Thato Schermer (Zoie Health): Making Female Healthcare Accessible.

The Startup Club Podcast

In today's episode, we're excited to sit down with Thato Schermer, Co-Founder and CEO of Zoie Health, Africa's first holistic digital women's health & wellness platform, dedicated to making female healthcare more convenient, affordable and caring.
Shocked at how costly and difficult it was to see a gynaecologist, get a prescription, then fill it at a pharmacy, the founders recognized a gap to improve access and affordability to female healthcare.
Founded in 2020, the Zoie platform allows users to book virtual consultations, purchase medication and supplements online, as well as join a community for advice and support. Since its founding, the business has grown exponentially to now serve more than 9 thousand members and 50 healthcare providers (with a pipeline of over 300). In 2022, Zoie was recognised as an MTN "App of The Year" finalist and took first place at Harvard Business School’s "Africa Business Competition" - not to mention winning our very own Startup Club ZA “Healthtech of the Year” award in 2023. On the back of this momentum, the team closed their pre-seed round, led by 4DX and E Squared.
In 2024, Zoie launched an exciting, Whatsapp-enabled employee benefits solution, “EasyDoc”, where employees can engage in convenient consults with doctors, helping employers reduce absenteeism, enhance productivity and improve retention.

Armed with a bold mission to change the landscape of female healthcare across Africa, it’s clear that things are only getting started for Thato and the Zoie Team.
We talk about:
• Thato's upbringing, career and mission to "serve people" through business.
• Taking the leap from corporate achiever to health innovator.
• The nuances of building a startup in a crowded sector.
• Raising capital and navigating pivots.
• The Zoie Health mission, vision and what comes next.
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Connect with Thato on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/thatomabudusha/
Connect with Mathew on Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/mathewmarsden/
This episode was brought to you in partnership with our friends at E Squared Investments - one of South Africa's leading impact investors - providing funding and support to early-stage founders, high-growth businesses and social enterprises - intent on creating meaningful employment to tackles social inequality and enable economic inclusivity. For more info, visit esquared.org.za.

The Startup Club Podcast dives into the stories of South Africa's leading tech startup founders and investors, their journeys of innovation, failure, resilience, and triumph and is an initiative of Startup Club ZA - the country’s fastest-growing tech startup and investor community. If you're passionate about entrepreneurship, innovation, solving hard problems, backing the change-makers and co-creating a better country, then you're invited to join us! 🇿🇦
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Chapters

1. Thato Schermer (Zoie Health): Making Female Healthcare Accessible. (00:00:00)

2. A word from today's episode partners, E Squared Investments. (00:33:58)