breastfeeding
(3)
Willow Innovations, Inc.
Willow Innovations is a U.S. femtech company that invented the first all-in-one, in-bra wearable breast pump, freeing new mothers from cords, tubes and the pumping room. Founded in 2014 out of Josh Makower's ExploraMed incubator, Willow now sells app-controlled, leak-proof pumps (Willow 360, Willow Go, Willow Sync and the manual Willow Wave) along with a growing line of feeding and postpartum accessories. In 2025 it acquired UK rival Elvie to build a scaled maternal-health platform.
SimpliFed
SimpliFed is a virtual maternal health company based in Ithaca, New York, that helps families through pregnancy, postpartum, and baby feeding. Founded by biomedical engineer Andrea Ippolito in 2019, it began as insurance-covered virtual lactation support and has grown into a broader 'Maternal Health Operating System' (mOS) that pairs IBCLC lactation consultants and care navigators with prenatal and postpartum virtual OB services. Working in-network with most major commercial plans and Medicaid in multiple states, SimpliFed partners with health systems and OB clinics to extend judgment-free, evidence-based care into the home.
Kate Torgersen
Kate Torgersen is the founder and CEO of Milk Stork, the world's first breast milk shipping service for traveling professionals. After lugging 26 pounds of milk home from a business trip while nursing infant twins, she co-invested $25,000 with her father and built a logistics platform now serving 850+ companies, having shipped more than 7.5 million ounces of breast milk across 112 countries. A former 18-year Clif Bar communications executive with an MFA from the San Francisco Art Institute, Kate turned a deeply personal frustration into a category-defining company backed by Backstage Capital and named to Fast Company's Most Innovative Companies list.