Earn Your Leisure Podcast

Episode: How One Idea Became an $80 Million Female Health Tech Company | Crystal Etienne
Hosts: Rashad Bilal & Troy Millings
Guest: Crystal Etienne (Founder of Ruby Love)
Release Date: January 29, 2026

Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Crystal Etienne, founder of Ruby Love—a femtech company now valued at $80M—and co-founder of her investment fund, Cage. The conversation covers her personal journey from identifying a persistent health need to building a scalable, innovative business. The hosts explore the mechanics of femtech, breaking business barriers as a Black woman in entrepreneurship, the challenges and benefits of venture capital, and Crystal's strategy for legacy, wealth, and giving back—delivering insights, candid truths, and business realities rarely shared so plainly.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Understanding Femtech (03:27–04:37)

• What Is Femtech?
  • Technology and products addressing women’s health and personal needs: periods, menopause, and maternity.
  • Crystal clarifies: “Femtech is for like women’s health. Anything that's women's health and like personal needs.” (04:19)
• Why the Market Matters:
  • Seen as “recession-proof” and always needed.
  • Innovation overdue in a sector foundational to half the population.

2. The Origin of Ruby Love (05:28–09:23)

• Personal Frustration as a Spark:
  • Crystal’s dissatisfaction with sanitary pads—"It's aggravating, it's stressful" (05:28)—pushed her to develop an alternative.
  • She was inspired during a moment watching TV, realizing “why after all these years am I still dealing with this problem in this way?” (08:11)
• Empathy and Anxiety:
  • Crystal and the co-host discuss the real anxieties young girls face around periods—embarrassment and discomfort.
• The First Product:
  • Designed special underwear with a slot to conceal and secure pads—“I wanted to make an underwear… that I would be able to put my pad in.” (09:23)

3. Innovation and Initial Steps (14:09–17:39)

• Prototype Development:
  • “I got on a train… went to the fashion district… found a couple of manufacturers who did not take me serious.” (14:21)
  • Paid to get four prototypes made, tested them with her friends and daughter.
• Self-Patenting and Risk:
  • Wrote her own patent to save money: “I spent, like, 30, maybe, like, almost 40 days, like, writing the patent myself” (15:29).
• Business Background:
  • Prior to founding the company, she was a controller, managing operations for other businesses.

4. Launching and Scaling: From Side Hustle to Million-Dollar Company (16:44–21:30)

• Early Branding:
  • Originally named Pantyprop—“because that's what it was. I thought of names… one of them was like… it was going to be called Bled. My sister was like, hell no Blood.” (16:52, 16:57)
• Marketing & Growth:
  • Relied on Google and Facebook ads, learning SEO and content marketing herself, often using Fiverr for blog content. “I called Google up... and they showed me how to do that.” (17:48)
  • First product launched in January 2016, internet marketing led sales to jump quickly.
  • “My next product was my period swimwear that I’m the inventor of. And that went viral.” (19:22)
• Sales Milestones:
  • Year 1: ~$300,000
  • Year 2: Over $1 million
  • “It scales rapidly.” (20:50)

5. Behind the Scenes—Operations Hustle (22:33–25:29)

• Initial Operations:
  • All order fulfillment was handled by Crystal, out of her house, before hiring help.
  • Married, mother, and entrepreneur—“If you even called, like, you didn't know that you were talking to me. I was like all different types of people in 2016.” (23:26)
• Bootstrapped, Financial Discipline:
  • Used savings—"I always saved my money since I was 17 years old." (24:55)

6. Raising Venture Capital as a Black Woman (25:19–38:19)

• Early Funding Attempts:
  • “Once I started, I knew nothing about the VC world… Most black people, we just don’t know.” (25:19)
  • She gave up on VC after two weeks initially; the business was scaling fine with self-funding.
• VC Success—Breaking Barriers:
  • 2019: Raised $15 million after joining Jason Calacanis’ Launch Program.
  • “If I was a white woman or a white male, you know, you could raise with nothing, just a simple idea. A black woman just can't do that.” (28:41)
• Navigating Racism & Sexism:
  • Crystal learned to manage VC psychology: "Just make them feel like they on top of the world… Even if you know it, don’t say it and just tell them that it’s a good idea." (28:28)
• Ownership & Power Dynamics:
  • The importance of retaining board control and understanding equity dilution:
    • “The most important is not the dilution… it’s actually the board that most people don’t understand.” (37:10)
    • Negotiated from a position of strength as a solo founder, keeping the majority share.

7. Business Model Evolution & Product Expansion (39:17–49:37)

• Product Line:
  • Underwear, swimwear, activewear, and the signature “first period kit” to facilitate conversations with teens about menstruation.
• No Brick-and-Mortar, Online Focus:
  • Brief stint with Macy’s, but pulled out: “I was making way more money online. Retail is just like retail is for branding.” (49:40)
  • “No marketing, and it’s super successful. Yeah, this is rare.” (50:02)

8. Lessons of Venture Capital—Pros & Cons (41:04–45:29)

• Misconceptions:
  • Many think VC is just a loan; “They think it’s a loan… They take it personal where you shouldn’t.” (41:04)
• Business vs. Personal:
  • “There is no in-between. You either gonna take it or you’re not.” (42:27)
  • VC forced the company to “operate bigger,” adding C-suite, more staff, compliance, and heavy operational responsibilities—at a cost to nimbleness.
• Would She Do It Again?
  • “I feel like if I didn’t have VCs, my business revenue would be over 200 million at this point… for me… VC… was a hindrance.” (42:27)
  • Eventually regained all her shares: “That’s why I got all my shares back. No.” (46:03)
  • Crystal highlights the loss of focus and increased operational drag post-VC: “Now, I had to hire a big C suite… It was a lot of time consuming.”

9. Preparing for Exit & Generational Wealth (50:12–55:57)

• Scaling Down to Scale Up:
  • To prepare for a sale, Crystal streamlined operations: outsourced fulfillment (3PL), reduced advertising and payroll, shifted focus to operational excellence.
• On Selling the Company:
  • “I think that every company... if you are really trying to build like generational wealth and a legacy, you need to sell it.” (50:49)
  • Debunks the myth of legacy as perpetual ownership: “You will never lose the founder title. I’m only losing the CEO title. And the CEO title is a lot of work.” (53:36)
• Surviving Business Lows:
  • “We actually ran out of cash… Operation is expensive… This is business. It ain't personal.” (54:40)
  • Even with setbacks, strong brand equity keeps the company valuable.

10. Real Estate and Life Beyond Ruby Love (57:18–60:57)

• Personal Wealth & Real Estate:
  • Crystal and her husband flip mansions on Long Island, a niche and high-maintenance pursuit: “Our landscaping bill last year was like $300,000.” (57:27)
  • Inspired by her grandmother, who owned 23 houses in the 1980s—“I would never be a tenant [landlord]… but I love mansions and the States.” (59:25)
• Giving Back & Mentorship:
  • Runs investment fund Cage, investing in and mentoring Black women. Average check size: $1,000–$25,000.
    • “It's the person and how you go about executing... If I could scale underwear... anything could be done.” (40:29)
  • New initiative: “Black Woman Conversations”—brunches and networking for Black women at different income levels.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Femtech’s Overlooked Potential:
  “The sanitary napkin was really… invented from a Black woman. And most people don't even know that.”
  — Crystal Etienne (07:08)

• On Innovation Sparking from Frustration:
  “Why after all these years am I still dealing with this problem in this way?”
  — Crystal Etienne (08:11)

• On VC Bias:
  “If I was a white woman or a white male, you know, you could raise with nothing, just a simple idea. A black woman just can't do that.”
  — Crystal Etienne (28:41)

• On Legacy and Selling Business:
  “You will never lose the founder title. I’m only losing the CEO title. And the CEO title is a lot of work.”
  — Crystal Etienne (53:36)

• On Supporting Black Women Entrepreneurs:
  “We invest and just in black women… not even just like monetary ways… we just invest a lot of our time and everything into black women.”
  — Crystal Etienne (40:03)

Timestamps for Important Segments

| Time | Segment/Topic | |------------|----------------------------------------------------------| | 03:27 | Introduction to Femtech and Ruby Love | | 05:28 | Crystal's personal journey and motivation | | 09:23 | Product concept and initial prototyping | | 16:44 | Building the business, branding, and early sales | | 19:22 | Marketing and scaling via digital channels | | 25:19 | Approaching Venture Capital as an underrepresented founder| | 28:41 | Facing bias and learning VC “games” | | 37:10 | Equity, board control, and negotiating as a solo founder | | 42:27 | Pros and cons of VC—hindrance to growth and innovation | | 49:20 | Expanding product line; signature “first period kit” | | 53:36 | Legacy, generational wealth, and selling the business | | 54:40 | Running out of cash, operational realities | | 57:27 | Flipping mansions, maintaining luxury homes | | 61:10 | New initiative: Black Woman Conversations brunches |

Takeaways

• Innovation happens when you address real, persistent problems—especially overlooked ones.
• VC can enable rapid growth but may add bureaucracy, dilute founder control, and slow nimbleness—especially for already-scaled businesses.
• Knowledge of business mechanics (equity, board control, exits) is crucial for lasting wealth and legacy.
• Representation, mentorship, and reinvestment into Black women founders remain rare—and much needed.

How to Connect

• Ruby Love
• Crystal on Instagram: @iamkrystaletienne
• Black Woman Conversations: @blackwomenconversations
• Investment Fund: cageandco.com