Startup Profile: Elvie

Elvie logo

 

  • Elvie is a UK-based technology startup pioneering smarter technology for women.
  • The company was established in 2013 to tackle the stigmatisation and underrepresentation of women’s health products.
  • Elvie has raised £42.4 million in funding from investors including IPGL, Octopus Ventures and Impact Ventures.

 

About Elvie

 

Tania Boler and Alexander Asseily founded the company in 2013. The founders aim “to challenge the female health status quo and lead a movement where femtech would be taken seriously through smarter technology”. Previously, CEO Tania had 12 years experience working with NGOs and the UN and Alexander had founded the hardware company Jawbone. Elvie aims to improve the lives of women with the belief that ‘women shouldn’t have to make do with shoddy designs or pink spin-offs when there are self-driving cars in the world’.

 

Elvie founder
Founder and CEO, Tania Boler

 

Elvie is a trailblazer in its dedication to creating great products for women through technical engineering resources. The Elvie team is fast-growing in London and New York, now with over 100 employees. The demand for women’s health and specified products has been recognised, and investment in the market is growing. In 2019, Elvie secured £33.1 million in a Series B funding round which is the largest ever for a femtech company. According to research by Frost and Sullivan, the Femtech market is projected to be worth $50 billion by 2025.

 

 

What Do They Do?

 

Elvie currently provides two women’s tech products. The Elvie Trainer promotes postpartum health through pelvic floor exercise. The product helps women build Kegel strength to support postnatal recovery, improve bladder control and enhance intimacy. 

 

Elvie products
Elvie products, the Elvie trainer and Elvie pump.

 

The Elvie trainer can link to your phone, allowing users to track workouts through the app, which also provides goals and reminders. Elvie Trainer records your pelvic floor movements in real-time using biofeedback, and can then guide you to improve. The award-winning Kegel trainer promises results in less than four weeks through fun workouts and is recommended by over 1,000 health professionals. The startup is also working in partnership with the NHS Supply Chain and the Elvie Trainer even featured in the 2017 Oscar nominee goodie bags.

 

Elvie has also developed a smart, wearable breast pump which allows mothers to pump discreetly throughout the day. The design is the world’s first silent wearable breast pump and makes the process quick and hands-free, enabling greater convenience for women. It received FDA approval in 2019. 

 

 

 

The startup places great importance on fighting the stigma surrounding women’s health products and issues. On Mother’s Day 2019, Elvie led a campaign in which five giant inflatable breasts appeared across London’s skyline to fight the stigma around public breastfeeding and pumping.

 

 

Elvie’s Success

 

The startup has seen tremendous growth and now has over 100 employees. The employment growth rate of 69% in 2019 saw 37 new hires. Elvie has successfully raised £42.4 million in total funding from investors including IPGL, Octopus Ventures and Impact Ventures.

Elvie has received more than 15 awards for innovation and design, including wearable design of the year at Dezeen Awards 2019. The startup is also listed as Number 3 in the Faust Company’s Most Innovative Companies in Europe.