Estonian company CARÁ Health has raised €620,000 to provide prenatal and postpartum support. The company’s health and wellness resource app offers women support and guidance throughout the maternity journey, from pregnancy to postpartum. 

CARÁ Health bridges the maternity support gap by providing mothers with a library of evidence-based information, curated product suggestions, targeted podcasts and masterclasses, and personalised support services encompassing prenatal care guidance, postpartum support, and expert advice on specific health concerns.

Expecting mothers and their families have limited access to comprehensive and verified health and well-being resources throughout pregnancy. Recent findings published in the Lancet’s open-access clinical journal, eClinicalMedicine, indicate that more than 40 million women experience long-term health issues lasting months or even years after childbirth.

“Based on our market research, we knew the Berlin space opening would be successful, but we had no idea just how successful.”
Anna Strubel, CARÁ Health CEO

So prevalent is the problem that as a result of the findings of a separate study conducted in the UK, the Birth Trauma Inquiry, the women’s health minister, Maria Caulfield, formally apologised to women, saying that “maternity services have not been where we want them to be.”

Without adequate resources, mothers face increased stress and gaps in their support networks. This can lead to a range of adverse outcomes for mothers and their babies.

The company is expanding in the DACH region

The Seed round was led by Tera Ventures, with participation from Startup Istanbul founder Burak Büyükdemir via StartupIst Ventures. It brings the startups’ total funds raised to date to €750 000. The investment will assist the company in further developing its product and technology offer and expanding and growing in the DACH region.

“As a mother myself, I know firsthand some of the situations women find themselves in during the maternity process. They’re very personal, and many of these stories don’t get out. Still, a lot can be done during the preparation for the birth, and this is what we’re offering with our ‘whole woman’ approach during the pregnancy period. This can also prepare women for the postpartum period,” said CARÁ Health co-founder Carina Vantsi.

“A lot can be done during the preparation for the birth, and this is what we’re offering with our ‘whole woman’ approach during the pregnancy period. This can also prepare women for the postpartum period.”
Carina Vantsi, CARÁ Health co-founder

“We were already impressed by CARÁ Health’s traction in its home market of Estonia, and as a relatively recent parent, I saw a huge opportunity in what they were building, and the feedback we had from their customers and users made the stars align and made the investment decision easy,” commented Tera Ventures’ Eamonn Carey.

The company´s app has supported over 1000 pregnant women

Alongside a comprehensive app, the company also features physical locations in Tallinn, Tartu, and Berlin, the most recently opened location. These locations offer women’s health services ranging from gynecology to nutritionist counseling, pregnancy yoga, midwife and doula services.

Winner of the Estonian HealthTech Startup of 2023, CARÁ Health now counts one in every two pregnant women in Estonia using its app and has supported over 1000 pregnancies in Estonia to date.

In April this year, the startup embarked on its first international expansion, opening a physical location in Berlin. Within the first two weeks of its opening, 250 spots were sold in the CARÁ Berlin space, validating market demand and prompting CARÁ Health to accelerate its German market expansion plans.

“Based on our market research, we knew the Berlin space opening would be successful, but we had no idea just how successful,” commented the company´s CEO Anna Strubel. “Selling 250 slots in two weeks has validated our model beyond our home market and accelerated our foreign market rollout plans.”

CARÁ Health is founded (2022) by pediatric nurse CEO Anna Strubel alongside serial entrepreneurs Carina Vantsi and Keiro Vantsi. The founding team is supported by a medical board that includes family physician Dr Anna Melan and gynaecologist Dr Liina Rajasalu, alongside an office staff of 10 and 30 on-hand maternity and women’s health specialists.

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