Knix wants women to throw out disposable tampons for the last time, taking a bold approach to talking about periods and showing women that switching products is the right choice for them and the planet.

The idea is captured in a national ad campaign airing across North America, featuring various women providing a clear directive to disposable tampons: “it’s over.” Using language typical of a break-up, the women note how disposable tampon products are “never there for me,” as the item runs out. They detail how disposables are “awful in bed,” “terrible to travel with” and “trashy” (due to their discomfort, waste and unreliability), which is where the brand steps in with its Super Leakproof Underwear to address all of these issues.

According to Joanna Griffiths, the brand’s founder and CEO, the campaign’s spot depicts real-life problems that are seldom talked about – or addressed – due to the stigma associated with menstruation.

“Half the population experiences menstruation, yet it is still not normalized,” she says. “And because people who experience menstruation have been silenced, there has been such little innovation in menstrual products. Not only do we want to normalize periods, but we also want to take a hard look at how menstruation is affecting the environment.”

Sustainability has been a key component of Knix’s overall brand positioning, as it has historically pushed for plastic-free products and using sustainable material and production processes. Its newest “Super Leakproof” underwear, launched last month, is the latest way it is looking to back that up, as the brand says each reusable, washable pair holds up to eight tampons’ worth of liquid.

The brand notes to strategy that six billion tampons end up in landfills each year in the U.S. alone, with menstrual products producing roughly 54 million kilograms of waste each year in Canada. Most menstrual products are also made with plastics, meaning it takes them decades to biodegrade. Griffiths says that despite the common issues people share over traditional menstural products, many do not think of the planetary impacts, a factor Knix is looking to get more consumers to consider by grouping it in with other pain points in the campaign.

And to further make the environmental impact top of mind, Knix brought this idea to life through a recent stunt in New York City, where a garbage truck with the message “Stop Trashing Your Period” was driven through busy downtown streets on its way to visiting several landmarks, including Times Square.

Griffiths describes Knix’s target customer as a “smart, educated, compassionate human” who has “a sense of humour, deep empathy for the varied communities and our planet.”

“At Knix, we have always put a focus on the community we are building. It is one one of the most important pieces of our business,” she says. Period destigmatization is a logical subject for that community to galvanize around, as is its role in sustainability. “Our customer is a badass who is always willing to learn and try new things, especially if it means bettering our environment.”

Tatari handled the TV media buy for the Super Leakproof Underwear campaign, which was created-in house, and also includes paid digital and social elements.