I normally wouldn’t make a post like this one, but about a year ago I made a post bemoaning the lack of tampon selection in Australia, specifically my preferred brand, Tampax Pearl. That post has been one of my most viewed posts (usually from people googling how to find Tampax Pearl in Australia) and recently some commenters have said they have started seeing them in local stores.
That’s great, but I have even better news: You can now get them online!
I just got an email this morning from Fishpond alerting me that they now have Tampax Pearls in stock. They are a bit pricey by my American standards, but tampons aren’t that cheap here anyways, and I guess if you’re desperate… well, beggars can’t be choosers. And they do currently have a wide variety of absorbencies, including ultra, super plus and lite, which are extremely hard to find here in any brand, let alone the coveted Tampax Pearl. Hooray!
They ship from a USA supplier, so I have no idea how long it would take to arrive by mail, but since Amazon US won’t ship them overseas and I haven’t found any US drugstore that will ship overseas, it’s definitely an improvement.
I have no idea how long they will keep these in stock (I’ve been on their list to be notified for months) or if they will be a permanent fixture, so if you need them, if it might be wise to stock up. Plus, if they sell a lot of them, they’ll be more likely to keep them in stock.
Update- 17 May 2013: Amy from Proctor & Gamble’s marketing agency very kindly got in touch with me about this blog and arranged to send me some samples of the new Australian Tampax Pearls. Thanks, Amy! Check out what she sent me!
That’s a lot of samples! 
As you can see from the packaging, they are pretty much identical to the American variety.
She sent me four boxes of the new tampons, which is pretty awesome because within the last two months, all the stores near me have stopped carrying any kind of Tampax and my stash was starting to run low.
Now, a lot of people have commented that they have been able to find Pearls in their local stores, so I’m hoping that eventually they will start to become easier for everyone to find, no matter where they live. If you’ve seen them near you, please post where you saw them.
My Tampax posts are both still among my top viewed posts and I get a lot of traffic every day from other women looking for Tampax tampons in Australia, so it would be great if they could be directed to specific shops that carry them. Besides, the more that get sold, the more likely it will be that other shops will start carrying them, too!
You’ve just made my day. But holy cow, they’re expensive.
I would imagine the international shipping cost might be built into the price?
Imagine if a man looks at your blog and this is the first post he sees. A tampon post gives new meaning to Housewife Down Under.
I think it’s great that your most popular post is about tampons. You never know what people are going to be drawn to.
I was so frustrated at the lack of tampon choice in Australia too! What’s with that? Good to know they is more choice!
It really is frustrating, even when you are familiar with what’s out there. My nearest grocery store no longer carries Tampax at all and the nearest pharmacy is often out of them. Thankfully, my mom just sent me a big shipment of Pearl Compaks from America, but I wish I could just buy what I need here and not have to go to half a dozen stores to find something suitable!
You can now buy tampax pearl in regular and super at Coles
I’ve have seen them in the shop and online!
U can get them at Coles now.
Hi there,
My name is Amy and I work with Procter & Gamble. I would love to get in touch about Tampax Pearl – my email is amy.medcalf@hausmann.com.au, we have a little something to send you.
Thanks,
Amy
Thanks for the free samples, Amy!
You can get tampax pearl in woolworths or coles
Wow. Tampax Pearl FINALLY introduced to Australia, a first world country, in 2013. I swear this country is about 15 years behind America. So sad.
In more ways than one…
So glad the pearls are available for everyone but where are the cardboard ones: ( I’m going nuts. I bought two packs of the pearls and I can’t use them, no where to grip. The Fish pond website seems to be totally out of tampons, everything is marked as unavailable! Grrrrrrrrrrr!
I’ve noticed the cardboard ones have all but disappeared in all the stores near me, though they have not been replaced with Pearls. A lady from P & G’s marketing agency contacted me about this blog post and sent me some boxes of the new Pearl variety. They do appear to have a grip, but since the plastic is a bit more slippery than cardboard, I can see how some people might find it more difficult. At this point, I’d just like stores to start stock Tampax again (any kind, please!) because I’ve looked everywhere and all the places that used to have them don’t have them anymore and haven’t had them for about two months. I’m starting to run low on my stash!