MIAMI—A new brand has emerged in the competitive sexual health and wellness world that’s set out to become a household name in the years to come. Miami-based Mila has raised $2.5 Million in seed money to take the brand to the next realm, focusing on direct-to-consumer sales.
Aiming to redefine “intimate wellness” for a new generation of consumers, Mila is focused on bringing the conversation to the front and center, as women talk about their daily beauty rituals, without shame or embarrassment.
Kim Aviv, the co-founder of Mila, told AVN, “First and foremost, we believe intimate wellness is part of overall wellness. We set out to create thoughtfully designed products that belong alongside skincare, supplements and beauty essentials on her wellness shelf. Women intentionally curate routines and rituals for every other part of their bodies, and it's time intimate wellness gets the same level of attention. The more we dug into the market, the more we realized how much room there is for real innovation and long-overdue progress.”
“Beauty, skincare, wellness, etc. have been reinvented for every part of the body—skincare became a ritual, and haircare became a part of self-care,” added Ada Trujillo, Mila’s other co-founder. “But intimate wellness has largely been left out. The last major breakthrough on the device side arrived more than 15 years ago with the introduction of suction technology.”
Trujillo continued, “And since then, a category that serves millions of women has relied on iterations of the same core technologies that always prioritize single or max dual function and never design. We believe women deserve more, so we are bringing a skincare-inspired routine and design-led approach to intimate wellness.”
With a target demographic of every woman who wants to be more intentional about her intimate wellness routine, the company knows that this applies to any stage of a woman's intimate life.
Raising the impressive $2.5 million in seed money took a lot of work and proof of the category. Aviv described what the journey has been so far, starting with selling directly to consumers online. At first, she said, “We were massively oversubscribed, which was incredibly encouraging. Our investors are visionaries—they see the mission and believe in building this new category alongside us. The pitch itself was deeply relatable: women got it instantly.”
She also shared the gender divide that happens commonly in the VC world. “With male investors, we'd ask them to think about their wives, sisters, daughters or friends. At the end of the day, we're here to make women's lives meaningfully better, and that always struck a chord.”
Aviv divulged that they found their invenstors “through a lot of hard work and finding the right people. We were lucky enough to meet Boaz Shedletsky, the founder of Mensch VC and the lead of our round. He not only saw our vision, but believed in it and wanted to make a deliberate bet on a category that most investors have historically been too uncomfortable to touch.
“He saw that discomfort as opportunity," she continued. "Boaz saw Mila as a company with the potential to shape not just a product, but a category. We are moving intimate wellness from something whispered about to something women proudly build into their everyday lives, and [we] are thrilled to have the right team of investors alongside us to make that a reality.”
Currently selling their several products directly to consumers through their website, HeyMila.co, Aviv shared their goals for company growth.
“We're focused on building our DTC channels right now. We want to be where the consumer is, and the DTC-first approach gives us the data that informs everything else," she explained. "The long-term goal is for Mila to become a household name—and DTC is the foundation that makes every future channel stronger.”
Trujillo added, “Our goal isn't just to sell products; it's to build a community that's changing the way women (and the world) think and talk about intimate wellness. We want it to feel as normal as skincare, haircare or oral care—just another part of taking care of yourself. If we can build that movement and community first, we'll meet women wherever they want to shop, whether that's online or in retail.”
In keeping with the principles and ideals of Mila, Trujillo contributed her thoughts on selling through traditional retail channels.
“We always say that the future of intimate wellness looks a lot more like a Sephora, Ulta or Target, versus a sex shop," she asserted. "We’re building Mila to be a household brand, not a niche one. Today we're focused on building a strong direct relationship with our community, but retail is a huge part of our long-term vision.”
She concluded, “We want women to discover intimate wellness where they already shop for beauty and wellness—not hidden away in a separate aisle or behind a locked cabinet.”
