Joylux Receives Luis Villalobos Award for Innovation


By Sarah Dickey, ACA Membership Director

Congratulations to Joylux, a Seattle based women’s health technology company, which was awarded the Luis Villalobos Award today at the 2019 ACA Summit in Chicago.  The Luis Villalobos Award recognizes outstanding ingenuity, creativity and innovation among startups backed by ACA members.

Joylux was selected by a committee of leading ACA member angels from a large number of portfolio companies recently funded and nominated by ACA members.  Joylux and two other finalists represent the most disruptive and exciting opportunities for early-stage investors.

Joylux is creating solutions for common pelvic floor issues experienced by 50% of adult women due to hormonal changes and weak muscle/tissue tone caused by childbirth and menopause.  This technology is the first affordable, home use, energy-based device for indications including pain, discomfort and embarrassment (muscle weakening, stress incontinence and loss of vaginal tone, sensation and lubrication). The company’s products can improve tone, tighten and restore vaginal tissue and muscles for improved bladder control, reduce vaginal dryness and help create better intimate health.

Since Joylux was founded late in 2014 by Colette Courtion, the company has created multiple products and achieved $1.3 million sales for 2018.  Colette built upon her 15+ years in medical aesthetics to create energy-based technologies to create revolutionary intimate health products.  They have also been granted eleven patents including three utility patents, along with receiving the CE Medical Mark and HealthCanada approval and been designated a low risk wellness device by the FDA.  Multiple scientific studies have been completed and half a dozen scientific articles focusing on Joylux’s work have been published or will be in the near future. 

Nominating angel, Peter Weiss of the Alliance of Angels, states, “Addressing problems frequently resulting from pregnancy and menopause, American women spend upwards of $1,500 a year on incontinence pads; as much as $80 per month for prescription estrogen creams and other vaginal dryness products; or about $4000 on multi-visit in-office medical treatments.  CEO and founder Colette Courtion drew on the knowledge and experience she gained building a chain of aesthetic spas to create an affordable way to address these problems with a first of its kind home use device.  The Joylux technology combines specific light frequencies with heat and sonic vibration.  Thousands of women are using Joylux’s devices and report excellent results.”

This rapidly growing company has raised $11.2 M in seed and series A rounds, along with convertible notes.  Demonstrating the power of angel investors, the following groups invested in Joylux: Alliance of Angels, Alliance of Angels Seed Fund II, Golden Seeds Houston Angel Network, Puget Sound Venture Club, Belle Capital, Belle Capital Opportunity Fund, Keiretsu Forum Northwest, Keiretsu Forum India, Keiretsu Capital Fund, South Coast Angel Network, Portfolia, Sofia Angel Fund, Seavest Capital Ventures, Copperlion Capital, Palodura Ventures and Wade Capital Corporation.

ACA commends Joylux on their outstanding work and representation of a disruptive and innovative startup.  Congratulations also to the other two finalists for the award, Aquacycl and GrandPad.

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