Claire Coder Transcript
Clint Betts
Claire, my goodness. It is amazing to have you on this show. We only met briefly and we haven't met in person. So, it's a recent meet, haven't even met in person and we're doing some things together.
Claire Coder
We are doing so much together, Clint. I am thrilled to be here now on this podcast. And also seeing you in person shortly here at Silicon Slopes, delighted. Clint, I think you're already now a flow bro. We call our fellows that support menstruation flow bros. So, I think you're officially one of them.
Clint Betts
Is that a good thing? Like a flow bro? I'm trying to think, if somebody called me a flow bro in regular life, how would I feel? I think I'd be okay with it. I'm fine with it. I've been called a lot worse, Claire—and that actually sounds like a very good thing to be called.
Well, it's an honor. It's an honor to be getting to know you currently. As you mentioned, you are speaking at Silicon Slope Summit, which is an event we do here in the state of Utah every year and it's become quite a big nationally recognized tech event, which is really cool. We hopped on a call and I can't even remember how it happened—actually it was Anna Mason from Revolution Ventures who is another, just an incredible leader and somebody who really understands community and how to build it.
I believe she introduced us and we hopped on a call and somehow you managed to get on the main stage at Silicon Slope Summit. You didn't manage, I managed for you. I wanted that to happen for sure. And you're going to be on stage doing a fireside chat with our very own or Utah's very own, I should say, Kristin Andrus, who has done some incredible things. And we're going to talk about all that, but to start, my goodness, what an incredible career you've already had. And you are... I'm much older than you, by the way, and you have accomplished so much more than I ever have in my life. And so, you started an Aunt Flow when you were 18. Is that right? You founded it in 2016?
Claire Coder
Yes. So, I founded what is now known as Aunt Flow when I was 18 years old.
Clint Betts
Did I say it wrong? In Utah we call it Aunt.
Claire Coder
We don't discriminate. Aunt, aunt we'll take it any way. But yes, I started this company after getting my period in public and I didn't have a tampon or pad when I needed one. In the bathroom there was an archaic coin operated tampon and pad dispenser. Naturally I wasn't carrying a quarter because I don't know, Clint, do you have a quarter on you right now?
Clint Betts
Can you imagine if I just pull it out?
Claire Coder
Well, you don't and that's why you also don't have access to period products right now, if you needed one either. And so, I thought if toilet paper is offered for free in bathrooms, why aren't period products? And that simple question led me on a six year quest to build this enterprise now known as Aunt Flow, stocking business and school bathrooms with our organic cotton period products and patented free bend tampon and pad dispensing systems.
Clint Betts
So, it's incredible. You see this problem, you face this problem yourself. You say this needs to be fixed. This is ridiculous, which is how a lot of companies and startups get started. But how did you know that this was a company? That's what I'm fascinated by. You've raised over a million dollars in venture capital. How did you realize this is actually a company?
Claire Coder
So, when I first started working on this, it wasn't a company, it was a project that was working out of my apartment and a Uhaul storage unit. So, I actually founded this company after dropping out of college. So, I was studying at the Ohio State University. I was there for a semester and after I had this moment of getting my period in public, I ended up leaving university to work on a project. And I just started testing out the market, going door to door, asking businesses if they were interested in joining the menstrual movement and buying some tampons and pads from me to put in their bathrooms. And that was the first test. That was my "MVP,” my minimum viable product. And that's where it started.
And as I continued to go door to door, what I learned is that businesses were interested in offering free period products in their bathrooms. They just had never thought about it before. It never occurred to them that it was something that was important. And then even if it did occur to them, they didn't have a solution for it. And so, that was really where the beginning was for the first two years of the business or project. At the time I waitressed, all the money that I made from waitressing I just put back into the business. I had a quasi illegal Airbnb enterprise that I was operating out of my apartment in Columbus, Ohio.
Clint Betts
That's cool.
Claire Coder
And then eventually I learned about venture capital and was able to raise $11 million to build what is now known as Aunt Flow.
Clint Betts
So, you said that so nonchalantly, able to raise over $11 million. People don't just do that, Claire. That is a significant accomplishment. It's pretty incredible to raise that amount. Walk me through the point where you're like the first two years, you're like, I'm waitressing, this is a project. This is something I care passionately about. How in the world do companies not even have this figured out, schools have not already figured this out, maybe I can solve this problem. How do you go from those first two years to, all right, let's raise some money and let me go meet with some VCs. How does that happen? I'm just telling you, that doesn't just happen.
Claire Coder
Long nights crying on the floor and a lot of Ramen, Clint, those are the three keys to success. No. So, from age 18 to 20, I just left university. My parents stopped talking to me. They weren't really keen on me dropping out of college to talk about menstruation for a living. And my university asked me if I wanted to take a leave of absence just in case this period thing didn't work out. And I said, no. And for me, if I had a plan B, it would've been easier to fall back on it when things got really hard, and things got really, really hard. And so, those first two years, there were so many times when I wanted to throw in the towel. There were so many nights when somebody would stiff me waitressing, and that was all the money that I was making. And I was still trying to build this once again, project, not a business.
And it would put me on the floor crying, trying to figure it out, but I didn't have an alternative. I didn't have a plan B, this had to work. And also the next generation of people with periods had to have access, this had to change. And thankfully at age 18, I was naive enough to think that I would be able to change it. The benefits of starting when I was young, I didn't know how hard it was going to be. So, that was really the first two years. And I grew up in Toledo, Ohio. So, venture capital and entrepreneurship were not career paths. They weren't something that I was familiar with. Eventually with enough googling and enough online research, I learned about venture capital and eventually learned about a startup accelerator program called Techstars, which I applied six times to, and finally got in New York City, and that's really what started me on this path of building a company, not just a project.
Clint Betts
Okay. Very, very cool. That makes sense. So, by the way, your parents stopped talking to you? That's intense.
Claire Coder
A whole bunch going on there. Clint, you really keyed in on that one.
Clint Betts
Immediately. Well, I've been there. That sounds familiar. So, that's intense. And also did I read that you're a Thiel fellow?
Claire Coder
I eventually was awarded the Thiel fellowship, which is a $100,000 grant to pursue a business over formal education. I do want to make it clear that I was awarded the Thiel fellowship after I dropped out of college, two years after I dropped out of college. But yes, I was delighted and honored to be a recipient of the Peter Thiel fellowship.
Clint Betts
What an incredible program and Peter Thiel, you say that name and automatically, I think a lot of people either have strong opinions either way. But what an incredible way of putting your money where your mouth is and making a difference and saying, "Hey, there's other alternatives and other paths rather than going to university,” and giving young folks a $100,000 to just build something. By the way, the guy who just sold his company to Adobe for $20 billion, the founder of Figma, also a Thiel fellow.
Claire Coder
You Thiel it.
Clint Betts
Also a Thiel fellow. So, it's pretty incredible the impact Peter's having there. So, you go to Techstars, you go to the New York one, you apply six times, sixth time you get in. What did you learn at Techstars? I think a lot of people who are listening to this may be interested because that was a path that was five, 10 years ago. I'm trying to think the time for it, it really was a big deal to get in a Techstars or Y Combinator or stuff like that. For some reason, I don't hear about that as much anymore, although I'm sure they're still doing it. It's probably just because I'm getting old, honestly, Claire, and I just don't focus on it. But what was the experience at Techstars like?
Claire Coder
Well Techstars for me was an opportunity to learn about this world of venture capital. Before Techstars New York City, I had been to New York when I was a kid and that was it. I didn't really understand this world of high-growth, fast-paced startup. When I learned about it, I was fascinated. So, Techstars really showed me this entirely different world where projects could become businesses with the right business fundamentals, with the right organization and with the right idea. And frankly, Clint, I saw all these other folks raising money for widgets on their phones and I was like, if they can do it, I can do it too because I had a pretty worthy cause.
And so, that program really introduced me to angel investors, venture capitalists, and I went through that in the summer of 2018. Coming out of the program, I took 86 investor meetings to close our first seed round of financing of $1.5 million. And that was led by Harlem Capital, was their first investment of their first fund. And that really started us on this high growth path to stock our period products. And now over 30,000 bathrooms across the US, Canada, and most recently we expanded to the United Kingdom.
Clint Betts
I'm going to call it Aunt Flow from now on because I'm not going to be just a hick from Utah. I'm not going to say Aunt anymore. So, I'm going to say Aunt Flow. So, Aunt Flow, it puts these products in schools, in arenas and things like that. Tell everyone how you're securing these contracts and where you're putting these products.
Claire Coder
So, at Aunt Flow we believe that no one should ever have to worry about getting their period in public. So, we created a patented, free-vend tampon and pad dispensing system. It takes the place of those coin operated metal machines and replaces it with our sleek, beautiful, easy to use dispenser. It's free vend. You press the button, you get a tampon. It should be just like toilet paper. And then we have designed our organic cotton tampons and pads to fit our dispenser. So, it's a Razor-Razorblade model. Once a dispenser is installed, then the business continues to reorder our tampons and pads.
Clint Betts
And it's the business who's buying this? It's the business that's signing these contracts. It's like, why did we ever do a coin? That's insane. The more I think about it, why wasn't the venue or these public institutions, just putting that in there in the first place? It's fascinating.
Claire Coder
If you think about it, if you are a person who pees standing up, you have everything you need in the bathroom. If you're a person that pees sitting down, you probably don't. You have access to a tampon. You don't have access to a pad. Both would respond to natural bodily functions. And so, when we really thought about Aunt Flow, it was when I was 18 years old, I was like, my God, no one else has solved for this? Really?
Clint Betts
Seriously, seriously.
Claire Coder
And no one else before me had solved for it. Frankly, somebody had to do it. It was about time to make sure that people had access to their basic necessities.
Clint Betts
So how do you secure these contracts? What is that process like?
Claire Coder
So, at Aunt Flow, see how I almost—
Clint Betts
I'm glad that you screwed up, actually. That makes me feel so much better that—
Claire Coder
... It's one and the same Clint. We, once again, we don't discriminate on the way that people say our name as long as they are saying it proudly. So, Aunt Flow we provide the most value for three key organizations. We provide a ton of value for K-12 in schools. And the way that we provide value is because by offering free period products in bathrooms, it increases attendance amongst girls. And this was proven through a case study in New York City public schools that when offering free period products in bathrooms, not in the nurses' office, in the bathroom, it increased attendance amongst girls by 2.4%.
We also know through the State of the Period research study in 2021, that four out of five students have either left class or know someone who was left class because they didn't have access to a tampon or a pad when they needed one. And so, we provide value there because it's an increasing access to a basic necessity. It's ensuring that people have access to that product. So, when we work with schools, we're typically working with superintendents or the board of education to implement period products. And we've actually worked to pass legislation in 20 states requiring schools to offer free period products in the bathrooms. And Clint, one of the most recent ones is the state of Utah. You want to talk about it?
Clint Betts
Let's talk about that in a second. I want you to focus. So, you've done, you provide value to the K-12 and then what are the other two?
Claire Coder
We provide a ton of value for sports and entertainment. So, when you're going to—
Clint Betts
So, the Jazz arena or something like that?
Claire Coder
... So, we're in 23 professional sports team stadiums ranging from the Columbus Crew and Arizona Cardinals all the way to the Atlanta Cox and Phoenix Suns. And for venues, they want to implement Aunt Flow because their venues might be going cashless. They either have no bag or clear bag policies. So, what do you do when you're menstruating and you can't bring in a bag of period products. And also they're really focused on guest and fan experience. And so, Aunt Flow really provides a solution for all of those three key initiatives to implement free period products with Aunt Flow in their bathrooms.
And then the last is what we call enterprise. An enterprise is our bucket of employers and real estate owners and operators. So, Aunt Flow, we are proud to stock every Apple retail store across the US and Canada. So, if you're getting your computer fixed and you're there for far too long and you realize you're on your period, you just go to an Apple store bathroom and the Aunt Flow products are in their bathroom. We also stock Google and Netflix and Twitter offices. We also stock every asset for RXR, which is a class A office owner in Manhattan. So, those are the three key areas that we provide value to. And we are so excited to be able to support all of those clients.
Clint Betts
Okay. So, where are you with Starbucks? That seems like a client you need immediately and we need to go to work to make sure that that happens. Because Starbucks, as you know, it's like half coffee shop, half rest stop at this point. And so, we need Aunt Flow, and I'm going to say it right from now on, Aunt Flow products in Starbucks, that's one. And then just restaurants. I feel like a fourth bucket for you would be restaurants, probably starting with chain restaurants and then moving down to even other ones. But Starbucks feels like, man, if you could get them, that'd be incredible.
Claire Coder
Starbucks, give us a ring. This is now a promo to get Starbucks, to call Aunt Flow. We would love to work together.
Clint Betts
By the way, I envision you closing that contract within a month now, I really do. You need to be in Starbucks and we are going to go to work to make that happen. All right. So, you mentioned legislation and the fact that the state of Utah recently passed some legislation around this. I know it's interesting. You called the first two years of Aunt Flow a project, Kristin Andrus, who is this incredible person and leader in the state of Utah, just one of the greatest people, one of the greatest Utahns. She started something called The Period Project within the state of Utah.
Claire Coder
Just to be clear, it is so much more than a project. It is a movement. It is an initiative. It is a policy organization that is truly changing the landscape across Utah and across the US. So, you're right. I did say—
Clint Betts
It's unbelievable what she's done in such a short amount of time with The Period Project, which is why I wanted her to interview you on stage at Silicon Slopes Summit. I think that conversation is going to be really interesting. But tell us about passing legislation. That sounds like the job of lobbyists, is that an interesting thing is a business to go in there and be like, "Hey, listen, this is important." And what's the response been so far? How many did you say you had 21, 22?
Claire Coder
20 states have some legislation to require schools to offer free period products in the bathrooms.
Clint Betts
So, 30 more to go? What is this process like?
Claire Coder
So, at Aunt Flow we don't hire lobbyists. We rely on grassroots organizations like The Policy Project, and the Period Project in Utah. And also student advocates advocating for themselves saying, "This is important to me. This is important to make sure that I have access and my younger sister has access to these basic necessities." So, in Utah specifically, The Policy Project and the Utah Period Project started working on policy to ensure that girls across the state had access. And they were successful in passing house bill 162, which requires K-12 schools in the state of Utah to offer free period products in girls bathrooms. That includes public, private, and charter schools. And they put an incredible effort to make sure that this was accessible, not only through passing the legislation, but then also making sure that the products were implemented, and the organization really made sure that that happened through a public-private partnership in the state of Utah.
And in Utah, the Andrus Family Foundation, as you had mentioned a few times, Kristin. The Andrus Family Foundation, in addition to the Larry H and Gail Miller Foundation came together to invest in Aunt Flow dispensers. So, they made the investment in all of the dispensers and then the Utah Board of Education said, "Yes, this is important. And we'll be purchasing our Aunt Flow organic cotton period products to implement in the schools for the next four years." So, it's truly the work of the student advocates in the state, the on the ground organizations like Utah Period Project and The Policy Project and of course that public-private partnership. All those forces coming together to change the world one cycle at a time.
Clint Betts
That was great. What have you learned dealing with politicians and legislature and governors and these types of folks? And just to set it up, I think most people hate politicians. So, we're not politicians, although it does seem like after Aunt Flow, you're going to be president of the United States. I see something politically here for you, but what's it been like so far to work with politicians and try to get this through?
Claire Coder
Well, what is really special about the menstrual movement is that we have had consistent bipartisan support. At the end of the day, the facts are clear, by implementing freely accessible period products in schools, it increases attendance amongst girls. And young folks are advocating for this. This is important to the students, and it's not just girls that are advocating. Clint, as I mentioned, you're a flow bro. We have boy students who are saying, “This is important to me because I know somebody that menstruates. My sister, my mom, my babysitter,” everybody loves somebody who menstruates. And so, we have been really successful from an all sides coming together perspective.
Now of course there are people that say, "You should just carry your own period products." Or, "Can't you just hold it." Can't you just hold in your period? Or this isn't the responsibility of the school. But a lot of it is just lack of education because that's a topic that we have not talked about ever. And part of the goal for Aunt Flow and frankly, the incredible work that the Utah Policy Project has put forth is talking about it. Talking about menstruation and making it an accessible conversation.
Clint Betts
It doesn't seem like it's a Republican or Democratic issue. You're right about that. Utah's a very red state and this thing seem to just fly right through the legislature.
Claire Coder
And doesn't matter what party you are, you still need period products.
Clint Betts
Do you take Aunt Flow public? What is the end game here. You've raised this $11 million. You're obviously having an insane amount of success. I'm going to get a sweet commission on the Starbucks deal. So, that's going to be good. You're about to get huge contracts and be everywhere. Where does it go from here? What's the end game? Are you on the road to IPO in the next five, 10 years? What do you think about this stuff?
Claire Coder
Well, I have a pretty clear mission, and it's to make sure nobody ever has to worry about getting their period in public, and that Aunt Flow is the solution for care and access to period care. So, there are 10 million female commercial bathrooms in just the United States. So, the market opportunity is massive and we don't have even 1% of the penetration right now. And so, we have a lot of work to do to make sure that people truly have access to high quality, sustainable period products from Aunt Flow. So, that's what we're going after. And of course we are venture backed and so that does mean that we are high growth, that we're actively growing our team as well as our customer account and all the while really making the world better for people with periods.
Clint Betts
I'm fascinated by a day in your life. What are these conversations and deals like? I really would like to be a fly on the wall, particularly as you're talking to these old school legislators. I don't know how you say it. About, "Hey, you guys need to pass this, let's push this through." How do you convince them beyond, hey, no matter what, you know somebody who does this, that type of thing. They do have a finite amount of money, these state budgets and things like that. And even companies and things like that. Is the idea is like, duh? And as soon as it clicks that they go or are these conversations a little bit harder sometimes?
Claire Coder
Well, Clint, it's definitely changed over the six years that we have been working on Aunt Flow. I founded the company based in Ohio, and back in 2016-2015 there wasn't any legislation around accessible period products. And so, the conversation has definitely changed over these six years, which is fabulous. And it's changed in the right direction. For the first four years, we were educating on the importance of access to period products. At first, it was, well, I already have something and that something was a coin operated dispenser. That's not really a solution. That is not a solution. Or I already have something and it's maybe a basket of tampons and pads, which is a good stop gap. But when you are a high traffic bathroom, that basket ends up walking away and for some reason never gets replaced.
And so, really educating that access is important, making a program that is sustainable for both the janitor to restock, the company to maintain from a budget perspective and products that fit environmental goals, all of that needed to happen. And now it's really helping folks get awareness on the solution because most of the times when we're talking with facilities managers and our target customer is a facilities manager, and you can imagine your favorite facilities manager they're likely not menstruating. So, those conversations are now more delightful. Most of them are, “I'd never thought about this, Claire, but I have two daughters and I want them to live in a world where they don't have to worry about getting their period” or “Claire, I have two daughters and what should I know? What can I do as a dad to make sure that their lives are better in the future?” So, the conversations have definitely changed and evolved. But we do still have common questions. Well, if it's free, aren't people just going to steal everything?
Clint Betts
Do you know what that reminds me of? That reminds me of the old Jerry Seinfeld joke of going to the airport and you go into the airport bathroom and you push on the water dispenser to wash your hands, the sink and airports have these things where you only get three seconds of water. And then the thing pops up and you have to push it back on again to finish washing your hands. What do airports think? We're just going to turn it on, just leave it on where we'd be super excited to overflow the bathroom with water. We'd be playing in it, missing our flight. That's a whole Jerry Seinfeld joke. It really is. It's crazy thinking people are stealing. And I'm sure you got to account for a little bit of that, but also if they're taking period products, that means they probably don't have access to them at home. That feels like actually a good thing.
Claire Coder
And we stock schools where 100% of the kiddos are on free and reduced lunch.
Clint Betts
Let them take them.
Claire Coder
Well in the US, tampons and pads aren't covered by WIC. They aren't covered by food stamps or SNAP. And so they're a very expensive product for folks living in need. And that's what folks call period poverty. And The Period Project in Utah has done incredible work to continue to host donation drives and initiatives to make sure that folks have access on the weekends and also in the summer when you aren't at school and have access to period products. And so, yes, there are some folks that do take a few extra for after school hours or on the weekend, but those are definitely the kiddos that are most in need and with access to those period products on the weekend, they'll be more likely to show up to school on Monday, which is really, really powerful.
And to be clear, as a business, we did make sure that we designed our dispenser intentionally so that there wasn't overuse. Our model R, you press a button and it takes about three seconds to take the pad out and then be able to get the next one. And so, there's ways that we are able to support a business to ensure that there's reduction of overuse. But also, as you mentioned, Clint, it’s just like the water, if somebody needs some water, somebody needs period products, all basic necessities might be beneficial to offer it.
Clint Betts
I just can't imagine it being a huge issue. Has anybody ever said like, "Man, we better lock down the toilet paper or people are going to start taking it." At some point that feels more like an excuse than anything else. You're a really great politician. This is why I think you're going to run for office, because I've tried a number of times to get you to bash a politician or tell me a bad story about a legislator or legislative group and you haven't. It's actually really impressive. And I'm not going to ask a third time because I actually think you got to get elected here someday. How many employees do you have?
Claire Coder
Well on that, Clint, we focus on spreading period positivity. So, of course there's been challenging conversations, but at the end of the day, when everybody works together to change a movement, we're able to do that rather than creating internal opposition forces. So, focused on the period positivity. And with that, we have 35 full-time employees and—
Clint Betts
Where are you based now? Are you still based in Ohio? Are you based in New York?
Claire Coder
Still based in Columbus, Ohio.
Clint Betts
That's so cool.
Claire Coder
That is our headquarters and we do hire remotely. So, about half of our company is in Ohio and then the other half is everywhere else.
Clint Betts
I have this thing where I think it's really important for great entrepreneurs to build where they're from. I don't know if that's true or not. I just have my own working theory. If you can build your company where you're from and build up your own community, man, on top of building an incredible company, an incredible movement and all this type of stuff, you're really doing something for your hometown, your home state. Do you feel that at all? Are you proud that it's in Ohio rather than somewhere else?
Claire Coder
It was really hard to get the support that we needed in the early days being in Columbus, Ohio. Six years ago, there was really one venture firm in the city. That was Drive Capital, which is an offshoot of Sequoia Capital. They're plopped in Columbus, Ohio, and with the initiative to find opportunities. But the challenge with only having one is if you don't get that one, there's nobody else. And then it's a scary indicator for west coast and east coast investors. If you're based in Columbus and you don't get their money, and we didn't raise money from Drive Capital. And so, I would say that that was challenging. That's definitely changed over the past few years, there's been some substantial exits in Columbus where founders are able to reinvest in their communities and the next generation of startups that are being built here. There's definitely challenges.
That said, it builds a lot of strength. And now I know being in Columbus, Ohio, and from Toledo, Ohio, which is Taco Bell's test city USA. If we can do it there, we can really do it anywhere. And that made us more resilient through all of the downturns, whether it be COVID or a recession or anything to be able to manage through because we had to have business fundamentals from day one.
Clint Betts
Wait, Toledo is Taco Bell's what did you say?
Claire Coder
Test city.
Clint Betts
So, the first Taco Bell was in Toledo, or they test all the new products in Toledo?
Claire Coder
In Toledo, Ohio, we get all of the new things. You remember those cinnamon—
Clint Betts
Why is that? Are there a bunch of stoners in Toledo? Why Toledo, Ohio?
Claire Coder
... I guess... I'm no Taco Bell brand rep, but...
Clint Betts
Tangent, here we go.
Claire Coder
There we go. But Wendy's restaurant is also based in Columbus, Ohio. So, we have a really good cross section of fine dining here in the state of Ohio.
Clint Betts
Hey, I have an idea for you for your business. How about approach Taco Bell about putting Aunt Flow in all of their restaurants, and go to Wendy's.
Claire Coder
Taco Bell, please join the menstrual movement.
Clint Betts
Absolutely.
Claire Coder
That was a public service announcement.
Clint Betts
Claire, I think what you're doing is incredible. You are obviously an amazing leader, an amazing founder, building a company that matters in the world. I'm so excited that we get to hear from you on stage at Silicon Slope Summit. It's really going to be powerful and I appreciate everything you've done in the state of Utah and everything you're doing throughout the country and throughout the world here.
Thank you for coming on the show. We got to have you back on because I would have you on to talk for 30 minutes just about Toledo and the fact that they have a high per capita of stoners. Everybody goes to Taco Bell all the time. I'm just kidding. Toledo is the... What's the show? What's the movie?
Claire Coder
Mash?
Clint Betts
Was Mash based out of Toledo?
Claire Coder
Well, in Mash they say holy Toledo and there's references to Tony Packo's, which is also based in Toledo.
Clint Betts
Okay. Okay. Toledo's cool. You live in Columbus now though?
Claire Coder
Live in Columbus. And once again, we're not based in Toledo, although that's where I'm from. We're headquartered in Columbus and a lot of great opportunities now in Columbus as well.
Clint Betts
Okay. Any last words or parting thoughts for those who are listening or watching as far as the grit and determination it takes to build a company?
Claire Coder
Golly, that's a whole other 30 minutes, Clint. But my goodness, one of the most important things that I learned from my dad was that perseverance paid and perseverance pays. As I mentioned, I applied to Techstars six times, when we raised our seed round of financing, it took 86 meetings. When I left university, I didn't take a leave of absence, I fully dropped out. And I think that those are really important moments to continue to remember perseverance pays and it's showing. We now have an enterprise that employs 35 full-time employees. We have an organization that stocks 30,000 bathrooms with Aunt Flow period products. We have donated 1.6 million tampons and pads in 2021, perseverance pays. And so, if there's one parting thought: it's that perseverance pays.
Clint Betts
I like that, perseverance pays. Let's make a t-shirt and have all funds go to The Period Project here in Utah. I love that Claire, we will see you on stage at Silicon Slopes Summit and continue to watch the incredible things you're doing. Thank you so much for coming on.
Claire Coder
Thank you, Woohoo.