Elvie, a British company that develops tech products for expectant and new mothers, raised $42m — the largest ever funding round for a women’s health company — to expand its product line in the US.
The startup has fought the stigma surrounding women’s health products to launch 2 successful products: the Elvie Trainer, a Kegel-training device, and the Elvie Pump, a discreet and wearable breast pump.
A formidable new force in women’s health
Elvie co-founder and CEO Tania Boler, a women’s health expert with a Ph.D. in reproductive health, became interested in developing products for moms after struggling to find a well-designed breast pump.
Boler first launched the Trainer and, after raising money in 2017, followed up with the Pump. After debuting in American markets last February, Elvie’s pumps sold out within 5 minutes.
Elvie’s revenue run-rate increased 3x in the last 6 months and is on track to increase by 5x by the end of the year.
Fighting stigma, one boob at a time
Other femtech competitors including Willow and Freemie are also competing for a chunk of the women’s health market (expected to hit $51.3B by 2025).
Elvie, which continues to face public stigma about its products, runs guerilla marketing campaigns to normalize public breastfeeding.
Last year, Elvie got a model in London Fashion Week to hit the catwalk wearing a pump. This year, the company installed gigantic boob balloons across London as part of a #FreeTheFeed campaign.