# Crystal Etienne

> Crystal Etienne is the New York founder and CEO of Ruby Love, the period-apparel company formerly known as PantyProp, and a co-founder of early-stage investment firm CaJE. After leaving a corporate finance and operations career, she put $25,000 of her savings behind a garment idea in 2015, grew the company past seven figures in sales, secured a $15 million investment in 2019, earned a U.S. patent for her garment panel system, and began using her own capital and experience to support Black women building companies.

- **Role:** Founder and CEO at Ruby Love; co-founder at CaJE
- **Organizations:** Ruby Love, CaJE, Black Women Conversations
- **Education:** Baruch College, City University of New York
- **Known for:** Bootstrapped Ruby Love past $1 million in sales before institutional funding., Secured a $15 million investment from The Craftory in 2019., Named to Inc.’s 2020 Female Founders 100.

## Career timeline

- **Before 2015** — Worked in corporate finance and business operations, including controller and CFO-level responsibilities described in later interviews.
- **2015** — Founded PantyProp after developing an apparel solution and committing $25,000 of personal savings.
- **2016** — Produced an early run in New York City’s garment district and began selling the product.
- **2017-2018** — Crossed $1 million in sales and expanded into additional apparel categories.
- **2018** — Rebranded PantyProp as Ruby Love.
- **2019** — Ruby Love announced a $15 million investment from The Craftory.
- **2020** — Named to Inc.’s Female Founders 100.
- **2021** — Launched CaJE with her husband, Jean Etienne, to support early-stage Black women-led businesses.
- **2022** — Her U.S. patent for a garment comprising an absorbent crotch panel system was granted.
- **2023-present** — Continued speaking publicly about product development, scaling, investment, and Black Women Conversations.

## Achievements

- Bootstrapped Ruby Love past $1 million in sales before institutional funding.
- Secured a $15 million investment from The Craftory in 2019.
- Named to Inc.’s 2020 Female Founders 100.
- Listed inventor on U.S. Patent 11,330,847 for a garment comprising an absorbent crotch panel system, granted in 2022.
- Expanded one core apparel concept into underwear, swimwear, sleepwear, activewear, and period kits.
- Co-founded CaJE to provide early capital and mentoring to Black women-led businesses.

## Latest updates

- **2026-01** — Appeared on Earn Your Leisure for a long-form conversation about Ruby Love, ownership, venture capital, legacy, CaJE, and Black Women Conversations.
- **2024-03** — Ruby Love published a founder profile describing Etienne’s continuing leadership and product-development work.
- **2023-12** — Discussed Ruby Love, CaJE, working with her husband, and Black Women Conversations on Banking on Cultura.
- **2023-04** — Appeared on the She’s Off Script podcast to discuss rebranding, product development, customer focus, team building, and intellectual property.

## Links

- Website: https://rubylove.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/crystal-etienne-18440a125
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/shoprubylove
- YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@rubylove
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/iamcrystaletienne/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/myrubylove
- TikTok: https://www.tiktok.com/@shoprubylove

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/crystal-etienne
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-26