In an exclusive interview with CanadianSME Small Business Magazine, Chelsea Jambo, Founder & CEO of OURbody, shares her journey from tech to entrepreneurship, challenging the status quo in women’s health and wellness. Chelsea discusses the unique hurdles she faced as a Black woman in the wellness space, her commitment to disrupting the hormonal health industry, and how OURbody is empowering women through transparency, education, and culturally inclusive products.
Interview By Kripa Anand
Chelsea Jambo is the Founder & CEO of OURbody, a disruptive women’s wellness brand redefining hormonal health with modern, ritual-led solutions. Based in Ontario, Canada, Chelsea has quickly emerged as a bold new voice in the wellness space, championing transparency, education, and empowerment for women at every stage of their hormonal journey.
With a background in Political Science and Public Administration, followed by an unexpected pivot into the tech industry, Chelsea’s path to entrepreneurship was anything but linear. She built her career inside the corporate world by her early twenties, leading strategic programs in the global tech sector where she developed a sharp understanding of community building, operational excellence, and the power of brand storytelling.
OURbody launched in October 2025, but the path to market is rarely linear. What have been the biggest hurdles or moments of doubt in your business journey so far, and how did you move through them?
The biggest hurdle in my journey so far was realizing the reality of running an e-commerce business, especially as a brand-new founder with no major platform or big marketing budget behind me. I launched OURbody in October 2025 with so much optimism, and then our first month came with zero sales. That moment shook me. I remember thinking, “Did I make a mistake? Is this something people actually want? Did I read the market wrong?” It was a hard reality check.
But moving through that doubt required patience and perspective. I had to remind myself that I’m not a celebrity founder or a huge influencer. I’m a small, bootstrapped business in Ottawa introducing a new wellness concept to the market. People need time to discover you, trust you, and understand what you offer. Growth isn’t instant, especially in e-commerce.
Instead of quitting, I grounded myself in my “why”: improving women’s hormonal wellness and creating products that truly help. Once I shifted from panic to persistence, sales slowly began to grow in November and December. That experience taught me that building a brand is a long-term game. Patience, consistency, and belief in your mission matter more than overnight results.
As a Black woman building a wellness brand in a space that hasn’t always centred women’s needs, what unique obstacles have you faced—whether in fundraising, credibility, or access to networks—and what has helped you stay committed to the vision?
As a Black woman building a wellness brand in a space that has historically overlooked women’s needs, two unique obstacles have stood out: fundraising and credibility. Despite the constant messaging about “supporting founders,” the reality is that most funding today is funneled toward AI and tech. Women’s health; especially hormonal health, is not seen as a priority, and there are very few grants or investor opportunities that fit what OURbody is creating. To stay committed, I’ve leaned heavily on my network of women entrepreneurs. Sharing openly about our funding challenges has led others to send me the few opportunities that do exist and remind me that the mission is needed and valued.
The second challenge has been credibility. Early on, people minimized OURbody as “just a tea company” or assumed I was blending products in my kitchen. In truth, we work with licensed suppliers and manufacturers, and tea is only the vessel, not the vision. OURbody is a women’s wellness brand focused on hormonal health, offering solutions many people are still learning to understand. Staying committed has meant consistently correcting narratives, standing firm in our purpose, and educating people on the innovation and intention behind our products. The mission: to improve women’s health, keeps me going.
February is Black History Month, a time that celebrates resistance, excellence, and legacy. What message or reflection would you like to share with Black entrepreneurs who are in the early, uncertain stages of building something of their own?
My message to early-stage Black entrepreneurs is simple: give yourself grace. The early chapters of entrepreneurship are filled with uncertainty; financial uncertainty, strategic uncertainty, personal uncertainty. It’s easy to feel lost, lonely, or convinced you’ve made a mistake. Self-doubt will show up often, and so will the urge to walk away.
When those moments come, return to one question: Do you truly believe in what you’re building? If the answer is yes. If you would still create what you’re creating even if it wasn’t a business, then you owe it to yourself to keep going.
Entrepreneurship is not linear. You will make mistakes. You will fumble. You will face challenges you never saw coming. But none of that means you’re failing, it means you’re learning. You are new to this, and it’s okay to be new. What matters most is that you continue to get back up, take the next step, and advocate for your vision even when others don’t fully understand it yet.
Grace gives you room to grow. Belief gives you the strength to continue. And consistency is what transforms uncertainty into momentum. Trust your mission, trust yourself, and keep moving forward.
Hormonal health is deeply personal and often stigmatized. Have you encountered pushback or misunderstanding—either about the problem you’re solving or who you’re solving it for—and how have you turned those challenges into education or advocacy?
Yes, there has definitely been misunderstanding, especially around why hormonal health matters and what OURbody actually does. Most of the pushback hasn’t come from women, but from people…often men, who don’t understand the realities of living in a female body. Society has normalized women’s discomfort for so long that many people assume hormones only relate to periods, or they dismiss the need for support altogether. Others question the business viability simply because they’ve never been taught how broad and disruptive hormonal imbalances can be.
These moments of misunderstanding have become opportunities for education. I’ve learned to pause and explain the full hormonal journey, from the monthly cycle to perimenopause and highlight the symptoms that affect half the world’s population. I also explain our product innovation in simple terms: our teas are not “just teas”; they are symptom-support blends designed to adapt to each woman’s unique experience within a hormonal phase. Just like multi-symptom cold medicine helps different people in different ways, our blends support multiple symptoms within each stage of hormonal change.
Turning pushback into advocacy is now at the core pillar of OURbody. Every conversation, interview, and platform we have becomes a chance to educate, destigmatize, and re-center women’s health to where it belongs.
Looking ahead, what advice would you give specifically to Black women founders who are trying to break into wellness or consumer products, and what support or systemic changes do you believe would make their path less lonely and more sustainable?
My first advice for Black women founders entering the wellness space is to start by asking one key question: Are you building a service-based wellness business or a product-based one? These paths are not the same, and each comes with its own reality. Service-based wellness businesses, like yoga, Pilates, or community wellness events, are often easier to break into because there’s already a strong demand for in-person connection, movement, and community experiences. You can test, refine, and grow without needing major upfront capital.
Product-based wellness businesses, however, require significant investment before you ever make a sale. You must spend thousands on manufacturing, packaging, testing, certifications, and inventory, all while hoping customers will buy. It’s a longer, more complex journey that requires research, niche clarity, and strong marketing strategy. Neither path is “better,” but understanding the difference protects you from unrealistic expectations.
To make the journey less lonely, my biggest advice is to invest in community early. Join entrepreneurship groups and surround yourself with women who understand the grind. A strong network, and ideally a mentor, can change everything, especially in the first year, which can be the hardest. Community becomes your toolbox, your sounding board, your emotional support, and often your answers.
Disclaimer:
The views and opinions expressed in this interview are those of the interviewee and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of CanadianSME Small Business Magazine. Our platform is dedicated to fostering dialogue and sharing insights that inspire and empower small and medium-sized businesses across Canada.
