On March 8, we celebrated International Women’s Day and honoured women’s achievements while also recognizing the areas where gender equality still has room for progress. One such area is women’s health, particularly regarding reproductive well-being. Think of women experiencing menstrual cycles, pregnancy and menopause. While almost half of our population is female, these topics still remain under-researched and, at times, even stigmatized. Women deserve tools that can help them navigate these important life stages.
Free-to-use app
Shero, one of our scale-ups participating in the Next Valley program, aims to do just that: empowering women by being their ‘companion’ in the area of reproductive well-being.
The free-to-use app offers women:
- Menstrual cycle tracking – track and predict cycles with precision while receiving tips based on the different phases
- Pregnancy tracking – monitor every milestone in the pregnancy journey with daily and weekly tips and insights on what to expect
- Menopause management – navigate menopause with personalized tools and plans based on individual symptoms
So, what is the difference with other well-being apps? ‘We offer personalized well-being plans based on your symptoms. Let’s say you are going through menopause and you experience hot flashes. You then get a tailored plan with simple tasks and daily tips to tackle that. Now, the app gives you tasks such as changing the temperature in your room or checking the fabric of your pyjamas. With these simple tasks, you can change your lifestyle and alleviate your symptoms,’ co-founder Niusha Fakhar explains.
User feedback
The focus of Shero is currently on finding more users. Our Back, Renee Suzanne Janssen, supports the venture on this journey by connecting them with interesting partners and even with her own friends. This way, Shero can engage with users directly, hearing about their experiences rather than just analysing metrics, like the number of clicks in the app. And so far, user feedback has been positive; they appreciate the minimalist, easy-to-use design, and the daily tips are a favourite feature.
Are you curious to try out the app yourself or know someone who might benefit from this ‘well-being companion’? Check out Shero’s website here.
Published – 7/3/25