We continue our Leaders for Better series with Aoife Matthews, Co-Founder of SISTERLY, an Irish B Corp on a mission to support female health and raise awareness of female health issues through science-backed, values-led products.
Aoife founded SISTERLY alongside co-founders Jenny and Louise, bringing together backgrounds in investment banking and product development to build something they felt was genuinely missing – a brand built on transparency, integrity, and honesty that makes no compromises when it comes to women’s health. Five years in the making, SISTERLY is proof that purpose and commercial ambition can exist in harmony, not conflict.
In this conversation, Aoife talks about what resilience really means when you’re building something new, why leadership chose her rather than the other way around, how B Corp certification aligns with a business built on values from day one, and why the metric she cares most about isn’t the balance sheet.
Tell us about the object you brought that you feel represents your leadership.
I brought my SISTERLY sachet, which we are very proud of as a brand. SISTERLY is all about supporting female health and raising awareness of female health issues. But the most important thing for us when we set up the brand was the brand’s values – transparency, integrity, and honesty. We believe that if you’re going to make something for women like us, for our mothers, for our sisters, it has to be the best, and no corners cut. I think that’s really how my two co-founders, Jenny and Louise, and I like to run the business; to lead with total integrity, honesty and transparency. And that, to us, is really, really important.
What would you consider some important traits of a successful leader?
The first one is, ultimately, having a vision, which is really the kick-starting point. Having a vision, but also being able to communicate that vision, to bring the team along. At SISTERLY, we have a big mission to help female health. And bringing along the team members – bringing people on board, even when we’re hiring – to make sure people can buy into the vision, know where we’re heading, and know what the goal is. I think that’s so important as a leader. Not all leaders are good at communication; they have great vision but they can’t communicate it.
Finally, resilience is key. Resilience is what helps you through the wall at times. When you’re starting a business, trying to break boundaries, do something new, there are a lot of ups and downs. Being able to have that grit to see it through and know every up is going to have a down, and hopefully then a bigger up after that. If you have your vision and you have the right team, it will be worthwhile. So that resilience piece is really key.
Did you choose leadership, or did leadership choose you?
I think it chose me! I always worked for corporates, and then there came a time in my life when I realised that there was something else there, something I was so passionate about. And when Jenny, Louise, and I realised there was such a gap in knowledge about women’s health and a lack of products that really support women, we felt driven to do something about it. So, we set up SISTERLY. We couldn’t do it on our own, so we built out the team, and then before you know it, you’re in a leadership position.
We have been in the market for two and a half years, with three years of development with a team of experts beforehand. It has been a phenomenal journey, and we have learned a lot. But having that passion from the very start, and having a team now- a phenomenal small team with a very focused vision- and leading that team, is a complete honour. Being a B Corp just tops it all for me.
What leadership traits have you found hardest to hire for?
It is really hard to find talent who share the same drive and values we have in the business.
But it’s hard; you see the CV and the person is perfect on paper. But being able to then bring them into a team – a small team, a startup team, which is very flexible, very agile – and the day changes; every hour something changes. For that new person to be adaptable and driven to work within the team, I think that’s really hard.
I find that people who have been in a startup environment before really helps, because they are more familiar with how it works. You also just need to spend time with them to see that they can deliver the vision and lead the team as you would hope.
How have you built your team at SISTERLY?
The first people that we hired were two women who had kids. They had their corporate careers, had kids, but then wanted to go back to work. They really believed in what we are doing because they’re in the same boat – they see the gap in female healthcare themselves. They really bought into the business’s vision and mission.
On the other hand, we have recently brought in some younger women. They are really into women’s health, women’s sports, women doing more, raising women’s rights, and equality for women. So no matter what stage of life these people are at, when we meet them, we can see that passion, and they’re really driven by that, and it all ties into what we’re doing at SISTERLY.
What mistakes do you think companies make when hiring at leadership level?
They hire based on CVs rather than the culture. Particularly as a
Leaders really need to be able to buy into that. And it’s not just words; people can say things, but it’s harder to know they will actually deliver on that and really buy into all the B Corp quality standards and commitment. Until they’re in the role, you don’t always know. I think hiring slow, getting to know the leader, and actually allowing them to spend time with the team as well – to see the interaction and whether they fit in with the culture – is really important.
Are there any leaders who inspire you, and why?
There are so many, but I think I have to say Anne O’Leary, Head of Meta in Ireland. She is a phenomenal leader who, particularly at Meta has been able to really lead the team with empathy. She’s a big collaborator, bringing people on board along the journey, and she has great emotional intelligence. She is also a real supporter of women, particularly women in STEM. She has been a massive supporter of SISTERLY as well; she’s taking our sachet every day! Women like that, who are obviously super, super busy but take the time out to support other women coming up the ladder behind them, I think hats off to her.
When you’re having a challenging day, what’s the first thing you do, and who’s the first person that you call?
There are lots of ups and downs, and when it gets really tough, we always come back to reading customer reviews. We get phenomenal reviews from women we don’t know from all over the world, saying we changed their lives, made them feel healthier and happier, helped their hair grow back, and gave them more energy. When you see these reviews, you just think, no matter what has just happened, we’re doing something good here, and we’re helping other women.
When things go wrong, I call Jenny and Louise. I’m so lucky to have two phenomenal co-founders. And I must say hats off to anyone who runs a business on their own; I have two fantastic people by my side. So, if there are any issues at all, pick up the phone to them. We have learned so much from each other, and I’m very, very lucky.
What’s the best piece of leadership advice you’ve ever gotten? And then on the flip side, the worst?
The one piece of advice that we’ve heard repeatedly and think is really good is to hire people who are better than you. And it’s so true, because we can’t know everything; we don’t know everything, and we need to hire people who have the expertise in certain areas who can really deliver. You can hand it over to them knowing they can do a better job. So, I think that’s true for any business.
That takes me back to when I was in investment banking, where it’s a bit more cutthroat. You could have someone working beside you one day, and they’d be gone the next. I think you have to consider the broader picture, which is what B Corp really means to us.
You recently cut prices after reaching economies of scale, rather than keeping the profit. Tell us about that?
We made savings, and we thought, well, we’re growing because more women are hearing about us, coming to SISTERLY, and spreading the word. And we felt it was the right thing to do. Our community is so important to us. The brand is our supplements, but it’s much, much bigger than that: our SISTERLY events and our work to bring women together.
Community is such a buzzword these days. With SISTERLY, you have managed to create a real, genuine community that feels connected. How have you done that so successfully?
I think it’s just reaching out to women. After we launched, we did our first SISTERLY swim in November, and we thought “who the hell is going to come along?!” And all these women turned up. I think they just felt a lovely vibe, a lovely feeling; people were chatting to one another, making friends. Everyone getting into the sea together was such a leveller. The community kind of grew from there and spread.
We reach out and say “come along, bring a friend, there’s an event for everyone”. We love doing sea swims, and we’re going to do sunrise walks now. We also do sporting events; we had a 10-mile run with Sonia O’Sullivan, who’s a great ambassador for us. We do yoga events and cycling events, breathwork; always a bit of movement, a bit of action, and then a little bit of brunch or lunch and chats. People leave with such a feel-good factor that they tell their friends and bring others next time. Our SISTERLY community has really grown organically, and I absolutely love it.
How does being a B Corp certified business change the decisions you make day to day?
I am so happy we became a B Corp. It was the best day for me; it’s always been a mission of mine and my target. We were always focused on sustainable packaging from the get-go, ensuring it was environmentally friendly. Now, we are much more focused on the governance and society side as well, which is something I’ve seen as very important in B Corp; it’s about more than just the environment. B Corp has become so embedded in the business.
While we always considered many of these elements, having the actual certification brings accountability. It has been fantastic to get the rest of the team on board.
So now we have B Corp certification; we are driven by that, and it’s holding us accountable, which I think is phenomenal. Particularly as the business grows and we have the core values embedded. I think it’s a great place to be for the future.
What is your vision for the future of business?
As a business that has become a B Corp and witnessed B Corp expand more and more, particularly with Irish companies becoming B Corp certified – it’s just phenomenal. I come from an investment banking background, which was very much bottom-line, and you fend for yourself; it’s dog-eat-dog.
Starting SISTERLY and becoming a B Corp has been a real shift. It’s more about actual benefit for all. This ethos is becoming more and more prominent in businesses, and particularly in the female health space. More corporates are bringing in time off for menopause and female health issues. We talk to corporates; they might have a wellness plan and are offering supplements like SISTERLY, as well as other female health products to support their workforce. Leaders are beginning to think more about employees’ health, not just about deliverables, the pay package, and the bottom line.
I think ultimately that drives the bottom line, because when you have happier, healthier staff and customers, that all leads to more profit for the business, bigger revenue, and a better bottom line. It’s a win-win. Purpose and profit together.
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