PantyProp Founder Shares How it’s Like to be an Underdog Crystal Etienne launched her own underwear brand called PantyProp. As a black female entrepreneur, Etienne knew it would be more challenging for her to get her idea out there. As an African American woman venturing into the business world, she knew she was an underdog. It doesn’t help that only 0.2% of venture capital deals are allocated to black women. Imagine entering a room full of male investors and you’re the only black girl in the room. When funding became out of the question, Etienne worked on making PantyProp thrive as a period underwear. She discovered during her research that 62% of women in the U.S. prefer using pads, especially African American and Asian communities. Etienne had the bright idea of creating underwear where you can insert a pad. She strongly believes that a lot of …show more content…
Her garments uses built-in technology that brings feminine care to the next level. PantyProp offers a wide range in active wear, swim wear, sleep wear, and underwear that makes the garment cling to your body. Her garments are made of organic cotton and free from chemical toxins. Her objective is to for her clients to feel good about the garments they are putting on their bodies. She came up with the idea of PantyProp because there weren’t any alternative available in the market for uncomfortable leaks. Etienne experienced discrimination from the VC firms when it comes to black entrepreneurs. When she tried to seek funding, she was told that the firms were not looking at investing in that space or they didn’t reply to her at all. The only thing she saw that was hindering her from getting a “yes” from the firms is her skin color. Eventually, she saw a lot of companies who launched their brands and those companies received funding from the VC firms who ignored them the first time