What Needed does

Needed (legal entity Needed PBC, Delaware) is a women's health and perinatal nutrition company founded in 2016 by trained nutritionists Julie Sawaya and Ryan Woodbury, headquartered in Los Angeles. The company sells a branded Nutritional System of dietary supplements organized across the full female reproductive life cycle — cycle support, egg freezing and IVF, trying to conceive, pregnancy, postpartum, women's health, and perimenopause — plus a companion men's fertility line. Core products include Prenatal Multivitamins (standard, Powder, and Pro formulations with up to 26 nutrients in bioavailable forms such as methylated folate, Ferrochel iron, and ubiquinol CoQ10), Women's Multivitamin, Perimenopause Multivitamin, Omega-3 variants, Collagen Protein, Iron, Choline+, Egg Quality Support, CoQ10, Pre/Probiotic, and targeted modules (Hydration, Stress, Cognitive, Sleep, Immune, Cellular Aging, Vitamin D3/K2). Bundled subscription Plans (Complete Prenatal Plan at $184/mo, Pro at $220/mo, plus fertility, perimenopause, postnatal, and men's fertility Plans) drive recurring revenue with discounts of up to 25%.

The business operates a direct-to-consumer e-commerce model through thisisneeded.com with monthly, 3-month, and 6-month subscription cadences offering up to 20% savings over one-time purchases, augmented by a B2B benefits channel via the Carrot Collective employer marketplace (launched December 2025) and HSA/FSA eligibility through a Truemed integration. Distribution is reinforced by a practitioner ecosystem — the Changemakers collective of 10,000+ OB-GYNs, naturopaths, dietitians, and doulas who contribute to product development, and 15,000+ recommending health experts — making professional referral a primary acquisition channel alongside content marketing through The Journal blog, email, and major social platforms. The Needed Labs initiative runs an IRB-approved Prenatal Nutrient Status Study and a Nutritional Care model partnership with GrowBaby Health that has reported materially better-than-baseline pregnancy outcomes (less than 2% preterm birth vs 10.4% US average). The company is B Corp, Climate Neutral, Plastic Neutral, and Women-Owned certified, and has raised approximately $28.6M across multiple rounds including a $14M Series A in November 2023 led by The Craftory.

Name

Needed

Legal name

Needed PBC

Website

https://thisisneeded.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2016

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Needed is a Los Angeles-based perinatal nutrition company selling subscription-based vitamin and supplement bundles for women across fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and a companion men's fertility line, distributed DTC and through employer benefit marketplaces, with products formulated alongside a 10,000+ practitioner collective.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Prenatal & Women's Health Nutritional Supplements

NAICS

Food (Health) Supplement Retailers (456191)

SIC

Medicinal Chemicals & Botanical Products (2833)

akta.pro primary industry

Women’s Health Supplements (Prenatal, Menopause, Hormonal) (CRADAGAK)

akta.pro secondary industries

Prenatal & Postnatal Maternal Nutrition (Lactation Support) (CRADAEAJ), Prenatal, Postpartum & Fertility Nutrition (HSADAFAK), Specialty Condition Supplements (Sleep, Stress, Heart, Joint, Gut, Immunity) (CRADAGAE), Multivitamins & Daily Packs (CRADAGAC)

Keywords

• Prenatal supplements
• Women's health nutrition
• Fertility supplements
• Postnatal vitamins
• Perinatal nutrition

Headquarters

HQ city

Los Angeles

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Personnel, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Direct Product Sales: Direct-to-consumer sales of prenatal, postnatal, and women's health supplements through e-commerce website. Products sold as one-time purchases or subscription plans with savings of up to 20-25%
2. Subscription Plans: Monthly or quarterly subscription shipments of bundled supplement plans. Subscription model provides predictable recurring revenue with average savings of 30% compared to one-time purchases

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Needed is a direct-to-consumer perinatal nutrition company that designs, formulates, and sells a Nutritional System of practitioner-recommended dietary supplements spanning fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and general women's health (plus men's fertility products). Its flagship offerings are the Prenatal Multivitamin line, the Women's Multivitamin line, and bundled Plans that combine multiple supplements for specific life stages. Products are sold primarily through the company's own e-commerce website as one-time purchases or recurring subscriptions, with practitioner-formulated dosing using bioavailable nutrient forms.

Product overview

Needed is a perinatal nutrition company offering a comprehensive Nutritional System of supplements organized by life stage. The core products are Prenatal Multivitamins (available in capsule, powder, and Pro variants) and Women's Multivitamins, which provide foundational nutrition for fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, and women's health. These are complemented by targeted add-on modules including Omega-3 (Prenatal, Women's, Men's, and Pro variants), Collagen Protein, Iron, Choline+, CoQ10, Egg Quality Support, Pre/Probiotics, Hydration Support, Vitamin D3/K2, Stress Support, Cognitive Support, Sleep Support, Immune Support, and Cellular Aging Support. The company also offers bundled subscription Plans (Complete Prenatal Plan, Complete Prenatal Plan Pro, Fertility Support Plans, Egg Freezing & IVF Support Plan, Men's Fertility Support Plan, Women's Multivitamin Plan, Perimenopause Supplement Plan, Postnatal Vitamins Plan, and Stress + Sleep Support Plan) that combine multiple products for specific life stages or health goals. The full portfolio spans women's health across fertility, pregnancy, postpartum, perimenopause, and general women's health, as well as men's fertility products.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Needed Changemakers: A collective of women's health practitioners, advisors, and advocates working to transform perinatal care together.
• Needed Labs

Products and services

• Prenatal Multivitamin

Quantifiable outcome

• Less than 2% preterm birth rate (vs 10.4% US average) in Nutritional Care model
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers2 records

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration1 record

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• CarrotcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 5 December 2025Carrot launched the Carrot Collective marketplace featuring Needed as one of seven launch partners offering clinically vetted fertility and hormonal health products. The marketplace is available to all Carrot members globally at no additional cost to employers, providing Needed access to employer-sponsored benefit channels.
• Every Mother CountscoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerPartnership with maternal health nonprofit Every Mother Counts to support women on the Motherspan. Needed sells limited edition 'Motherhood is an Endurance Sport' t-shirts with 100% of proceeds going directly to EMC to fund maternal health programs worldwide.
• GrowBaby HealthcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerStrategic partnership to scale the proven Nutritional Care model combining access to perinatal nutritionists with personalized diet, supplement, and lifestyle recommendations. This care model has demonstrated less than 2% preterm birth rate vs 10.4% US average.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Ritual: Ritual is a direct-to-consumer essential vitamins and supplements brand with a strong women's health and prenatal line, comparable DTC positioning, subscription model, and emphasis on bioavailable nutrient forms.
• Perelel Health: Perelel is a direct-to-consumer prenatal vitamin brand founded by an OB-GYN that targets the same fertility, pregnancy, and postpartum life stages with practitioner-formulated products in a similar premium subscription model.
• Care/of: Care/of is a personalized vitamin and supplement subscription brand (acquired by Bayer) offering DTC prenatal and women's health products with similar packaging, quiz-driven personalization, and subscription mechanics.
• HUM Nutrition: HUM Nutrition is a DTC beauty-from-within supplement brand targeting women with condition-specific formulations (hair, skin, hormones) overlapping with Needed's women's general health and perimenopause positioning.
• MaryRuth's: MaryRuth's is a liquid vitamin and supplement brand with a strong prenatal and women's health line, competing in similar channels including Amazon and DTC with comparable price points and practitioner-trust positioning.
• Bonafide Health: Bonafide Health is a women's health company offering clinically studied, OB-GYN recommended supplements for menopause and perimenopause, directly comparable to Needed's perimenopause line and clinical evidence positioning.
• Premama: Premama is a prenatal and conception supplement brand sold through retail and DTC channels, comparable as a prenatal-focused CPG with fertility and pregnancy products in overlapping price bands.

Emerging players

• Modern Fertility: Modern Fertility (acquired by Ro) offers fertility hormone testing and women's reproductive health products, addressing the same preconception/family planning customer with adjacent product extensions.
• Maven Clinic: Maven is a digital health platform for women's and family health (fertility, pregnancy, postpartum) and represents an adjacent care-model competitor that could expand into nutritional supplementation as part of an integrated offering.

Others

• Carrot Fertility: Carrot is a global fertility and family-building benefits platform for employers and is both a Needed distribution partner and a complementary ecosystem player serving the same end-customers through benefit programs.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• YouTubeyoutube.com/@ThisIsNeeded
• Facebookfacebook.com/thisisneeded
• Instagraminstagram.com/needed
• TikToktiktok.com/@nourishmentisneeded
• Pinterestin.pinterest.com/nourishmentisneeded
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/neededpbc

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds6 records

Investors8 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Needed