{"version":1,"type":"rich","provider_name":"Libsyn","provider_url":"https:\/\/www.libsyn.com","height":90,"width":600,"title":"Taboo! Julia Rose of VaGenie and Melanie Cristol of Lorals","description":"Two brave women build businesses that might make you blush. What is it like to launch a product that you can\u2019t talk about in \u201cpolite company\u201d? Meet Julia Rose, founder of VaGenie, and Melanie Cristol, founder of Lorals. They\u2019ve developed products for women\u2019s health and pleasure, one a high tech \u201cwearable\u201d game and the other a special kind of apparel. We talk about what it\u2019s like to raise money, find manufacturing partners, and market a \u201ctaboo\u201d product. Further, Melanie has Tourette Syndrome; we explore how it\u2019s had a positive impact on her path to founding and running her business. Julia and Melanie didn\u2019t know each other before today\u2019s conversation, so it\u2019s fun to share notes on their common experiences. Neither one of them have an engineering or product background. We learn how an actor and a lawyer became manufacturers: the inspiration, the steps they followed, and the surprises they met along the way. It\u2019s not always easy, but they are making it happen. Learn more:  vagenie.co, @myvagenie mylorals.com, @mylorals, @melcristol For more information, photos, and links, check out the show notes at makeitinla.org\/taboo.  Melanie Cristol, founder & CEO of Lorals, is a former consumer-products and healthcare attorney and a Columbia Law School graduate. She is a passionate advocate for sexual health, having worked with Lambda Legal, the Columbia Sexual Violence Response Team, and the National LGBT Task Force. Melanie's expertise in this sector has earned her international attention and accolades, and she has been featured in various media outlets speaking about tech, manufacturing, and sexual health. With a strong international perspective, a background in marketing and entertainment, and passion for women\u2019s health issues, Julia Rose and her team at Kalikha Inc. are creating the VaGenie, a smart biofeedback pelvic floor muscle trainer and menstrual cycle tracking solution destined to break taboos around a vital health concern that effects 2 in 3 women worldwide: weakened pelvic floors. A combination device and app, the VaGenie helps women strengthen their pelvic floors by allowing them to play video games controlled by pelvic muscle exercises (Kegels). In addition, armed with a mission to normalize conversations around women's health, Julia uses tools such as her "VaGenie Martini Party" events as well as VaGenie's "Free the V" community to bring awareness to a variety of critical women's issues. Julia is the mother of 2 young boys and lives in Los Angeles, CA. She received her degree in Diplomatic History from the University of Pennsylvania. ","author_name":"The Art of Manufacturing","author_url":"http:\/\/artofmfg.com","html":"