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Vira Health
Prescription digital therapeutics for menopause
- 21-100 employees
- Healthcare
- Femtech
- MedTech
- Highbury, London, UK
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Company mission
Vira Health is on a mission to make personalised menopause care the norm, delivering immediate relief as well as reducing the long-term impact of osteoporosis, cardiovascular disease, diabetes and dementia.
Otta's take
Sam Franklin
CEO of Otta
Female health has been historically under-resourced and overlooked and the results are staggering. Women are 2 times more likely to die of a heart attack. They have a 1.7 times higher risk of having an adverse drug reaction. Across brain cancer, chronic pain, endometriosis and dementia there is evidence of misdiagnosis of women.
This is all the product of a massive data gap – there is so much we do not know about women’s health. Vira and its team are one of the few tackling this gap. The company's initial focus is on menopause and its associated treatments through a mobile app called Stella. Vira makes a compelling justification for facing menopause head-on before branching out into other fem-health spaces.
The founding team has highly relevant experience and is well-placed to tackle female health. Alongside its product, Vira has managed to grow a community and provides tips, Q&A's, and virtual events to create a holistic approach to addressing female health which its users will not find anywhere else. Although its app has only recently found footing in the UK & Ireland, Vira is now available in the US market. Now flush with 2022 funding, the company can properly establish its product in these regions.
Benefits
- A commitment to adapting how we work to fit a variety of new and existing needs; we are remote first so flexibility is really important to us
- 25 days holidays plus bank holidays
- Vitality Health Insurance, including mental health and physiotherapists as well as telemedicine consultations (UK only)
- Your choice of tech equipment - whatever you need to get the job done
- Wednesday yoga with the team
- Enrolment in Vira Pension scheme (UK only)
- An environment where your personal development is really important
- Eyecare vouchers
- £250 to set up your home office if working remotely
- Cycle to Work scheme (UK only)
Company values
- Serious topics deserve serious solutions. Women deserve products built on the best science and technology available
- Good ideas can come from anywhere. Our processes encourage participation from everyone and decision making is clear and communicated
- We have a big vision and need to move quickly. We all have specific jobs to do, but the growth and success of Vira is everyone’s responsibility
- We exist in complex and intersecting communities. Our team and our products should reflect the diversity of the world around us
- Work is not your entire life but it is a big part of your life. We want to create a warm and supportive environment where people have fun and excel
- Our bar for quality is high. We are trying to do something that is really hard and really matters, and that means we expect you to perform at your best
Funding (2 rounds)
Mar 2022
$12m
SERIES A
Jul 2021
$2m
SEED
Total funding: $14m
This company has top investors
Founders
Andrea Berchowitz
(Co-founder)10+ year McKinsey Consultant, ex-leader of Gates Foundation in Middle East, long-time advocate for better women’s health
Rebecca Love
(Co-founder)Medical Sciences PhD (Cambridge), chronic disease expert, trained epidemiologist, worked with Mayor of London, World Health Organisation and UNICEF
Diversity & Inclusion at Vira Health
- We are committed to diversity regardless of gender, religion or belief, ethnic or national origin, disability, age, citizenship, marital, domestic or civil partnership status, sexual orientation or gender identity.
- If you have a disability or additional need that requires accommodation, please do not hesitate to let us know
- COVID-19 has disrupted working patterns around the world. We are committed to adapting how we work to fit a variety of new needs
Endorsements
All
Inspiring mission (3)
Opportunities to learn (2)
Intelligent people (2)
Challenging work (1)
Meaningful work (1)
Hard working team (1)
Open and honest communication (1)
Supportive management (1)
People of all backgrounds are welcomed (1)
Innovative product (1)
Andrea and Rebecca are both very hands on leaders. I felt that I was able to go to them at any point with any questions. I left each interaction with Andrea & Rebecca feeling supported and motivated to work.
Design
Supportive management
Jul 2021
Care for women during menopause is so important and something that has previously been neglected. The Stella app helps women to deal with menopause symptoms within the context of their everyday lives. Working on the Stella app gave me the the opportunity to work on something that I feel is going to make a real difference to real women's lives.
Design
Inspiring mission
Jul 2021
During my time with Stella all team members were working hard towards the Stella 2021 Summer launch, meaning that I got to experience just how driven and supportive the Stella team are! It was inspiring to work amongst a group of people who were all extremely motivated by the Stella mission.
Design
Hard working team
Jul 2021
Vira aims at providing a solution that can help a lot of women manage a difficult stage of their life. Their determination and passion for helping shine through in the work they do.
Data
Inspiring mission
Jul 2021
I worked as an Intern and was asked to contribute in a domain that required me to familiarise myself with a lot of new information. The team provided support throughout this process, with regular check-ins and discussions.
Data
Opportunities to learn
Jul 2021
The team is welcoming, and open to direct communication with key personnel. I was able to work with one of the co-founders and UX lead on a frequent basis.
Data
Flat hierarchy
Jul 2021
Using technology to deliver life-changing health solutions feels like the future is here.
Marketing
Innovative product
Mar 2021
Given the stage of company and size of team, there is such scope to do incredible work. It's only a matter of taking the initiative and you'll quickly find that the work you do directly impacts the success of Vira and ultimately the lives of women.
Marketing
Challenging work
Mar 2021
Who doesn't want to help more than 50% of the population live healthier, happier and longer lives?
Marketing
Inspiring mission
Mar 2021
Everyone has so much skill to offer that working as a team is so interesting. Everyone has a worthwhile contribution and opinions are valued and sought. I've been learning so much.
Marketing
Intelligent people
Mar 2021
I particularly like the fact that diversity is a company value and that different voices, cultures and backgrounds are actively looked for.
Marketing
People of all backgrounds are welcomed
Mar 2021
Collaborating and projects are straightforward, well planned and managed, with quick decision-making. The team is always looking for ways to make things run smoother and ideas are welcomed. If something isn't working, it's easy to bring it up for a discussion to find a solution.
Marketing
Open and honest communication
Mar 2021
The company is so small that you really feel like you can pitch into any and every part of the business - it's so collaborative so knowledge sharing seems to be in the company's DNA, which is invaluable for any employee.
Product
Opportunities to learn
Mar 2021
Working in a space that has been so overlooked for such a long time such as female health, and menopause in particular, inspires and motivates me every day. I truly feel like people are intrigued to hear about us and our mission and this helps to build momentum amongst the team.
Product
Meaningful work
Mar 2021
All the women I interact with on a daily basis are highly accomplished, which means that I always have so much to learn from them. Everyone brings a very different perspective to a challenge, which helps you to think about it in a way you potentially wouldn't have, were you not amongst such inquisitive minds!
Product
Intelligent people
Mar 2021