Eva Goicochea's Journey with Maude: A Revolution in Sexual Wellness

Eva Goicochea, the founder of Maude, has revolutionized the sexual wellness industry by creating products that are stylish, user-friendly, and inclusive. Her journey with Maude is a testament to her vision and determination to make a positive impact in this often-overlooked sector.

Early Beginnings

Eva Goicochea’s journey started long before Maude was even an idea. With a background in healthcare and branding, she had a unique perspective on the needs and gaps in the market. Her early career experiences gave her the insight and inspiration to create a brand that would challenge the norms and bring about much-needed change.

The Birth of Maude

In 2018, Eva founded Maude with the mission to simplify and elevate the sexual wellness experience. She wanted to create products that were not only functional but also aesthetically pleasing. Maude’s product line includes a range of essentials such as lubricants, condoms, and vibrators, all designed with a modern and minimalist approach.

Innovative Approach

What sets Maude apart from other brands is its innovative approach to sexual wellness. Eva’s vision was to create a brand that was inclusive and approachable. Maude’s products are gender-neutral and designed to be discreet, making them accessible to everyone. This inclusive approach has resonated with a wide audience, helping to break down barriers and reduce the stigma around sexual wellness.

Sustainability and Ethics

Eva Goicochea has also made sustainability a core value of Maude. The brand is committed to using body-safe materials and ensuring that their products are environmentally friendly. This commitment to sustainability extends to their packaging, which is designed to be as minimal and recyclable as possible.

Community and Education

Beyond just products, Eva has ensured that Maude is also a platform for education and community. The brand’s website offers a wealth of information on sexual health and wellness, helping to educate and empower their customers. Through blog posts, guides, and expert advice, Maude is making a significant impact on how people approach and understand sexual wellness.

Future Vision

Eva Goicochea’s journey with Maude is far from over. She continues to innovate and expand the brand, always with the goal of making sexual wellness more accessible and inclusive. With new products and initiatives in the pipeline, the future looks bright for Maude and its mission to transform the industry.

Navigating the “Vice” Venture Capital Landscape

One of the most significant hurdles Eva Goicochea faced during the early stages of Maude was the systemic resistance within the venture capital community. In the financial world, sexual wellness is often relegated to a “vice” category, alongside tobacco, firearms, and gambling. This classification frequently triggers “vice clauses” in limited partner agreements, which prohibit many venture funds from investing in the sector regardless of a brand’s merit or market potential. Goicochea’s journey involved navigating hundreds of pitches where the primary barrier wasn’t the business model—which showed strong recurring revenue and high customer lifetime value—but rather the inherent discomfort or contractual limitations of the investors themselves.

To overcome this, Goicochea focused on data-driven storytelling that repositioned sexual wellness as a fundamental pillar of health, akin to sleep or nutrition. She successfully raised over $10 million in venture funding, making her one of the few Latinx women to reach such a milestone. A pivotal moment in this journey was the appointment of actor Dakota Johnson as a co-creative director and investor. This partnership was not merely a celebrity endorsement; it was a strategic move to bring mainstream legitimacy to the brand. Johnson’s involvement helped bridge the gap between niche wellness and mass-market lifestyle, signaling to institutional investors that Maude had the potential to become a household name. This fundraising success paved the way for other startups in the space, proving that a sophisticated, design-forward approach could transcend the traditional stigmas of the “adult” industry.

Rigorous Product Development and FDA Compliance

While Maude is celebrated for its aesthetic appeal, the technical complexity behind its product development is a critical, yet often overlooked, aspect of its success. Unlike many lifestyle brands that can quickly iterate on apparel or home goods, Maude operates in a highly regulated environment. Condoms, for instance, are classified by the FDA as Class II medical devices. This means that every batch must undergo rigorous clinical testing, including air burst tests and water leak tests, to ensure safety and efficacy. Goicochea’s background in healthcare provided her with the discipline necessary to navigate these 510(k) clearance processes, ensuring that the brand’s minimalist packaging never compromised the clinical integrity of the product.

The development of Maude’s vibrators, such as the flagship ‘Vibe,’ also required a deep dive into industrial design and material science. The team spent months perfecting the shore hardness (the measure of a material’s resistance to indentation) of the medical-grade silicone to ensure the vibration was deep and resonant rather than buzzy or distracting. They also faced the challenge of engineering a device that was completely waterproof and easy to clean without visible seams or complex interfaces. This commitment to “quiet” technology—both in sound and visual presence—required a bespoke manufacturing approach that differed significantly from the mass-produced, neon-colored novelty items that had previously dominated the market. By treating sexual wellness tools with the same engineering rigor as high-end kitchen appliances or personal electronics, Goicochea elevated the consumer’s expectations for quality and safety.

Strategic Retail Partnerships and the Sephora Milestone

Maude’s transition from a direct-to-consumer (D2C) darling to a retail powerhouse was a calculated move designed to meet customers where they were already shopping for self-care. The most notable of these partnerships was with Sephora, which marked the first time a major beauty retailer dedicated shelf space to an “intimate wellness” category. This was a watershed moment for the industry. Goicochea understood that by placing Maude’s lubricants and devices next to high-end skincare and hair products, she was effectively recontextualizing the entire category. It transformed the purchase from a shameful or secretive errand into a standard part of a beauty and wellness routine.

The retail strategy also required a unique approach to merchandising and staff training. Maude worked closely with retail partners to develop educational modules for store associates, ensuring they felt comfortable and informed when discussing sexual health with customers. The packaging played a vital role here; because Maude’s boxes are discreet and elegant, they don’t require the “behind-the-counter” treatment that traditional condoms or lubricants often receive. This accessibility is a key driver of the brand’s retail growth, as it lowers the psychological barrier to entry for the average consumer. Today, Maude is available in luxury retailers like Saks Fifth Avenue and Nordstrom, as well as design-centric boutiques like MoMA Design Store, further cementing its status as a brand that lives at the intersection of health and high design.

Ad-Tech Hurdles and Creative Marketing Workarounds

Despite its mainstream success, Maude continues to face significant challenges in the digital advertising landscape. Major platforms like Meta (Facebook and Instagram) and Google have historically maintained strict, and often inconsistent, policies regarding “adult content.” These policies frequently result in the shadowbanning or outright rejection of ads for lubricants or vibrators, even when the imagery is completely non-explicit and focuses on the product bottle or device. This creates a difficult environment for growth, as the traditional D2C playbook—which relies heavily on paid social acquisition—is largely unavailable to brands in this sector.

Goicochea’s solution was to lean heavily into organic storytelling, SEO-driven educational content, and strategic partnerships. Maude’s digital magazine, ‘The Brave,’ serves as a cornerstone of this strategy. By producing high-quality long-form articles on topics ranging from the history of contraception to the psychology of intimacy, the brand builds trust and authority without relying on provocative imagery. Furthermore, Maude utilizes email marketing and SMS as primary channels for customer retention, building a community that values the brand’s voice and perspective. This “workaround” has ultimately made the brand more resilient, as it isn’t beholden to the fluctuating algorithms of big tech. Instead, Maude has built a genuine relationship with its audience based on education and shared values, which translates into higher brand loyalty and organic word-of-mouth growth.

The Anthropology of Intimacy: Design as a Tool for De-stigmatization

The design philosophy at Maude goes far beyond simple minimalism; it is rooted in a psychological understanding of how objects influence human behavior. Goicochea often references the idea that the visual language of the sexual wellness industry was historically designed by men, for men, or for a very specific, hyper-sexualized consumer. This resulted in products that felt either overly clinical (like a pharmacy) or neon and aggressive (like a bachelor party novelty). Maude’s design intervention was to use soft-touch textures, a muted and gender-neutral color palette, and ergonomic shapes that feel natural in the hand.

This aesthetic choice serves a functional purpose: it reduces the “threat response” or embarrassment often associated with these items. When a vibrator looks like a piece of modern sculpture or a lubricant bottle looks like a high-end serum, the user is more likely to leave it on their nightstand rather than hiding it in a drawer. This visibility is a form of activism in itself. By integrating these products into the home environment, Maude encourages a more open and healthy relationship with intimacy. The brand’s use of photography also reflects this; instead of using stock photos or hyper-sexualized models, Maude features diverse, real people in natural, everyday settings. This human-centric approach to design and branding helps to normalize the product category, making it feel like a natural extension of one’s lifestyle rather than a separate, taboo activity.

Operational Scaling and Supply Chain Integrity

As Maude expanded from a small startup to a global brand, Goicochea had to navigate the complexities of a global supply chain while maintaining the brand’s commitment to ethics and sustainability. Sourcing high-quality natural latex, for instance, involves ensuring that the rubber trees are harvested sustainably and that the workers in the manufacturing facilities are treated fairly. This is particularly challenging in an industry where many competitors prioritize low costs over transparency. Maude’s commitment to being “body-safe” also means that every ingredient in their lubricants—from organic aloe to natural extracts—must be traceable and free from parabens, glycerin, and synthetic fragrances.

Scaling also introduced logistical challenges related to international shipping and hazardous materials (HAZMAT) regulations. Vibrators contain lithium-ion batteries, and certain liquids are classified as flammable or restricted depending on the country. Goicochea and her operations team had to build a robust logistics framework that could handle these complexities while still offering the fast, discreet shipping that modern consumers expect. By investing in custom ERP (Enterprise Resource Planning) systems and partnering with specialized fulfillment centers, Maude has been able to maintain a high level of operational efficiency. This backend infrastructure is what allows the brand to scale into new markets like Canada and the UK without losing the “small-batch” quality and attention to detail that defined its early years.

Cultural Impact and the “New Essentials” Movement

Maude’s influence extends beyond the products it sells; it has helped spark a broader cultural conversation about what constitutes a “well-lived life.” Goicochea has positioned the brand as part of the “new essentials” movement—a shift in consumer behavior where people are seeking out high-quality, thoughtfully designed versions of everyday items. This movement prioritizes longevity, sustainability, and aesthetic harmony over disposable, low-quality goods. In the context of sexual wellness, this means moving away from the idea of these products as occasional “treats” or jokes, and instead seeing them as essential tools for self-care and relationship health.

FAQ

What inspired Eva Goicochea to start Maude?

Eva was inspired by her background in healthcare and branding, which gave her insight into the gaps in the sexual wellness market. She wanted to create a brand that was inclusive, aesthetically pleasing, and functional.

What makes Maude’s products unique?

Maude’s products are designed to be gender-neutral, discreet, and made from body-safe materials. The brand’s minimalist and modern approach sets it apart from others in the industry.

How does Maude approach sustainability?

Maude is committed to sustainability by using environmentally friendly materials and minimal, recyclable packaging. This commitment extends to all aspects of their product design and manufacturing processes.

What kind of educational resources does Maude offer?

Maude provides a range of educational resources on their website, including blog posts, guides, and expert advice on sexual health and wellness. These resources aim to educate and empower their customers.

What are Eva Goicochea’s future plans for Maude?

Eva plans to continue innovating and expanding Maude’s product line, always with the goal of making sexual wellness more accessible and inclusive. She aims to break down barriers and reduce the stigma around sexual wellness.