INSUBCONTINENT EXCLUSIVE:
It’s often the case that women don’t think much about their reproductive health until they have to
Sometimes it begins with an aside from a well-meaning gynecologist — or one’s impatient parents
Sometimes, it’s because a couple is ready to try conceiving and it’s proving harder than they imagined it would be.A San Francisco-based
startup called Modern Fertility wants to educate women about their reproductive health much earlier in their lives, enabling them to become
more “proactive” instead of reactive, says co-founder and CEO Afton Vechery, who worked formerly as a product manager at the genetic
testing company 23andMe and, before that, at a healthcare-focused private equity firm in Greenwich, Conn.At both places, she learned a lot
about the growing number of companies that are empowering customers with information about their own bodies
She also learned, particularly at 23andMe, about the importance of making that information affordable
Indeed, after shelling out $1,500 for tests run by a reproductive endocrinologist to get a better picture of her own reproductive health,
Vechery set out to create similar tests that one needn’t be a Rockefeller to order
Toward that end, an at-home finger-prick hormone test that Modern Fertility began selling today for $199.The vast difference in price owes
to economies of scale, says Vechery
Because there are just 500 infertility clinics in the U.S
and roughly 6,000 endocrinologists — just 2,000 of which are focused on reproductive health — the cost of individual testing has been
Modern Fertility, meanwhile, has “systems and tech and integrations that support a high volume of tests” conducted at the same time, she
says, explaining that with volume comes discounted pricing.Modern Fertility is not analyzing its customers’ hormones
It is using all CLIA-certified labs, including Quest Diagnostics, the 50-year-old, publicly traded clinical laboratory company
“We’re not making new instruments,” says Vechery
“Our differentiation is in access and the information that we provide to women.”In fact, Modern Fertility is billing itself as more of
an educational company than anything else
While it will tell consumers about nine hormone levels related to ovarian reserves and overall reproductive health — which can be
important, especially when it comes to considerations around egg freezing — much of what it offers is related to content based on
peer-reviewed studies about menopause and when women typically start to lose their fertility.Customers also receive one optional one-on-one
phone consultation with a fertility nurse who won’t give out medical advice but can share more information about which hormones are being
tracked and why.For the price, that may be enough for many women
It was enough for investors
Modern Fertility just closed on $6 million in funding led by Maveron and Union Square Ventures, which were joined by Sound Ventures,
#Angels, SV Angel and additional individual investors.No doubt these backers see a future where an offering like that from Modern Fertility
is a perk offered by employers, more of which are offering fertility benefits to keep their employees happy and in place
Already, Vechery says that a “handful of companies” are interested in layering Modern Fertility’s tests into their other wellness
benefits.Modern Fertility is also counting on repeat customers, suggesting to them that re-taking its test every now and then will give a
woman a better idea of how her “fertility curve” is changing over time.Most immediately, says Vechery, Modern Fertility — co-founded
by Carly Leahy, a creative strategist who moved to California from Boston in 2014 after Google recruited her, and who most recently logged
two years at Uber — will be adding to its current, eight-person team.It also will be “trying to understand the best way it can get this
information” to potential customers, says Vechery
“We want to meet women where they are and educate them that this type of testing is important.”Pictured above: Modern Fertility
co-founders Afton Vechery, left, and Carly Leahy
