Europe’s first FemTech-focused independent accelerator, FemTech Lab, has announced the launch of its second cohort this year with newly-selected women’s health and wellbeing startups joining the Fall program this September. 

The Fall cohort follows the success of the Spring cohort which saw 20% of startups being overfunded. The successes were not isolated to funding, as the Spring cohort has triumphed from digital propositions to major national deals, corporate sponsorships and grants, as well as nominating major FemTech leaders to their board of directors. The FemTech Lab team expect that this cohort will only have greater achievements.  

Based in London, the 12-week accelerator program will guide FemTech entrepreneurs and startup founders from across the world through seven different FemTech business categories over the course of three months, culminating in a Demo Day on 1 December. The unique program built for startups operating in the women’s health and wellbeing space involves over 50 workshops with 40 expert advisors across three main sprints: Product, Go-To-Market, and Fundraising – all with a FemTech-specific angle. 

The following pioneering startups have been selected to join the program after a rigorous three-round admissions process with the biggest leaders in the FemTech space:

• Zoie Health (South Africa) - A digital women's healthcare platform for African women, offering holistic women's health services and products built on the foundation of a social health platform.
• Moonai (Spain) - A mobile app that contains content such as neuroscience-based sounds and Cognitive Behavioural Therapy resources to help people who menstruate reduce their related pain.
• Girlythings (Pakistan) - A series of period care products, services, and education for women and girls with disabilities. 
• Unfabled (UK) - The first menstrual health e-commerce store that allows people to discover products and advice for their period, period symptoms, and self-care throughout the month.
• Alpha Femtech (Hungary) - Artemis is a smart wearable tech garment that eliminates period pain through two clinically proven solutions.
• Petal App (UK) - An online platform of support for people experiencing a problematic relationship with food, as well as for their family and friends. 
• Fruitful Health (UK) - A unique end-to-end fertility experience that provides couples and individuals with the medical, financial and emotional support they need on their journey to parenthood. 
• Vibease (Singapore) - A SexTech company developing smart vibrators to help couples stay intimate through video chat and remote control functions as well as audio erotica. 
• & Sisters (UK) - An ethical, sustainable wellness brand giving women and all those that menstruate a choice of products and services that are better for their body and the planet. 

In response to extensive interviews with stakeholders in the FemTech industry, the program is tuned into the real-world problems startups face as they go to market and attract investors. For example, it has incorporated “Money Mondays” to support founders’ with fundraising, as well as a Mental Wellbeing module to help founders strengthen their leadership skills, mental resilience, and wellbeing.

FemTech Lab co-founders, Karina Vazirova and Katia Lang, highlighted the importance of the Mental Wellbeing Module: “We know many companies fail due to founders burning out or losing motivation during hard times. Company culture also plays an important role in long-term success. Founders often struggle with imposter syndrome. At FemTech Lab, our unique mental health module is designed to help them build mental strength, self-confidence, and a healthy team culture.”