Female Founders: Estelle Garcia of LivaFortis On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder
An Interview With Candice Georgiadis
Invest into your happiness, well-being, and health. At the end of the day, this is probably one of the most important things that you can do for yourself. Live your life, adopt a good work life balance, whatever this balance is for you. For me, it is spending time with my partner and pets, friends, and family. The time we spend together energizes and inspires me and I can use that energy to be more creative and problem solve at work. It certainly isn’t time that is wasted. You don’t have to live and breathe work.
As a part of our series about “Why We Need More Women Founders”, I had the pleasure of interviewing Estelle Garcia.
Estelle Garcia is the Founder and CEO of LivaFortis Inc., a company that is taking on the low back pain market with a unique solution that combines an innovative wearable biofeedback device with a digital physical therapy clinic app. Estelle holds master’s Degrees in Translational Medicine (USCF and Berkeley) and Advanced Mechanical Engineering (University of Bristol, UK). Passionate about bringing innovative and accessible healthcare solutions to the market, her company’s telehealth enabled app is the first of its kind to explore concerns such as mental health, stress, and the physical and social environments when helping customers manage their chronic lower back pain.
Thank you so much for doing this with us! Before we dig in, our readers would like to get to know you a bit more. Can you tell us a bit about your “backstory”? What led you to this particular career path?
Growing up in France I was always fascinated with science and technology, so I decided to become a mechanical engineer and ended up specializing in medical technologies. I had the amazing opportunity to join UCSF and UC Berkeley where there is a rousing atmosphere of innovation and entrepreneurship. I was inspired to see what I could do for back pain sufferers beyond the somewhat frustrating, traditional implant and surgical options.
Can you share the most interesting story that happened to you since you began leading your company?
The most interesting thing that has happened to me since I began leading the company is the journey we went through developing these innovative technologies in order to respond to unmet clinical needs. I cannot tell you how amazing (and scary) it feels to have the conviction that you can develop a solution that will respond to the unmet clinical needs that you have identified. It feels amazing because you believe that you can help people and make a difference, but it is also scary because you start by being the only one that believes in the feasibility of your solution.
What was even harder was that, with our project, the specific technology we needed to develop was so advanced and new that it took us several years of trying (and lots of failures) to finally arrive at a working prototype and ultimately demonstrate that our concept was genuine. We had to overcome so many technical issues like having to develop specialized advanced sensors and unique signal processing algorithms for our technology. We also encountered supply chain issues on electronic components due to the Covid-19 situation.
Fortunately, I have an amazing team behind me that shares the same passion for the product and that is as determined as I am to always put our users first, and with this passion we were able to stay motivated through all the challenges that we have faced. All the bumps in the road that we faced on our journey to final product development have been worth it because of the enormous impact that we know our solution will have for customers and their quality of life.
Can you share a story about the funniest mistake you made when you were first starting? Can you tell us what lesson you learned from that?
One day I was attending a talk given by a famous tech executive and entrepreneur (I don’t want to mention any specific names here) who was promoting entrepreneurship. I decided at the end of the talk to go and meet him and to introduce myself and my project since I was proud of being an entrepreneur myself. His first and only reaction to my story was: “And what do your parents think about it?” … I was completely shocked!
His question made me feel like a young girl who still needed her parents’ approval to be able to pursue the career she wanted, not like the confident woman that I had felt like just moments before. I was so disappointed that someone, who was supposed to help people achieve their entrepreneurial dreams could react like that. After this episode, I started doubting myself and my abilities to be a founder or CEO. It affected me so much that sometimes I did not dare introduce myself as such in front of successful entrepreneurs or executives for fear of being judged and belittled again.
Sometime later, when I was able to look back and reflect on this interaction, I realized that my real mistake had been to let his response affect me this way. I was still that confident woman who was starting her own business, no matter what he thought about it. It wasn’t the first time I encountered a situation like this one and I am sure it won’t be the last. It took me some time to regain confidence in myself and to be proud of my achievements, but my amazing team and strong support system has helped me a lot with this.
I wanted to share this story because I believe that there are quite a lot of female entrepreneurs and executives who suffer from imposter syndrome, some, perhaps after facing negative responses from men, as I did. As women we need to remember that we have earned our seat at the table and that we are just as entitled to sit there as men. Please, try your hardest not to let others affect you and define who you are. You are brave and amazing — own it!
None of us are able to achieve success without some help along the way. Is there a particular person who you are grateful towards who helped get you to where you are? Can you share a story about that?
My father is a successful business owner, and he has always been my biggest supporter and encourager. He was the one who helped cultivate my passion for engineering. When I had finally decided that it was time for me to make the leap to start my own company, I called him to let him know about my decision. My dad was so happy for me, and proud, but then he told me something that I had never known before. He said that he had wanted to start his own business at the beginning of his career, but that he hadn’t had the courage to do it at that point. It took him much longer to make the big decision to go out on his own and manage his own company. He was so happy that I had found the courage to do this from a much younger age and that I wasn’t going to be afraid of things like he was at my age. He has been my first supporter and advisor ever since.
Ok, thank you for that. Let’s now jump to the primary focus of our interview. According to this EY report, only about 20 percent of funded companies have women founders. This reflects great historical progress, but it also shows that more work still has to be done to empower women to create companies. In your opinion and experience what is currently holding back women from founding companies?
There is still an enormous lack of support for female entrepreneurs, especially in the biotech world. Traditional stereotypes persist with perceptions of what women should and shouldn’t be doing. This can cause women to question themselves and their abilities. Imposter syndrome is still extremely prevalent and there needs to be more mentorship opportunities for female entrepreneurs to help them gain the confidence that they have as much right to be there as their male counterparts.
Can you help articulate a few things that can be done as individuals, as a society, or by the government, to help overcome those obstacles?
There is a massive discrepancy in the resources and opportunities that are afforded to female entrepreneurs versus their male counterparts. Dr. Sangeeta Bhatia found that women had founded less than 10% of the 250 startups created by MIT professors. Female entrepreneurs need more access to VC funding, mentorship, education, and other resources. Studies have shown that women are only likely to apply to a job if they feel that they have almost all of the qualifications and skills required. Men, on the other hand, feel confident in applying if they have 50% of the skills required, and figure they can learn the rest along the way. We need to help women feel that confident in both applying for positions and feeling like they can receive the necessary support and training along the way. We also need to recognize the unique skills that women bring to the field and support them in unique ways that recognizes their individuality.
This might be intuitive to you as a woman founder but I think it will be helpful to spell this out. Can you share a few reasons why more women should become founders?
Female entrepreneurs have a lot to offer the biotech industry. We bring a fresh perspective to customer needs as well as the fact that we have different viewpoints on where the gaps are in technology and what future trends may look like. Female entrepreneurs also often take a very different perspective to running a work environment and understanding the diverse needs of their employees. In my company I always try my best to work with my employees as individuals, helping them achieve a true work-life balance, which, I believe, fosters a happier, and more productive, workforce.
What are the “myths” that you would like to dispel about being a founder? Can you explain what you mean?
One myth that I have heard time and again from male founders is that if you want to have a successful business you must sacrifice your personal life. Many times, I have been made to feel guilty for wanting to do anything outside of running my company. I would be lying if I said that running your own company doesn’t require a lot of time and emotional investment but having interests outside of work is imperative for mental health. Running your own company is a marathon, not a sprint, and being able to balance a meaningful existence outside of that shouldn’t make you feel guilty. You were brave enough to start your company. This is your life, and you deserve to be in charge of it.
Is everyone cut out to be a founder? In your opinion, which specific traits increase the likelihood that a person will be a successful founder and what type of person should perhaps seek a “regular job” as an employee? Can you explain what you mean?
I believe that passion is the most important trait that you can have as a founder. When you are passionate about something you can naturally lead the charge and you will inspire those who work with you, and for you, to do the same. It takes a lot of courage and dedication to start your own company and those will come more naturally when you are following your passion. I don’t think that you necessarily need certain skills. There are many CEOs who have learned what they needed to know along the way and who have surrounded themselves with talented and skilled people to help them achieve their dreams. Anyone who has an idea with potential should be given the opportunity to work on it, even if it is just to determine true viability. We need to support women with their dreams and help them find the resources to achieve them.
Ok super. Here is the main question of our interview. Based on your opinion and experience, what are the “Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as a Woman Founder?” (Please share a story or example for each.)
- Be confident. As women we must believe in ourselves even when we sometimes struggle with imposter syndrome. You are just as good as anyone else! The entrepreneur’s journey comes with a lot of self-doubt and self-questioning. Confidence and stress management are vital to success and need to be constantly worked on. I have found that there are many resources that you can find to help you, like life coaches, clubs, talks, etc. Don’t hesitate to reach out and make use of these resources.
- Do what you like, love what you do! Be passionate, we only live once. I followed my dream to be an engineer and to put my skills to use helping people. It is easy to fall into the trap of working for existing companies and products because it seems like the least risky path. I risked a secure, well-paying job to start my own company because I was so passionate that we should be doing things differently to really improve the lives of customers. I will always know that I took that brave step and have no regrets!
- Surround yourself with a strong support system that believes in you and in your project. Your support system can be composed of sincere friends, relatives, business partners, mentors, co-founders, anyone that trusts you and believes in you. You don’t have to deal with everything by yourself. It really does take a village to build a company. But remember, positive energy only! Do not give any credibility to anyone trying to bring you down because of who you are or what you do.
- Invest into your happiness, well-being, and health. At the end of the day, this is probably one of the most important things that you can do for yourself. Live your life, adopt a good work life balance, whatever this balance is for you. For me, it is spending time with my partner and pets, friends, and family. The time we spend together energizes and inspires me and I can use that energy to be more creative and problem solve at work. It certainly isn’t time that is wasted. You don’t have to live and breathe work.
- Respond first, and foremost, to the needs of your employees and partners. We all aim to create a business to respond to some people’s needs but I believe that it is vital to start by responding to the needs of your employees and partners. In my company I have hired people with diverse backgrounds and needs and I have found that by honoring their differences I am able to attract talented, hardworking, creative individuals who share the same passion for helping people as I do. Together we can challenge norms, think outside the box, and do great things!
How have you used your success to make the world a better place?
I feel as if I am just getting started and I have so many things that I would like to achieve in this aspect. One thing that I have managed to do so far is to create a great working environment for my employees and to make sure that they feel empowered and fulfilled, regardless of their gender, culture, or background. 4 out of 5 employees at LivaFortis are women, at different stages in their lives and careers, and I want to do everything that I can to support them in both their personal and professional lives. Whether that is giving extra paid maternity time, allowing for flexible working hours to help balance child-care (or home schooling during the pandemic), time off for further studies, or even just supporting travel and time with loved ones.
My goal is to be able to accommodate the individual needs of employees as much as possible. Our work culture is based on mutual respect. I am proud to show that this type of working environment is feasible and that you can hire extremely talented women in the tech industry if you are willing to be flexible. This flexibility is not just for female employees, but my company recognizes that women are juggling many roles right now, and many have had to drop out of the workforce because of these issues. I want to retain these talented employees and find ways to work differently.
You are a person of great influence. If you could inspire a movement that would bring the most amount of good for the greatest number of people, what would that be? You never know what your idea can trigger.
Wow! That is a tough question — but a great one! There is so much in motion right now, but I definitely see the movement to bring more diversity to entrepreneurship — which is amazing and long overdue. A big steppingstone to this, I believe, is education. I come from France, where education is mostly free, or at least significantly cheaper than it is in the US. I would love to be able to help improve access to education and make it more affordable for those wishing to pursue it. A great education can unlock so many doors and can inspire students to do new and amazing things. I was so fortunate to be able to access great education and to use it to start my company — it would be incredible if I could help others do the same.
We are very blessed that some very prominent names in Business, VC funding, Sports, and Entertainment read this column. Is there a person in the world, or in the US with whom you would love to have a private breakfast or lunch with, and why? He or she might just see this if we tag them.
Someone that I look up to is Sean Duffy, Co-founder and CEO of Omada Health, a digital behavioral medicine company that is dedicated to inspiring and empowering people everywhere to live free of chronic conditions like heart disease and type 2 diabetes. He came to pitch his company at one of my business classes when I was studying at Berkeley and he truly inspired me to start working on my own project, a digital behavioral clinic for low back pain. I would love to meet him again to share our experiences in the field and have his feedback on our business plan.
Our team are also very inspired by several entrepreneurs who have diverse educational backgrounds and work experiences but who share the passion to always put their customers first: Sarah Blakely (Spanx); Nicolas Jammet, Nathaniel Ru, Jonathan Neman (Sweet Greens); Katrine Bosley (Avila Therapeutics); Tina Nova (Genoptix), Julia Haart (Elite World Group), Neil Blumenthal, David Gilboa, and Jeffrey Raider (Warby Parker). Their social conscience, desire to challenge the norm, and to drive innovation are amazing! We would love to learn from them.
Thank you for these fantastic insights. We greatly appreciate the time you spent on this.
Female Founders: Estelle Garcia of LivaFortis On The Five Things You Need To Thrive and Succeed as… was originally published in Authority Magazine on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.