Why this Scottish menstrual health innovation matters in chase for multi-billion pound femtech sector

A femtech start-up which secured £400,000 in investment from leading funders hopes to transform sustainability in the female heath sector.

The Bettii Pod Ltd, founded by CEO Elaine Galston, was awarded £70,000 in Scottish Edge funding after emerging as a winner in the latest competition round.

The start-up was also recognised with the Circular Economy Award, supported by Zero Waste Scotland, a nod to their market-leading work on sustainable menstrual products.

Elaine Galston from The Bettii Pod and Iain Gulland from Zero Waste Scotland | The Betti Pod

That Scottish Edge funding adds to the £338,000 raised through investment from leading angel investment firm Equity Gap in Scotland, as well as from Scottish enterprise.

Equity Gap also collaborated for the first time with investors from Lifted Ventures in the deal.

The Bettii Pod - founded in 2021 - is behind a menstrual cup or disc washer which has been designed to be installed in away-from-home toilet cubicles. Creators say it could revolutionise the way reusable female hygiene products are managed in public places.

Femtech is a burgeoning sector of life sciences in Scotland, and is a market currently dominated by US entrepreneurs. The sector covers software, diagnostics, products and services using technology focusing on female health and wellness.

A Scottish study in 2023 revealed the current estimated value of femtech in Scotland is £231 million, with scope to grow to nearly £650 million by 2031 if matching global market sector trends.

Galston said “Raising this investment and winning Scottish Edge funding is a huge step forward for Bettii. This will allow us to continue our work on providing convenient and hygienic solutions for menstruators, all while advancing sustainable practices in FemTech.

“We’re incredibly grateful for the support of Equity Gap, who have been instrumental in guiding us through this journey. Their expertise and dedication to empowering female-founded businesses have been invaluable.

“And together with the backing from the many female members of Lifted Ventures, a female focused angel group, Bettii has an incredibly exciting journey ahead of her”.

A demonstration of the product on the Bettii Pod website | Bettii Pod

Fraser Lusty, Managing Director of Equity Gap, said: “Equity Gap investors have been hugely impressed with Elaine and the proposal for The Bettii Pod and we are proud to have concluded the investment in this exciting and transformational Female Health tech business.

“The strength of this opportunity has enabled a first collaboration between Equity Gap and Lifted Ventures, creating a community of likeminded investors to support The Bettii Pod, as it develops.”

Equity Gap is an angel investment firm, based in Scotland, with a focus on supporting early-stage, high-growth businesses led by diverse entrepreneurs.

Galson said the support from these networks will help The Bettii Pod to expand its operations and scale its impact in the market. Her hope is the investment, and continued success for her product, will further drive innovation within the femtech sector.

Elaine Galston, CEO of The Bettii Pod at Scottish Edge alonside Iain Gulland, CEO of Zero Waste Scotland

The £70,000 funding from Scottish Edge specifically will be used further further research and development, and expanding the reach of the product. Galston will also look to engage with her target market UK-wide.

Kerry Sharp, Director of Entrepreneurship and Investment at Scottish Enterprise, said: “We’d like to congratulate Bettii Pod on its recent Scottish EDGE win. Our investment in the company highlights our dedication to supporting the growth of ambitious businesses in Scotland.

“By helping companies scale, we aim to create high-quality, high-value jobs and empower them to become market leaders.”

The Scottish Enterprise FemTech Economic Opportunity for Scotland report, published last year, found that there is significant opportunity for growth in this area, and recommended a roadmap be drawn up to exploit the growing global market.

Whilst women’s health agenda is “extensive”, the area is chronically under-invested and under-developed in enterprise terms.

Estimates for the current size of the global femtech market are between £33 billion and £42 billion, and the sector is predicted to grow rapidly, swelling to more than £100 billion over the next decade.

Almost half of all femtech companies globally are based in the US but Scottish Enterprise research revealed that investment trends point to markets outside the US presenting the best opportunities.

Whilst pregnancy, female longevity and fertility account for 48 per cent of the global femtech market, smaller sub-sectors, including menstrual health, have been underfunded and show strong growth potential.

The Scottish Enterprise reported concluded: “The femtech sector is a nascent sector in Scotland but one that has considerable market and economic growth potential alongside the potential to deliver major benefits to women’s health.

“The evidence from the review indicates a global femtech market which is expected to treble in size over the next 10 years, alone providing major opportunities for Scottish businesses capable of accessing this market.

“Scotland has some key market advantages, not least in its strong research capabilities in health, digital health, data science/AI and in manufacturing/wearables and sensors.

“There are also strong global drivers of femtech through the increased adoption of digital healthcare solutions, a growing awareness of women’s health issues, the rise of precision and personalised medicine and the increased need for women’s data to drive new products and service provision.”