Introducing Oliva: Proper mental healthcare for employees

Life comes at you fast. One year ago, I had just formed a founding team and hired the first therapists for what would become Oliva. Today, we’re absolutely ecstatic to announce not only $2.2 million pre-seed funding from the amazing team at Moonfire Ventures, but also that Oliva is now officially ready to provide outstanding online mental healthcare for organisations and employees across Europe.

You’ve probably read a lot of funding announcement posts like this—it’s not the first time I’ve written one, either. But on a personal level, this one feels extra special. Here’s why.

When I left my first company two years ago, I was in a very bad place. Years of terrible work-life balance combined with my failure to manage the pressure of leading a fast-growing startup turned me into a burned out, anxious mess. I’d never seriously considered my mental health much before, and I didn’t know where to start—all I knew was that I needed help.

After many months of struggle, I found a therapist who I truly clicked with, and started to rebuild my life around healthier routines and priorities. I realised that if your mental health isn’t on point, it limits you as a leader, a parent, a friend, a partner, and a professional. But it wasn’t easy. It took trying many different therapists and a long time doubting whether things would ever change. Oliva is the direct result of spending two years thinking hard about my mistakes, immersing myself in the world of mental healthcare, and making positive changes in my life.

During this time, I became convinced of two things:

1. Mental healthcare already works. There are countless therapies, techniques, and practices that are proven by decades of research to be effective. If they can save me, they can save many other people too.
2. Getting the right mental healthcare is a nightmare. 99% of people have no idea what type of care they need or where to get it from. The stigma attached to mental health makes the whole thing feel extra intimidating. The websites and technology are stuck in the past. And it’s not cheap.

In 2021, there’s simply no reason for this problem to exist. So we started Oliva—to help other people avoid taking the long, dark road I took to getting the help I needed.?

Originally, Oliva was for individuals. We wanted to create a service where people are matched to their ideal therapist and all the annoying stuff was taken care of—all they had to do was show up. And it worked. Based on a multi-stage matching process run by mental health professionals, 98% of our customers got the right therapist, first time. We found that people didn’t want a mental health marketplace, but an entire personalised online experience. This matching process is still a core part of Oliva today.

We pivoted to focus on organisations for two reasons. On one hand, therapy is expensive for individuals to pay for. On the other, businesses are facing an unprecedented mental health crisis. More than half of all sick days are now mental health related. While many companies invest in general perks or wellbeing benefits, this isn’t enough. People’s minds are a company’s most important asset, so investing in proper mental healthcare for employees is the logical next step. Managers also face unique challenges supporting the mental health of their teammates—they need their own tailored services.?

So in the end, it was a simple decision to pivot. Both for us, and for our lead investors, Moonfire. Founded by Mattias Ljungman (previously founder & partner at Atomico), Moonfire is a small, ultra-talented team without an ego in sight. We instantly clicked upon meeting them, and have consistently been impressed by their total conviction in Oliva’s mission.

This pre-seed funding round has allowed us to build a polished platform, service, and brand from the get-go. From day one, we will offer personalised therapy courses, instantly bookable drop-in sessions, and support tailored for managers—all within our own secure digital platform. With typical SaaS products, being a bit scrappy early on can pay off. But with the stigma and emotional weight attached to mental health, we feel it’s vital to invest more time and funds from an early stage to make sure we get this right.

On the horizon, we’ll look to expand the range of services Oliva offers, enhance the online experience so it works even better for organisations, employees, and mental health professionals—and maybe even make a version of Oliva for individuals again. For now, we’re so, so excited to begin helping organisations provide proper mental healthcare for their people.

Finally, I’d like to thank the Oliva founding team and everyone who has contributed to making this happen. Without your hard work, passion, and thoughtfulness, we would never have made it this far.

If your company is ready to get serious about employee mental health, check out the new website here, or request an Oliva demo here.

Muchas gracias,

Javi