The pink gloves are history

Just a few days ago, they closed a successful deal, followed by a shitstorm on social networks. Now the start-up Pinky Gloves has announced that it is ceasing production and going out of business.

Exactly one week after Pinky Gloves' appearance on Die Höhle der Löwen (DHDL), the start-up has announced the end of its product. The founders wrote on Instagram: "Together with Ralf, we have decided to take Pinky Gloves off the market." All purchasing and sales opportunities will be discontinued. In the Vox show, Pinky Gloves concluded a deal with investor Ralf Dümmel, who would have invested 30,000 euros for 20 percent of the company.

The start-up triggered a shitstorm on social networks with its product. Pinky Gloves wanted to produce pink gloves that could be used to dispose of menstrual products such as tampons or sanitary towels. The idea was apparently born out of disgust at their roommate's discarded tampons. In this way, they tried to solve a problem that only they saw, but which is not a problem for menstruating women. "We apologize to everyone whose feelings and emotions we hurt," the founders wrote on Instagram. "At no point did we intend to discredit anyone or make a natural process taboo."

In addition to criticism of their product, the founders were also subjected to "a violent wave of hatred, bullying and threats of violence", they write. And: "We can't take it anymore." Critics of the product, such as blogger Louisa Dellert, also expressed their lack of understanding for the hate: "Constructive criticism is now turning into outrage far too quickly and outrage is turning into hate," she wrote in a comment under the Pinky statement. The criticism of the product itself remained unaffected.