In 2015, Dr. Somi Javaid opened the first HerMD location in Cincinnati with her life savings and a promise she made to her mother.
That promise began years earlier when her 45-year-old mother’s heart disease symptoms were dismissed despite clear warning signs. That moment shaped Dr. Javaid’s career and ultimately led her to build a practice centered on women’s health conditions often minimized or ignored: perimenopause, menopause, sexual health, and advanced gynecology.
In this episode of Reclaim, Destinee Berman and Dr. Javaid unpack the full arc of HerMD’s journey from a single brick-and-mortar clinic to a multi-state brand serving women across 35 states and three countries, to raising $10 million in five weeks as three minority co-founders in 2021.
They discuss:
• What made that first fundraise successful
• Why brick-and-mortar healthcare is extraordinarily capital intensive
• The decision to pivot from an integrated physical model to virtual-first care
• The realities of imposter syndrome in rooms full of investors
• And why Dr. Javaid ultimately decided to step away from clinical practice after two decades
This episode explores both pillars at the heart of Reclaim: how founders build trust in sensitive health categories, and how operators make hard strategic decisions to scale access while protecting mission. For founders in women’s health, digital health, and consumer wellness, this conversation is a masterclass in conviction, storytelling, capital efficiency, and knowing when to evolve.
What You’ll Learn:
- How personal experience can become a scalable healthcare business
- Why 2021 timing mattered but wasn’t the whole story in fundraising success
- How storytelling paired with data drives investor conviction
- The capital realities of owning brick-and-mortar healthcare
- What telehealth can (and cannot) safely accomplish
- How to recognize when a business model needs to pivot
- Why intuition is a founder’s most underused strategic asset
- What it means to grow something and then let it go
Episode Highlights:
04:56 The Origin Story That Sparked HerMD
Dr. Javaid shares how her mother’s dismissed cardiac symptoms which led to emergency quadruple bypass surgery shaped her commitment to eliminating invisibility in women’s healthcare. That promise became the foundation of HerMD’s mission.
12:29 Story + Data = Fundraising Success
In 2021, HerMD raised $10 million in five weeks despite being told minority women founders had less than a 0.5% chance of success. Dr. Javaid explains how product-market fit, brand affinity, profitability, and powerful storytelling created investor alignment.
14:55 Building Without a Marketing Budget
The first six months were filled with uncertainty. With no formal marketing budget, HerMD relied on word-of-mouth, grassroots physician outreach, and community education events to grow. Patients became the brand’s biggest advocates.
18:55 Why Brick-and-Mortar Became Unsustainable
Owning and operating fully integrated physical clinics proved extraordinarily capital intensive. In hindsight, Dr. Javaid reflects on how a “powered by HerMD” partnership model may have been more efficient.
19:37 The Telehealth Unlock
Transitioning to virtual care expanded access and proved more effective than expected. Dr. Javaid was surprised by how much preventative and hormone care could be safely managed via telehealth when providers are properly trained.
21:35 Acquisition and Identity Shift
After reacquiring the company and pivoting to virtual-first care, HerMD joined a national women’s health platform. Simultaneously, Dr. Javaid made the personal decision to step away from clinical practice to focus on advocacy, education, and training.
31:48 The Founder Mindset: Stop Chasing
Dr. Javaid shares a key lesson: if you’re chasing investors or partnerships that feel misaligned, they’re likely not meant for you. Alignment often feels effortless; forcing it usually signals a mismatch.
33:40 Intuition as Strategy
Experience and intuition are critical differentiators for founders. Dr. Javaid reflects on moments she ignored her instincts and what that cost her. Pattern recognition and trust in self become strategic advantages over time.
Episode Resources:
- Somi Javaid on LinkedIn
- Destinee Berman on LinkedIn
This episode is brought to you by Future Digital.
Future Digital partners with the next generation of category-defining health brands — across paid media, lifecycle and retention marketing, and performance creative. AI-enabled, human-led, and built for categories where trust is the product.
Visit scalewithfuture.com to learn how we help health and wellness brands scale.
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