The founder of the gynecological health brand Daye, Valentina Milanova, experienced her first uncomfortable menstruation when she was nine years old. She was put on hormonal birth control as a result when she was just 11 years old.
She then received a diagnosis of polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS), a hormonal condition that results in irregular menstrual cycles and tiny cysts on the ovaries. Finding assistance, however, was difficult for her.
In an interview, Milanova stated, “I always found the experience around seeking gynecological health or attaining gynecological health incredibly distant and disempowering.
As per MedCity News, with this in mind, she chose to launch Daye in London in 2017. The startup will debut in the United States in the first quarter of 2023 thanks to $11.5 million in Series A funding. Daye supplies goods for period discomfort, at-home vaginal screening, and vaginal infections to both consumers and employers. Research and education related to gynecological health are also a priority.
MassMutual Ventures served as the round’s principal investor. Daye has received $21.5 million in funding altogether, notably from Martin Varsavsky, the creator of Prelude, and Khosla Ventures.
According to Ryan Collins, managing director of the investor, MassMutual picked Daye because of its efforts to advance women’s health, a subject that is typically ignored.
Daye is raising the bar for feminine care and women’s health, Collins stated in a news release. “With its novel and differentiated products and services, Daye is raising the bar for women’s health — a market segment that has long been overlooked when it comes to investment in innovative, effective, and sustainable solutions.”
With the money, Daye hopes to expand its customer base in the United States, the United Kingdom, and throughout Europe, according to Milanova. The business will also fund gynecological health research, concentrating on issues including endometriosis, PCOS, and menopause.
In order to close the various gaps in women’s health that exist today, Milanova said, “We hope that Daye can be the kind of organization that has commercially successful goods, which bring in income that we can consistently reinvest.”
Daye began by selling CBD-coated tampons, which provide period pain alleviation. But it also offers uncoated tampons. Although customers can sign up for various subscription kinds to obtain discounts of up to 20%, one box of 18 tampons costs $21.96.
The business also offers probiotics to improve users’ vaginal and digestive health. Although this costs $39.95 for a container, customers can save up to 25% by choosing one of its many subscription plans.
In order to help people understand their personal fertility, their risk of vaginal infections, and other issues, the startup also recently introduced a vaginal microbiome screening. The test uses a tampon to collect a sample, and Daye plans to introduce a related test for STI and HPV screenings in the future, according to Milanova.
In the future, the business also plans to roll out a digital platform for gynecological health that will assist women in managing the symptoms of illnesses, including endometriosis, PCOS, and menopause.
Big names like Tampax and Procter & Gamble, as well as up-and-coming businesses like Unfabled and Allara Health, are among the other businesses in the gynecological health sector. However, Milanova wants to downplay the idea of competition and instead concentrate on invention in a field that is sorely lacking in fresh ideas.
She claimed that the idea of competition was an outdated, predominately male view of how to do business. “I believe that businesses and organizations working together to improve gynecological health outcomes might substantially assist the field of gynecological health,” the author said.
