Hannah Austin had a big job when the Covid-19 pandemic hit. She was director of continuing care services for Kaiser Permanente, meaning that anyone admitted to Sunnyside Hospital, she was responsible for getting them ready to go home.
During the early days of the pandemic she was enlisted to lead development of field hospitals and morgues.
She went from a health and wellness focus to figuring out outdoor hospitals, and if the worst happened, where bodies of Covid victims would go.
“Every day was doom and gloom,” she said, for 10 to 12 hours a day, seven days a week.
She resigned in November.
“I was physically ill and burned out. I was healthy before it all and then my life and physical body came crashing down,” she recalls.
Austin knows she was lucky, though. She was able to walk away from the job that burned her out and she was able to take three months off to find a way to heal herself. She found that at a retreat in California. She spent five days learning about herself and women’s health. She also spent thousands of dollars.
When she returned, she was back on her way to her old self. She saw the benefit of the journey she took, but also saw that it’s not something every woman can do.
Austin created SheShatters, a startup designed to help more women understand burnout and find the tools and support necessary to deal with it. The startup is still new, but she is already deep into talking to women about their burnout and what they need as well as assembling a team of therapists and coaches to help.
The first toolkits and a podcast, called SheBurns, are set to launch this summer.
“My ultimate dream and vision for this company is to not only combat burnout for individual women," she said, "but to also combat burnout from a systemic standpoint,” where companies understand it and can take measures to help prevent it.
Technology or product: A web-based application to help women who are suffering from burnout. The app provides assistance and a toolkit for a self-care journey. Right now, it’s web-based but the longer strategy is for an app.
How it makes money: The startup is following the freemium model with some aspects free but the opportunity for up-sells on online courses and the Burn Bright Toolkit.
Size of market: Global women’s health market is $35 billion and is projected to hit $41 billion by 2027.
Competition: Issues surrounding burnout have risen as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic, especially for women who are shouldering child care and schooling as well as working from home. The apps Shine, Calm and Headspace offer stress reduction techniques and meditation but are designed for a broad audience.
Competitive advantage: SheShatters is designed for women. The founder Hannah Austin has first-hand experience with burnout and what it took to overcome those challenges. The startup is mission-based to take on stresses of Covid, working from home, and the pressure for women to leave the workforce.
Business it could disrupt: SheShatters' mission is to shift the mental health landscape for women from treatment-based to a wellness and prevention model.
Managers and their background: Hannah Morgan Austin, founder and CEO, spent 20 years in the health and wellness industry including leadership at several health care providers.
Investors: self-funded
Capital sought: $450,000
Ideal exit: acquisition in three to four years by a mission-aligned digital health and wellness company.
Closer Look
Company: SheShatters
Headquarters: Portland
Founded: 2021
Web: www.sheshatters.com
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