WoW Women in Women's Health I Ashley Greene Khoury and Olivia Khoury, co-CEOs and co-founders of Hummingway
Ashley Greene Khoury and Olivia Khoury are the co- CEOs and co-founders of Hummingway, a brand with the goal of transforming how all women (and anyone with a period) views their own reproductive health.
Hummingway is laser-focused on providing its customers with a suite of innovative, non-toxic, effective products designed to support your hormonal health.
The duo is on a mission to have a positive impact and offer alternative choices for menstruators everywhere who are frustrated with the industry’s lack of effective and preventative solutions.
Hummingway is providing a whole new way of life to menstruators everywhere with an innovative collection of natural solutions, as well as an educational platform that demystifies the conversation surrounding our reproductive systems, hormones, and our whole cycle. Products and The Regular educational platform are research-backed and fact-checked using a team of experienced advisors and practitioners across the reproductive, health, hormonal wellbeing, and nutrition space.
Ashley, Olivia, tell us a bit about your background and your projects so far.
Ashley: I moved to Los Angeles at 17 to try my luck as an actress and haven't looked back since. I’ve spent the last 15 years growing as an actress and activist and just recently filmed a few new projects this year. A few years ago, I made the decision to stop using any medication I'd been prescribed over the years. When I got off hormonal birth control, my cramps became debilitating, I had mood swings that fit every stereotype and lots of breakouts, which caused me lots of embarrassment. I went back to my health care provider for answers and was met with options like Accutane, steroids, or antibiotics. After sharing my frustrations with my sister-in-law Olivia - now my fellow co-founder - and realizing how cathartic it was, we felt compelled to create a company that could provide a safe space for people to share their experiences in a true community, serve as a science-backed but easy-to-digest educational platform (called The Regular) and provide non-toxic menstrual products (the first being The Cycle Soother) that target the root cause of an issue in a safe, effective way. Olivia was raised by a homeopath mom and has been schooled in looking at different ways to treat conditions.
Olivia: I have been working as a creative and stylist for almost a decade. After moving out to Los Angeles in 2017, I continued my creative pursuits, working with a variety of musicians and brands including MUNA, Say Lou Lou, Jessie J, Travis Scott, King Princess, and brands including H&M, Lacoste, YEEZY, and Puma. I have been using homeopathic medicine for as long as I can remember to support my mental, emotional, and physical health. My mom taught us the idea that the body has the ability to heal itself - to look at our mental, emotional, and physical health as one piece to fix the underlying causes and improve our wellbeing. It has literally taken me 10 years, a pandemic, a new sister (Ashley) and this company to finally figure out a concoction of exercises, supplements, food, meditation, journaling and therapy to help with my hormones and my pain.
How did you get into this industry? Has it been an easy industry to get into or have you had many challenges?
Ashley and Olivia: We founded Hummingway due to mutual feelings, pains, and minds between two people with periods and the associated symptoms. Following years of frustration at the gap - particularly concerning gender-based data - in research into the female body and menstrual cycle, we set out to create a preferred way to support menstruators' own personal experiences when it came to periods. We’ve had a few challenges breaking into the industry, primarily with founding a company during the Covid-era and in return have faced different manufacturing delays like many other new-to-market brands.
How long did it take you to be where you are now? What was the biggest obstacle? What are the challenges of being in the industry you are in?
Ashley and Olivia: Hummingway has been years in the making. We’ve worked on multiple formula renditions to get product formulations right for our debut product The Cycle Soother with our trusted Medical Advisory board. We’ve also used third-party testing for every ingredient which takes time, as well as an independent consumer study with those who experience period pain. Our product is a set of transdermal patches that delivers targeted non-toxic ingredients to your body where you feel pain - so there were many considerations into how we would develop this.
It is hard to find accurate information surrounding the menstrual cycle because there’s such a lack of research. We have a big responsibility to provide accurate and fact-checked content to our users (especially since they have been in the dark about their bodies and products for so long) so the responsibility is a bit daunting! We realized it was too big a responsibility for us alone and brought on science and education leaders to make sure it's right.
Our community is the driving force behind product launches. We are different in that we aren’t launching with collection methods, but instead, we are going on a journey to find the root cause of these menstrual cycle-related issues to create products that function as preventatives, rather than bandaids.
What are your biggest achievements to date?
Ashley: Having the belief in ourselves to tackle such a massive issue is a big one for me. Olivia and I knew this was something we had to take head-on and we knew it wouldn't be easy, but the amount of sleepless nights and tears of frustration could last us a lifetime. I’m extremely proud that we’ve stuck it out and stayed committed to never compromising, never cutting corners, regardless of how much more painstaking that road is sometimes. Getting to the launch line is something that I’m extremely proud of both of us for.
What are the projects you are currently working on?
We currently have exciting new products in R+D that we can’t wait to share down the line with you. We aim for Hummingway to be a one-stop shop throughout everyone’s cycle of life - from pre-menarche to your period through to perimenopause and menopause.
Is the #WomenInTech movement important to you and if yes, why?
Ashley and Olivia: Absolutely. As a company in the Femtech space, founded due to the gap in gender-based data, we think it’s so important that women continue to break into typically male-dominated areas. There are so many insights we can share with each other to build more relevant businesses that consumers want to exist in their lives.
What will be the key trends in your industry in the next five years and where do you see them heading?
Ashley and Olivia: Functional Medicine and the holistic approach to self-care and healing. Personalized health and wellness. Taking health into your own hands and incorporating health into our everyday lives (fewer doctor visits, more people relying on trusted natural/transparent brands).
What is the most important piece of advice you could give to anyone who wants to start a career in this industry?
Create as flushed out a plan as possible, but understand that the plan will likely change and you’ll need to pivot. There is always a pivot.
It's ok to fail - just fail forward. You will without a doubt make mistakes and fail, but you’ve got to be able to pick yourself up, learn a lesson, and move forward.
Surround yourself with those you consider smarter or more versed in this space than you are, and don’t be afraid to ask questions or to ask for help.
Who are three inspirational women in your respective industry you admire?
Olivia: Oprah, Solange, Jessica Alba, Sara Blakely
Ashley: Sara Blakely is inspiring on so many levels from the way she built her company from the ground up with very little to her name, little help or funding, to how she chooses to conduct herself and treat her employees. She had a dream, that many people scoffed at and simply didn't understand, and wouldn’t stop until she brought it to fruition. She really entered into a male-dominated space and demanded change.
Jessica Alba is another I look up to for a variety of reasons - both on and off-screen. I think she has been creating change for quite some time now and finally gets the recognition she deserves. She’s spoken about how lonely or intimidating the boardroom could be sometimes, how a lot of people told her she was crazy and how she personally put herself on the line making sure the company was a success and I relate to that. A lot of people see success and forget about the risk and responsibility you personally take on when founding a company.
Find out more about Hummingway on their website.
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This interview was conducted by Marija Butkovic, Digital Marketing and PR strategist, founder, and CEO of Women of Wearables. She regularly writes and speaks on topics of wearable tech, fashion tech, IoT, entrepreneurship, and diversity. Follow Marija on Twitter @MarijaButkovic and read her stories for Forbes here.