This post is Part II of a three-part series by Carolyn Witte and Leslie Schrock co-published on Second Opinion and The XX Factor to help women’s health founders raise money in the rapidly growing but still nascent women’s health category. Our goal is to offer a practical, founder-first framework to help you decide if, when, and how to raise venture—and what to do if that’s not the best path for you.

ICYMI, Part I covers the foundational question: Is your business venture-backable? We break down what VCs look for, why “investor math” matters, and how to pressure-test your business model against those expectations.

Welcome to Part II of our women’s health capitalization series

If you read Part I and said, “Yes, my business is venture scale,” it’s time to plan your raise.

In an ideal world, every founder would answer these questions—when to raise, how much, and from whom—in sequential order. In practice, however, raising money is more circular than linear.

Fundraising is a dance, and the push-and-pull between founders and funders shifts dramatically depending on the market and macro dynamics at play. For example, right now, a tariff-induced downturn causes turmoil up and down the chain—from LPs to VCs to late-stage companies awaiting an IPO and early-stage founders, too.

Regardless of macroeconomic factors or whether you’re chasing capital or capital is chasing you, internal clarity is your greatest advantage. The more thoughtful you are about what you need and when you need it, the better positioned you’ll be to find the right investor-founder-business match. Remember, it’s a marriage!