As Daré Biosciences approaches a pivotal year with a key product launch ahead, the company kicked off an open public offering, providing a chance for individuals to get involved for as little as $250.
Sabrina Martucci Johnson wants everyone to invest in her women’s health biotech Daré Bioscience. That means you, dear reader.
“We’ve been trying for a long time to close that gap between 1% of private healthcare investment that goes into companies like ours that are developing products for conditions solely affecting women,” Johnson, the company’s CEO, told BioSpace in a recent interview.
And so, as Daré approaches a critical year with several product launches to come, the company in January kicked off a regulation A offering, providing a chance for individuals to get involved for as little as $250. Daré is officially seeking to raise $24.3 million with the offering.The idea has been picking up traction, according to Johnson.
“It just seemed like the time to do something a little bit unusual,” said.
While Johnson means everyone, she really wants to target women—particularly women who would be Daré’s customers. The biotech is developing multiple therapeutics for conditions that solely affect women, such as menopause, vaginal health, female fertility and more. Many of these indications do not have FDA-approved options, Johnson explained.
“I do feel a responsibility, in part, to build this movement and build this moment and do something that everyday investors can be a part of, because I do think that’s part of what it’s going to take to change the paradigm,” Johnson said.
If women “vote with their wallets,” as Johnson says, larger, institutional investors may follow. And maybe, just maybe, that 1% number will climb and more biotechs launch to develop therapeutics targeting conditions that affect women.
A Cultural Moment
Daré previously collaborated with Organon to launch Xaciato, a gel to treat bacterial vaginosis. But now, several other products are nearing the market and the biotech will go it alone. The first is DARE to PLAY sildenafil cream, a topical treatment for female sexual arousal disorder.
Other products include the consumer-focused probiotics DARE to RESTORE and the non-hormonal intravaginal ring birth control DARE to RECLAIM.
Johnson said the GLP-1 revolution has set a perfect stage for Daré, as women become increasingly involved in their health via less traditional means.
“Women are very motivated healthcare consumers. Most of the GLP-1 prescriptions are to women,” Johnson said. “That speaks to everything we’ve been saying for a long time about women’s health. Women want solutions. They will find solutions.”
Daré has provided early access to the products via compounding. With a more formal launch of sildenafil ahead, the company is tapping into social media and digital offerings, which is where women tend to seek access to treatments these days. The goal is to build trust and to provide clarity and specific, science-backed solutions for women.
“From a cultural moment perspective, it’s a great time for us to be doing this,” Johnson said.
If Daré’s offering is successful, women will take an even more active role in their health by becoming investors. The offering was specifically designed to be accessible to anyone. The terms are clearly explained without industry jargon.
Johnson hopes that Daré’s work can help inspire new women’s health companies, particularly in therapeutics.
“It is painful when I think that we are, to our knowledge, still the only publicly traded company working broadly and solely on women’s health therapeutics. When you think about the fact that we’re half the population, that there are so many things that we are going to experience simply because we’re assigned female at birth.”
She continued, “There should be—just like, there’s hundreds and whatever of oncology companies—there should be hundreds of women’s health companies.”
