This Online Retailer Is Slashing The Pink Tax

Ah, the pink tax — when products branded for women actually cost more than their so-called "male" counterparts. Most consumers aren't in favor of it, but until recently there hasn't been much action to take it on. Now, one online retailer is trying to change that: Boxed.com is lowering prices on typically pink-taxed goods, and removing the sales tax on feminine hygiene products, which are slammed with a "luxury" tax in some states despite, well, being pretty necessary for people who get periods.

The online retailer is a relative newcomer to the online shopping scene, having launched in 2013, but this recent action is still a substantial step towards fair pricing on up-taxed products like body wash, razors, deodorant, pads, tampons, and shaving gel. According to New York Business Journal, Boxed.com bills itself as a kind of Costco-gone-online (so things are mostly in bulk), but right now the percentage discounts listed next to items marked with the pink "No Pink Tax" label on the site are really making me want to shop.

Boxed.com's bulk model doesn't lend itself well to one-to-one comparisons with other retailers, as buying in bulk is obviously going to be a bit cheaper — but within the site, a three-pack of Skintimate shaving gel is $11.64 compared to $11.49 for a trio of Aveeno gel. Not exactly the same, but definitely comparable. So maybe it's time to start buying apocalypse-style, because the pink tax price cut is the exact kind of small step needed to create some real change.

Since the initiative was announced on Oct. 6, the reaction from the Internet been a slow-but-steady "yes to this!"

The company claimed the hashtag #RethinkPink to brand the initiative, because what would be fairness without a hashtag, and people have been tagging their appreciation for it ever since.

The initiative is receiving high praise on social media.

And the move is prompting people to check out the retailer.

Because it's 2016 — it's time for equality.

Which is no luxury. Time to #RethinkPink indeed.

Image: Boxed