Meet the founder and CEO of Béa Fertility
Tess Cosad is founder and CEO of Béa Fertility - a complete at-home fertility treatment which will launch in the UK at the end of this year. The aim of the new treatment is to democratise access to fertility care and offer people greater transparency and choice when they embark on their fertility journey.
At the moment the only fertility treatment options available in the UK are IVF (in-vitro fertilisation) and IUI (intrauterine insemination). These treatments are notoriously costly and aren’t available to everyone. The Béa kit has been built with inclusivity as a priority, meaning it can be used by LGBTQ+ families, single women using known donor sperm and women unable to have intercourse. With Béa, you do not have to go to doctor’s appointments or fertility clinics. You do not have to undergo rigorous tests and inject hormones ahead of treatment. Our kit uses a non-hormonal, non-invasive method of conception called ICI, which is safe, simple and comfortable to carry out at home.
The experience of undergoing treatment with Béa will be a very different first step on the conception journey compared to going down the clinical route.
What inspired you to launch the business?
I met my co-founder David (an embryologist) a couple of years ago and we realised that together we could combine our skills to drive change in this sector. We understand that starting a family is a basic human right - and that every fertility journey is unique and precious - so our mission is to make it as easy as possible for everyone to access the fertility care they deserve.
I’ve worked in technology for a number of years, focusing on female-led ventures and femtech. Having seen friends and family go through the heartbreak of trying to conceive, I was acutely aware of the inadequacies in the system that made fertility treatment inaccessible or unaffordable for many. Factors as arbitrary as your age, sexual orientation and postcode can prevent you from accessing NHS fertility provision, and the lack of regulation at private clinics means a round of IVF can cost you anything from £3,000 to £15,000.
Through talking to women who were currently awaiting or undergoing fertility treatment in the UK, I was confronted with how the current approach to fertility offered so few options and lacked transparency. It’s common to hear the stories of people who’ve racked up thousands of pounds of debt using sperm donors and fertility clinics; or who’ve been encouraged to undergo IVF to drive up clinics’ success statistics, when another (less invasive and costly) treatment might have been just as effective. This didn’t seem right, and was one of the driving factors behind the creation of Béa Fertility.
What does your role entail?
We recently raised pre-seed funding, so over the last few months I’ve been spending a lot of time pitching investors to secure that early injection of capital.
As we prepare to launch our product later this year, we’re currently finalising the product design based on feedback and benchtop testing. We’re also working hard on building a supporting digital health product, to ensure everyone who starts their fertility journey with us has a seamless and supported experience.
In addition to working on the product and service itself, I’m busy talking to stakeholders and potential customers about what we’re doing and how they can get involved. Fertility is an incredibly personal thing, so lots of people are excited by what we’re doing and are keen to learn more about how it might be able to help them.
What is it about your organisation that motivates and excites you the most?
One of the most exciting things for me personally is the inclusivity element. Our device really is built for everyone, and it’s also more affordable than clinical treatment. Both IVF and IUI are technically offered for free on the NHS, but provision is patchy and essentially a postcode lottery. In some Clinical Commissioning Groups, NHS provision is only available to women in a stable relationship, under a certain age and BMI. So for those who don't fit the criteria, you'll have to fork out significant sums of money to undergo treatment privately. The Béa Kit, at £300 per complete kit, is much cheaper per round than both private IUI and IVF and there are no eligibility criteria to fulfill. The design of the Béa device ensures that LGBTQ+ families can use the kit to get their start too, something I’m truly excited about.
Success rates with our method are similar to those seen with IUI treatments. I’m immensely proud of the inclusivity the Béa Kit is designed for, and we stand strong in our mission to make sure we support every single family, however they get their start.
What have been your biggest challenges during your time at Béa Fertility so far, and how have you overcome them?
One of the biggest challenges so far was getting the product to a place we were happy with. It has been a lengthy (and costly!) process - and has required a significant amount of patience. We went through over 90 product design iterations before landing on our current design for the Béa Kit, and we’re still refining it to make sure it’s as good as it can possibly be. When you’re dealing with something as important as women’s health your product has to be right.
What has been your biggest achievement with Béa so far?
But by far and away, our biggest achievement is getting one step closer to realising our vision: evidence-based, affordable fertility care for all.
The step that has brought us closer to this has been securing our pre-seed investment. That funding has given us the runway we need to finalise our product design, market it, and get it in the hands of users later this year.
I’m really proud that our angel investors are 50/50 female/male. It brings a healthy balance and rocks industry trends that female angel investors are less likely to invest in higher risk products or companies.
What’s the biggest lesson you’ve learnt so far as an entrepreneur?
One of the biggest lessons for me has been learning to spot the investors that ‘get’ what you’re doing. When you’re pitching something considered ‘taboo’ or high risk - such as a medical device or fertility product - not every investor is going to understand what you’re doing or be comfortable joining you on your journey. Learning to accept that not all investors will want to write you a cheque - and understanding that this is actually a good thing - has been a valuable lesson. You want to find the people who engage with the tricky questions and demonstrate their understanding of the problem you’re trying to solve. I feel very fortunate that our investors bring more than just money: they’re supportive, they offer advice, networks, experience and, crucially, belief in our vision.
What is your advice for other budding entrepreneurs wanting to take the leap?
Remain connected to your customer at all times. In the process of building products, talking to investors and running your business day to day it can be easy to lose touch with the ‘who’ and ‘why’. I’ve found the best way to stay connected is to talk to my potential customers and listen to what they have to say. Set up a Notion workspace (or even just a pen/paper journal) and keep adding your users’ stories to it. Remind yourself why you started.
Hearing the personal stories of people who’ve been through fertility struggles motivates me to empower people with fertility care that puts them first. It also helps me to ensure that what we’re building is still relevant and will add value to peoples’ lives. There’s no better way to stay grounded and focused than by listening to the people you wish to serve.
