Earn Your Leisure

How One Idea Became an $80 Million Female Health Tech Company | Crystal Etienne

Jan 29, 2026
Crystal Etienne, founder and CEO of Ruby Love and investor focused on women’s health and Black women founders. She describes inventing a period-friendly garment, rapid viral growth to $1M+ revenue, navigating venture capital and rebranding, scaling operations while low on cash, and why preparing to sell can build generational wealth.
Ask episode
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
ANECDOTE

Fundraising Breakthrough Through Accelerator

  • After joining Jason Calacanis' Launch program in 2018, Crystal received 15 term sheets and eventually accepted a UK investor's offer in 2019.
  • The program forced her to take fundraising seriously and opened access to multiple investors.
ADVICE

Use Emotional Strategy In VC Meetings

  • When pitching VCs, temper expertise and let investors feel smart by affirming their ideas even if you know better.
  • Use emotional intelligence to navigate biased investors and advance the deal.
INSIGHT

Board Control Trumps Pure Equity

  • Equity dilution is less dangerous than losing control of the board and vote rights after VC funding.
  • Crystal negotiated to retain board control because she bootstrapped significant revenue before raising.
Get the Snipd Podcast app to discover more snips from this episode
Get the app