning we have been passionate about smashing taboos and innovation in sustainability and menstrual health,” says Ruby. “Over 40% of WUKA customers are in the perimenopausal to menopausal stage of life.”
I’ve been meaning to chat to Ruby for MONTHS – schedules, holidays! –but, in fact, it was worth the wait as she’s extended her range of stylish, stretchy, award-winning period pants to include swimwear, menopause-friendly sleepwear, leggings and the just-dropped, colourful new WUKA Heat Patches.
I’m so delighted to be talking to Ruby because, for me—like so many of my midlife friends—the years immediately leading up to menopause were marked with erratic periods, in terms of cycle length and also what became increasingly heavy ones.
In my case, this lead to a diagnosis of anaemia and what turned out to be a sizeable (very!) fibroid, which had gone unspotted and made all of the aforementioned much more dramatic—ultimately taking me to the GP, and further investigations.
I WISH there had been a range as stylish, kind and comfy WUKA to see me through that time (rather than the leaning tower of, essentially, toddlers’ pull-ups I kept bedside for a while). After treatment for the fibroid, my periods became more manageable, but remained all over the place until menopause, other than the odd bleed (which I’ve always had checked out, as a result of a few stop/start experiences with HRT). I have dear girlfriends currently going through their own peri and post-menopause issues with irregular cycles and flooding, and anyone who’s been there knows how debilitating it can be.
Providing drug-free, localised pain relief for cramps for up to twelve hours, the WUKA heat patches are infused with iron powder (to boost circulation and reduce pain), activated charcoal (to enhance oxygen distribution), and Motherwort and Mugwort extracts, chosen for their reported muscle-relaxing and nervous system-calming benefits, respectively.
All WUKA products are organic and carbon neutral certified, vegan and PETA approved. Ruby scooped the Sustainability Entrepreneur of the Year Award and, in 2022, the Queen's Award for Enterprise for Sustainable Development (see the full range here).
Here, Ruby shares her beauty and wellbeing tips and favourites, and, at the end of this post, you’ll find an exclusive MBE discount code that will give you 10% off the whole WUKA range (including the underwear, PJs, swimsuits and heated pads).
For the love of face oil
“Okay, so I'll admit it, I wasn't always big on beauty products,” says Ruby. “Growing up in Nepal, access to beauty and wellness products was a rarity - we used simple talcum powder to manage heat-induced sweat and oily complexions, and our beauty routines were crafted with raw, natural ingredients—like concocting charcoal eyeliner and ripened papaya face masks.”
“I was more of a tomboy anyway, so looking after myself was the last thing on my mind. But hey, better late than never, right? Once I hit 30, and stepped into my role as a CEO, I realised it was time to start showing my skin some love.”