For Éva Goicochea, sex has always been a natural part of life. “When I was 5, my mom talked about the birds and the bees, so I had this very fact-based background from a young age,” she tells Her Campus in an exclusive interview. It wasn’t until she got to high school that Goicochea realized sex awareness and education was seen as taboo. “I was like, ‘This is so strange!’” she says.
This sentiment stayed in the back of her mind for years, as she moved to New York to study marketing at the Fashion Institute of Technology, then became a legislative aide in California, then spent a decade working in ecommerce and brand strategy. When the time was right, she decided to revisit the topic of sexual health and education — this time, with years of business experience under her belt. “After working in startups and for product companies, I found my way back to health,” Goicochea says.
In 2018, Goicochea launched Maude, a sexual wellness brand that creates inclusive intimacy products such as vibrators, lube, condoms, supplements, body care items, and more. She launched the company with the goals of creating safe and high quality intimacy items, destigmatizing conversations about sex, and making sexual wellness more accessible to all. “I really wanted to create a brand that felt inclusive of gender and age,” she says. “Even at that time, there were other startups, and they were all amazing, but a lot of them only focused on one gender. I thought, if we were really going to change the conversation, we needed to make sure that we were inclusive.”
In its six years of being in business (and counting!), Maude has grown exponentially, getting featured in publications such as Vogue and Forbes, bringing on A-list celeb Dakota Johnson as an investor and co-creative director, having an exhibit at the Museum of Sex, and becoming the first sexual wellness and intimidate care brand to be sold in Sephora stores. On a personal level, Goicochea has become a leading voice in the sexual wellness world, and is one of only 10 Latina women who have raised over $10 million in consumer funds.
Goicochea’s Latina identity plays into her dedication to making sexual wellness inclusive and accessible. “I am Latina; my mom’s family is from Mexico and my dad’s family is from New Mexico,” she says. “Both of my parents weren’t religious and both of them were open-minded.” But she knows this isn’t always the case in Latinx families, and she’s dedicated to addressing the varied needs and interests of various Latinx communities. “We’re not a monolith; there are hundreds and hundreds of millions of us Latinos around the world. So, it’s not one way of thinking, but [recognizing the] diversity of thought and experience, and building a company that can speak to that.”
As Maude continues to grow as a brand, Goicochea hopes the company isn’t just seen as fancy vibrators, but also as a force in showing sex in a positive light. “Through products and design and inclusivity and language, we can make a cultural difference, and that’s what Maude is about. It’s not about pretty products. It’s about creating cultural change for generations.”
And speaking of generations, Goicochea has some advice for college women who might be trying to figure out their sexuality during this pivotal time in their lives: “There is no timeline,” she says. “You might not have the best sex of your life until you’re in your 50s. You might not find the love of your life, and you might not know what you want yet. You might not know your sexuality yet, and it’s OK to experiment. You just have to make sure you feel comfortable.”