Crystal Etienne

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Crystal Etienne is an entrepreneur of African-American origin.[1][2] She is best known for launching the period apparel company Ruby Love (formerly known as PantyProp).

She is a mother of two and lives in the Flushing neighborhood of Long Land, New York City. As of 2020, she works as the CEO of Ruby Love[3].[4]

Early Life

Before starting her entrepreneurial journey, Etienne worked as a financial comptroller. [5] While helping her daughter navigate her first period, Etienne realized that there was a lack of high-quality, comfortable, and discrete feminine hygiene and personal care products.[6] That’s when she commenced her research to develop leak-proof and stain-free apparel that provides protection against menstruation and incontinence.

Etienne developed a patented technology to design leak-proof, discrete, and comfortable period apparel. It features a built-in absorbent organic cotton liner that is perfectly angled to collect menstrual flow, offering protection against leaks and stains.

Entrepreneurship

In December 2015, Etienne bootstrapped PantyProp with an initial investment of $25,000. She launched it as a femtech e-commerce company selling period underwear for teenagers and adult women. By 2019, the company had achieved $10 million in sales and over 140,000 customers across the globe.[7] Etienne rebranded her company as Ruby Love and introduced other products such as swimwear, loungewear, activewear, and incontinence boxer briefs.

In July 2019, Etienne secured a $15 million funding from The Craftory, a $300 million global investment fund. It includes an initial Series A funding of $8 million - the fourth-largest rounded ever for a company founded by a woman of color.

References

  1. Segran, Elizabeth (2018-02-23). "“I Am The Underdog”: How The Founder Of PantyProp Bucked The System" (in en-US). https://www.fastcompany.com/40524562/i-am-the-underdog-how-the-founder-of-pantyprop-bucked-the-system. 
  2. "Is the traditional VC model broken? This ‘software-infused’ firm just raised a $150M fund to fix ‘medieval’ process" (in en-US). 2017-11-28. https://www.geekwire.com/2017/traditional-vc-model-broken-software-infused-firm-just-raised-150m-fund-fix/. 
  3. Hill, Selena (2019-07-23). "Black-Owned Period Panty Company, Ruby Love, Secures $15 Million Investment" (in en-US). https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-owned-period-panty-15-million-investment-ruby-love/. 
  4. Jaramillo, Estrella. "This Founder Bootstrapped To $10M, Now Raises Series A To Disrupt Period Apparel" (in en). https://www.forbes.com/sites/estrellajaramillo/2019/07/29/founder-bootstrapped-to-10-m-now-raises-series-a-to-disrupt-period-apparel/. 
  5. "Crystal Etienne: CEO and Founder, Ruby Love" (in en). 2019-11-20. https://www.realhealthmag.com/article/crystal-etienne-ceo-founder-ruby-love. 
  6. "Black History Month Spotlight: Ruby Love Founder & CEO Crystal Etienne Raised $15 Million To Launch Pioneering Women’s Period Apparel Line - The Shade Room". https://theshaderoom.com/black-history-month-spotlight-ruby-love-founder-ceo-crystal-etienne-raised-15-million-to-launch-pioneering-womens-period-apparel-line/?fbclid=IwAR3L3_-B3crofSeBmAuhS_jeI1gHHrFCaiuoA9R9PoblSmoH5usrbxd2qxA. 
  7. Johari, Sharvari (2019-08-21). "#WCW Crystal Ettienne — A multimillion dollar business that started from a heavy flow" (in en). https://medium.com/allraise/wcw-crystal-ettienne-a-multimillion-dollar-business-that-started-from-a-heavy-flow-667ab7a6b8aa.