Tech
Here’s an exclusive look at the pitch deck a 23-year-old TikTok star used to land $4.5 million from investors like Alexis Ohanian’s Seven Seven Six
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- Anja Health is a stem cell banking startup launched by 23-year-old entrepreneur, Kathryn Cross.
- Cross has a TikTok channel featuring videos about cord blood banking with almost 120,000 followers.
- Anja Health has raised $4.5 million in seed funding from VC firms like Seven Seven Six Ventures.
Kathryn Cross knew about the regenerative power of stem cells long before she was old enough to start a company for banking them.
Cross’s younger brother, Andrew, was diagnosed with cerebral palsy when Cross was just three-years-old. As her family searched for treatments for Andrew, they learned that umbilical cord blood — which is rich in stem cells — could improve motor skills in children with neurological disorders. Unfortunately, finding a matching donor for a mixed race child like Andrew proved difficult. Most donors were white.
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Andrew passed away in 2021, and that year, Cross launched Anja Health after getting accepted to Y Combinator. The startup offers banking services for umbilical cord blood and tissue, as well as placentas. Cord blood cells can be used to treat or delay a range of diseases from blood disorders to muscle conditions to certain cancers. Cord blood also holds the potential to stave off certain effects of aging, like memory loss.
Since the 1990s, the cord banking industry has been dominated by a handful of companies like ViaCord and MiracleCord. Privately banking one’s cord cells with MiracleCord can cost anywhere between $120 to $450 a month. Anja Health aims to offer a more affordable option with monthly banking rates ranging from $35 to $85.
Cross initially realized there was a market gap for accessible and budget-friendly cord banking services through her TikTok channel. After Andrew’s death, she started making TikTok videos about the benefits of cord banking. Within three months, her channel had racked up 30,000 followers.
Now, Cross’s account has almost 120,000 followers. The company relies on TikTok as a central channel for user growth.
“We do tend to resonate with people that are younger and looking for a contemporary option,” Cross says.
Anja Health has raised $4.5 million in seed funding from Reddit co-founder Alexis Ohanian’s firm, Seven Seven Six, as well as angel investors like Olympic gymnast Aly Raisman, Cleo Abram, Tim Lenardo, Chris Ovitz, and Balaji Srinivisan.
Cross says that her time in incubators like LaunchHouse and OnDeck gave her a first hand look at how to run a startup. Those experiences also gave her the confidence to approach prominent investors about funding, including Alexis Ohanian.
Founders of maternal and baby care startups often struggle to raise venture capital money. Cross believes investors have shown interest in Anja Health because of its focus on the future of baby health.
“Even investors who traditionally invest in other industries saw mine as a futuristic, longevity focused baby health type of product,” Cross said.
Here’s the 9-slide pitch deck Anja Health used to raise $4.5 million:
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