Monica Williams is a doctor. But, she says, "I was born an entrepreneur. In my opinion, it's the only way to really live."
Williams has long kept an eye out for business opportunities, and even developed a couple product prototypes — like a pacifier called Pacimals and a hair product called Dr. Fill In. But her true breakthrough idea came from a family friend, Dana Roberts.
Roberts was a fifth grade teacher who saw that the girls in her classroom needed more support as they navigated bodily changes. She created kits for them with menstrual products and information, and told Williams about her idea to turn this into a business. When Williams' own daughter became a tween, she saw firsthand how real the need was. So the two women launched RedDrop in 2021, with "period kits" that include tween-sized pads, period underwear, wipes, and scented sanitary bags.
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As CEO, Williams's fundraising strategy has been applying to pitch contests and grants. That way, she doesn't need a network of rich guys. "It just really relies on the strength of the business and my ability to talk about it," she says. In April, this paid off when she appeared on The Pitch, a podcast where guests do exactly that, to a roundtable of potential investors. She walked away with $100,000,........