Features / If I Knew Then
If I Knew Then: Fran Lucraft
Fran Lucraft is the founder and chief executive of Grace & Green, a sustainable period care brand launched in 2019.
Witnessing the environmental harm caused by conventional menstrual products inspired Lucraft to create organic, sustainable period care solutions and challenge stigma around menstrual health.
Lucraft’s mission centres on access, sustainability and dignity, aiming to make a safe and eco-friendly period and bladder support a basic right for all.
Grace & Green has been shortlisted for Bristol24/7 Bristol Legends awards under innovation in business category.
For more information and to vote at Bristol Legends, visit www.bristol247.com/nominations; and to attend the awards ceremony at Ashton Gate on March 6, visit www.bristol247.com/events/legends-awards-tickets.
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How did you start your career?
“I began my career in the non-for profit sector, working in the water & sanitation sector. Over time, I became more interested in menstrual hygiene management within the sector and also purpose-led brands, the ones trying to do something genuinely better, not just louder. Grace & Green came from spotting a very obvious gap in a very ignored category…around transparency, sustainability and access and deciding I was probably naïve enough to try and give it a go to fix it.”
If you knew then what you know now, what mistakes would you have avoided?
“I would have accepted much earlier that things are never perfect, it turns out the market is a far better teacher than your own overthinking, and that being self-employed definitely does not mean better work–life balance. If anything, it has been quite the complete opposite.”
What advice would you give yourself when starting out?
“That period care is more than creating a product, you’re helping shift attitudes, conversations and provide access around something that’s been overlooked for far too long.”
If you knew then what you know now, would you still be sitting there?
“Of course! On the good days and the very bad days. It’s been harder, messier and more humbling than I imagined, but also far more interesting. I’d still say yes, just with better sleep habits!”
What do you know now that you didn’t know then?
“That resilience isn’t a personality trait, it’s something you have to lean and build, usually when things don’t go to plan. I’ve also learned that nearly every “this might be the end” moment… usually isn’t.”
What’s the best piece of advice you’ve received so far?
“Panic early.”
What is your career highlight?
“Seeing Grace & Green out in the wild in workplaces, on the shelves, is always special, but even more so is hearing from customers who tell us we’ve changed how they think about their periods, or helped them access products when they otherwise couldn’t. Period poverty is a very real issue, so helping improve access, dignity and choice is incredibly grounding. It’s a reminder that this is about far more than products, it’s about impact.”
What is your career low point?
“Starting a business while having two children under two, and during lockdown. In hindsight, it was a bold life choice. It was exhausting, chaotic and occasionally surreal, but it also taught me a huge amount about resilience, priorities and just how much you can handle when you have to.”
What keeps you awake?
“Making sure we scale without losing what makes Grace & Green special.”
What’s changed from when you started out?
“The pace and the pressure. Things move faster, expectations are higher, and there’s far more awareness around femtech, menstrual health and sustainability, which is brilliant.”
What’s still on your to-do list?
“Growing Grace & Green sustainably, expanding our impact, and continuing to push innovation in a space that’s historically been incredibly overlooked. Also: learning to actually switch off now and then.”
Main photo: Garce & Green
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