EP71: Launching Lilu - A healthcare tech startup improving breastfeeding with Adriana Vázquez Ortiz

Lean the F*ck Out | Fempreneurs | Women Entrepreneurs | Female Business Owners

This week we talk with Adriana Vázquez Ortiz, CEO and Co-founder of Lilu about launching a healthcare startup and creating a product that improves breastfeeding. Adriana talks about how and why she started the company, the research and development process, understanding your customers’ needs, pitching and getting funded. She also talks about the importance of building better technology to improve lives and in Lilu’s case, helping mothers thrive during the transition into parenthood.

Episode Highlights:

• Moms are eternally multi-tasking, and women are so incredibly good at coming up with life hacks - but Adriana realized there was a need to build better technology in some of the key areas which are challenging for lots of parents: breastfeeding and sleep. Lilu is helping to improve breastfeeding.
• No matter how unpolished the product was in the beginning it was important to have real users in the testing from the beginning.
• Getting feedback from the target customer is critical to learning, even if the product isn’t ready.
• On funding/pitch competitions: Apply, apply apply! You learn so much in the process. It forces you to distill your company and vision into a few words. This is a very helpful exercise, no matter what stage.
• On pitching: Know who you are pitching to and learn from every single pitch. Find excuses to rehearse over and over in front of as many people as you can. “Practice makes better”
• On entrepreneurship:
  • Remember that “it’s a marathon, not a sprint.”
  • It is important to ask for help. Use your advisors.
  • Pay that support forward.

ADRIANA C VÁZQUEZ ORTIZ

Adriana is CEO and Co-founder of Lilu which creates the next generation of products to help moms pump, manage and track their milk supply. Adriana graduated from MIT where she received a B.S. in Mathematics with Computer Science. She later pursued a Masters in Integrated Product Design at the University of Pennsylvania. She loves running, attempting to snowboard, has been a pescatarian for over a decade, kind of speaks four languages and prefers carrot cake over chocolate cake.

Follow Adriana online at:

www.wearlilu.com

https://www.facebook.com/wearlilu

https://twitter.com/wearlilu

https://www.instagram.com/wearlilu/

Download the FREE Lean the F*ck Out Launch Kit

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Music: Sunshine by The Icicles