Essity Ventures, a strategic initiative of Essity, leads to the company’s first partnership with a femtech player. The Swedish startup Endometrix enables women to have a more precise understanding of endometriosis, a condition that affects over two hundred million women in their reproductive years worldwide, according to a study by Endofound. The severe symptoms of endometriosis often have a deep impact on several aspects of womens’ daily lives including education, career, social and sex life as well as their mental health. 

– We are thrilled to collaborate a startup like Endometrix, that shares our vision to reshape the future of women’s health. With this partnership, we connect the dots between our strong know-how and understanding of women’s needs and Endometrix’ groundbreaking tech-driven innovation, says Robert Sjöström, President Global Operational Services and CIO at Essity.

About every tenth menstruating woman suffers from endometriosis, according to the Swedish health service provider Vårdguiden.  Despite the large number of women affected by endometriosis, the average time it takes to receive a diagnosis for the condition is seven years, as reported by the Swedish Agency for Health Technology Assessment and Assessment of Social Services.

Sushrut Shastri, Endometrix’ CEO, explains:

– The challenges faced by women suffering from endometriosis are often due to the lack of awareness of this condition and the normalization of period pain in our society. At Endometrix, we want menstruating women to understand that period pain is not normal. We also want them to be able to make the best decisions on what to do to feel better. We are excited to join forces with a global leader in health and hygiene such as Essity. Together, we will drive the conversation on endometriosis and provide concrete answers to women’s needs.

As part of this collaboration, women are offered access to Endometrix’ premium solution via Libresse, one of Essity’s leading brands. Those who sign up for this offer receive a welcome care package with Libresse products and one free month trial of the Endometrix application. With this tool, women are empowered to improve their condition through different self-care programs developed by experts from the endometriosis community. The application allows users to record the degree of the most common symptoms of endometriosis they are experiencing. This tracking feature allows women to create a consistent stream of data that will empower them when speaking with their healthcare provider. The offer, targeting women in Sweden and Norway, might be extended to other countries following the pilot session. 

About Essity Ventures

Essity Ventures is a strategic initiative of the global health and hygiene company Essity to lead the change towards a more sustainable, digitally- advanced health and hygiene ecosystem. Essity Ventures looks for innovative partners, start-ups and entrepreneurs with innovative solutions in different Consumer Goods sectors, including Feminine Care, Consumer Tissue, Incontinence Care and Baby Care. Started in 2020, Essity Ventures’ key focus areas are sustainable products and technologies, go-to-market solutions and data-driven insights.  For more information: www.essityventuresilab.com

About Essity

Essity is a leading global hygiene and health company that develops, produces and sells Personal Care, Consumer Tissue and Professional Hygiene products and solutions. Our vision is; dedicated to improving well-being through leading hygiene and health solutions. Sales are conducted in approximately 150 countries under many strong brands, including the leading global brands TENA and Tork, and other brands, such as Leukoplast, Libero, Libresse, Lotus, Nosotras, Saba, Tempo, Vinda and Zewa. Essity has about 48,000 employees and net sales in 2016 amounted to approximately SEK 101bn (EUR 10.7bn). The business operations are based on a sustainable business model with focus on value creation for people and nature. The company has its headquarters in Stockholm, Sweden, and is listed on Nasdaq Stockholm. Essity used to be part of the SCA Group.

Endometrix is a Stockholm-based startup that’s developed an app to help people with endometriosis improve their understanding, management, and treatment of their condition using health tracking. Endometrix also provides its users with supplemental health management resources through its in-app Self-Care Programs developed by health professionals from the endometriosis community. Founded in 2018, its mission is to close the reproductive healthcare gap for all uterus carriers using accessible digital solutions. For more information: www.endo-metrix.com