London-based femtech company, Clementine has nabbed £1 million of funding from investors Fortunis Capital, to expand on its goal of improving the emotional wellbeing of women.

The femtech company provides virtual hypnotherapy sessions and wellness products to empower women to feel more confident.

WHY IT MATTERS

COVID-19 has had a disproportionate effect on the mental wellness of women. Evidence shows that during this crisis, women suffer more from stress, anxiety and lack of sleep than men. Research by the Kaiser Family Foundation shows 57% of mothers of children under 18 say their mental health has worsened during COVID-19 compared to 37% of men. 

Founder of Clementine, Kim Palmer said: “The VC landscape is traditionally challenging for women, so we are really bucking the trend here. Treasury reports show for every £1 of VC investment, all-female founder teams get less than 1p, all-male founder teams get 89p and mixed-gender teams get 10p."

THE LARGER CONTEXT

In September, Femtech players called out Facebook for rejecting women's health ads because of prohibited-content rules.

Competitors like fertility app, Parla have aimed to close the gap and tackle the lack of awareness around women's health by providing personalised fertility support and education around the topic. 

ON THE RECORD

Palmer said: “We have huge growth plans - we are the only mental wellbeing app that really, really understands what women need when it comes to their mental wellbeing. In a space where the leading apps are all lead by men it's time to shake this up.  

“This is more than an app, this is a movement and, in the middle of a pandemic, addresses a real need.  

“We did not have to jump through hoops with a traditional pitch to secure this investment. With a strong female leadership team, Fortunis instinctively understood that we were delivering a solution to a global problem worth solving.”