Meet the Founder: Jess Rosenberg, founder of Moode
This month we chat with Jessica Rosenberg, founder of moode.
Moode is creating vitamins for women across the fertility lifespan. They’re clinically formulated thoughtful vitamins with activated ingredients, are vegan and don’t contain synthetics.
Jessica was a part of the 2020 Atto Accelerator.
Learn more about Jessica and moode below.
Where did you get the idea for moode?
After having my first child, I was really uncomfortable. I spent months seeking answers - and became the subject of prodding, stretching, antidepressant topical creams and granulation tissue ripping.
Most health specialists said I was experiencing something normal and the pain would go away. It took almost 2 years to discover I had developed some attractive sounding conditions post birth - vaginismus and vulvodynia. And what I was experiencing was not ‘normal’, despite what the doctors had said.
I was horrified to learn so many of us are kept in the dark about our health in our reproductive years.
It turns out, we know so little about our own bodies. So many of us don’t know about ovulation and when in our cycles we’re fertile. Or know the ins and outs of miscarriage and what to expect of a D&C. Endometriosis continues to go undiagnosed, with many health practitioners not even asking about period pain in routine checkups with menstruating women. We don’t talk about our menstrual cycle influencing our libido, or that some mainstream prenatal supplements can actually make us feel nauseous instead of nutritionally replete and prepared for pregnancy.
Women report their health experiences are dismissed at alarmingly high rates. More frequently than men’s.
Could unfiltered and candid conversations where we share our knowledge change the course of this?
It was these questions that really led me all the way to what moode is today.
What problem is moode solving?
We’re offering an unapologetic new voice in fertility health – flipping the script, breaking taboos, and putting women’s bodies front and centre in the conversation. Providing unfiltered, inclusive maternal health education for wherever people are on their reproductive journey.
We’re also creating nutritionally-formulated, scientifically-backed, easy-to-swallow prenatal vitamins to support holistic reproductive health – way before babies enter the picture. This product is natural and clean as can be throughout- with no nasty binders or cheap synthetic ingredients. Formulated by women who get it, quality has never existed like this.
What were you doing prior to starting your business? Did you start it as a side project or did you go all-in from the get-go?
I’ve worked in the social work sector for years, supporting marginalised communities and advocating for structural change, where inequality permeates our systems. Once I became a mother myself, I could see how these systems were also impacting us too.
Moode started as a passion project when I went back to study naturopathy and nutrition. I was keen to understand the way our bodies work and how nutrition can impact our health from an evidence-based perspective.
What was the first thing you did to get moode up and running?
I worked hard on a branding document, to really figure out what we were all about- and how we were unique in the market. This included understanding why we existed, what we valued and who we would be to our community. I researched the product heavily alongside this, fine-tuning and tweaking our first product- the prenatal over 18 months.
Was being a startup founder always part of your career plan? If not, what was?
Definitely not!
I followed my two dreams first- social work and naturopathy, and moode was really born out of a combination of the values I grew in these two worlds.
I always knew I wanted to make social change, and this just happens to be where I landed. That’s why moode just couldn’t authentically exist without its two core components; our community for change and our unbelievably high-quality product.
What would be the one piece of advice you’d give to other female founders looking to take the leap into something new?
Find your confidence early on. You’re doing this because you’re passionate about your thing. So really embrace that, champion your expertise and wave the flag of your cause or product.
Everyone has the ability to be great at something, it seems the only reason some projects ‘fail’ is because we don’t believe in ourselves enough.
What’s been your biggest lesson so far?
There is way more to starting a business than you’d think! Passion and product are only part of the story – the bulk is actually business management.
I wish I had sat down in the early days and partitioned the business plan into sections- product, brand and business. And really fleshed out what would be required in each category so I could methodically work my way through.
What’s been the biggest win so far?
Watching the brand messaging resonate with people.
What do you love about running your own business?
I like being able to share my vision, unfiltered by layers and layers of bureaucracy above me.
What does 2022 (and beyond) have in store for you as a founder? What’s your next step for moode?
We are gearing up for our product launch: The Prenatal by moode. This has surprisingly been postponed due to a surprise baby #3 now due at the end of March. I’m looking forward to seeing the product go live, with a baby on the boob. And seeing the rest of the range come to life in its aftermath.
How do you think Atto has helped you in your business?
Atto was my introduction to the world of startups. I think I was just an idea when I joined, with little understanding of how and where moode could go.
Atto certainly boosted my belief in myself, and being surrounded by such supportive women was a great welcome to this new world.