Credit: On The House.
Brisbane-based startup On The House has raised $1.7 million in seed funding to accelerate social out-of-home (SOOH).
The company funds free period products in public bathrooms.
On The House installs wall-mounted dispensers in women’s bathrooms each with a 32-inch digital screen.
The units dispense free, organic, and biodegradable period products, fully funded by brand advertising displayed on the machines.
Products are accessed via QR code, creating a permission-based interaction that delivers first-party data in a high-trust, real-world environment.
The business model introduces a new advertising category designed to overtake digital and traditional out-of-home (OOH) in delivering attention, trust, and recall.
The funding round was led by Perth-based, Western Australian (WA) focused venture capital fund, Purpose Ventures, with participation from UniQuest, a venture capital fund supporting University of Queensland (UQ) Extension Fund, and Startmate, which offers early-stage investment for startups.
Founder and CEO Remy Tucker said the social-out-of-home channel was built to address two failures.
The Australian advertising market brings in a reported $30 billion annually, however many dominant channels have low attention and trust from consumers.
Research shows 66% of women feel disconnected from marketing content, according to On The House.
They said social media is struggling to capture attention with 0.4 to 0.7 seconds of attention, while traditional out-of-home averages two to five seconds and offers very little first-party data.
“Brands are spending billions chasing fractions of a second in environments people don’t trust,” Tucker said.
“At the same time, public spaces are missing basic infrastructure for women. Social out-of-home fixes both.”
Tucker said bathrooms offer a unique value proposition for brands and reach engaged traffic.
“Bathrooms are distraction-free environments where people are present, not scrolling past,” she said.
“It’s also a moment where brands can offer something genuinely useful, rather than competing for attention.”
The company reports an average 76 seconds of dwell time per visit, up to 100 times longer than social media and 15 times longer than traditional out-of-home.
Tucker said SOOH is a hybrid channel.
“Out-of-home has trust but little data. Social has data but very low trust. Social out-of-home delivers both in a single channel.”
Recent surveys show that 66.6% of women report increased trust in brands advertising on the machines, with brand favourability lifting from 41.3% to 63.8%.
No respondents reported a decline in trust.
Early brand partners include foundational partner Afterpay, as well as Clutch Glue and Moments Wellness.
Post-campaign reports show that 59.6% of people who’ve engaged with the SOOH experience, were more likely to use the brand because it funds free period products.
Mikaela Wagner, head of brand at Afterpay International, said the company delivers genuine value.
"On The House embodies the innovation we champion - media that delivers genuine value, rather than interruption,” she said.
“What makes this partnership particularly powerful is how seamlessly it aligns with our core mission of empowerment, removing fundamental barriers to participation while delivering meaningful engagement where it matters most."
On The House launched in July 2025 and has worked with nine consumer brands during its pilot phase and has more than 22 additional partners line-up.
The SOOH network will scale from five dispensers to national coverage in high-traffic community locations across universities, shopping precincts, workplaces, and gyms.
Pillow Talk is signed on for the national launch.
“We’re interested in channels that offer real attention and genuine value exchange,” said Jacqueline Goode, pr, events and partnerships manager at Pillow Talk.
“Social out-of-home creates a high-trust environment where brands aren’t interrupting people, they’re contributing something useful. That’s a more meaningful way for brands to support consumers.”
On The House is now onboarding brand advertisers and venue partners as it accelerates its national rollout, positioning social out-of-home as a new alternative for brands seeking performance, trust, and scale.
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