Loom Launches Pregnancy & Postpartum Education

Early Influences and the Genesis of LOOM

Erica Chidi, co-founder of LOOM and a Nigerian-American from a first-generation family, developed an early understanding of holistic well-being. Her formative years were spent in South Africa, a region significantly impacted by the HIV and AIDS epidemic.

During this time, she observed her father, an endocrinologist and infectious disease specialist, at work. This experience, coupled with her mother’s profession as a registered nurse, normalized open conversations about the body within her household.

This upbringing fostered in Chidi a unique perspective on women’s health, a topic often considered taboo in many immigrant communities.

From Doula to Digital Health Platform

Chidi’s career path led her to become a Doula, a professionally trained individual providing guidance and support to mothers throughout their journey to motherhood.

“My work as a doula centered on personalized care and empowering individuals to advocate for their own needs,” she explained. “This ensured they could optimize their healthcare experience within their sexual and reproductive health journey.”

Looking back, she recognizes this focus as the foundation for her later work, emphasizing the importance of user experience.

Launching LOOM: A New Approach to Women’s Health Education

This foundational understanding ultimately spurred the creation of LOOM, a digital learning platform dedicated to women’s health, with a specific emphasis on sexual and reproductive well-being.

Chidi established the platform in 2017 alongside Quinn Lundberg, an advocate for women’s healthcare policy.

Following a successful $3 million seed funding round last year, LOOM is now introducing its inaugural program to the public: a comprehensive Pregnancy and Postpartum course.

Program Details and Learning Components

The program offers 12 months of access for a fee of $90 and incorporates both asynchronous and synchronous learning methods.

LOOM’s video library, described by Chidi as a “Masterclass dedicated to sexual reproductive health,” features content on various birth options – including medicated, unmedicated, and cesarean births – and guidance on selecting appropriate healthcare providers.

Live sessions are also a key component, with weekly small group discussions led by clinicians addressing specific concerns of mothers, such as postpartum care or trimester-specific advice.

Additionally, Chidi hosts monthly community-wide discussions focusing on a single topic related to pregnancy and postpartum health. Currently held via Zoom, LOOM is developing its own dedicated video platform.

Balancing Education and Engagement

The company prioritizes delivering immediate, practical value to users, rather than requiring completion of all content.

However, achieving this balance between engaging material and medically accurate, clinician-approved education presents a challenge.

While Chidi currently leads much of the content creation, it’s important to note that Doulas are not medical professionals. To ensure accuracy and inclusivity, LOOM collaborates with research institutions, community organizations, and utilizes the Reproductive Justice Framework – an anti-racist approach to reproductive rights and social justice – in its content development.

Industry Context and Representation

Expectful, a company with a similar mission, also secured $3 million in funding this year. Expectful provides a meditation and sleep app for women and is expanding into a community and marketplace for expectant and new mothers.

Both Chidi and Expectful’s new CEO, Nathalie Walton, are among the limited number of Black female founders who have successfully raised millions in venture capital.

Chidi’s Perspective on Entrepreneurship

Chidi, identifying as a Black LGBTQ+ founder, initially believed her background was unconventional for a startup leader. “I didn’t have the traditional path – no Stanford degree, no MBA, and no technical expertise,” she stated.

However, she has come to recognize her strengths in systems thinking, rigorous writing, and tactical education as valuable assets in the product development process.

Her “deeply emotion-centered, deeply-humanistic framework” is a strategic advantage within the landscape of women’s healthcare.