Meet Natalie Waltz | Founder of Tabu

We had the good fortune of connecting with Natalie Waltz and we’ve shared our conversation below.

Hi Natalie, what principle do you value most?
I had a boss once who would always talk about the importance of staying curious. That’s stuck with me over the years. From personal and professional relationships to product and brand builds – staying curious helps you create deeper connections, forces you to always think critically, and ultimately never stop learning.

I try to live by this principle and I look for it in the people around me.

Alright, so for those in our community who might not be familiar with your business, can you tell us more?
Tabu is a new kind of sexual wellness company – for bodies that change. With GYN and PT approved products and curated resources, we put health before pleasure to make sexual wellness feel as natural as our skin and exercise routines.

Now, I’m not a doctor or a sex therapist – the word “masturbate” still feels funny coming out of my mouth. But when I learned that up to 90% of women experience pain or discomfort during sex leading nearly 50% of women to give up on their sex lives altogether in their fifties – I was floored. I quickly learned that so many women around me were hurting; losing this important part of themselves and their relationships and not knowing what to do or how to talk about it. So I turned to doctors. I was no expert, but I knew that the physical and emotional benefits of sex wouldn’t expire once we could no longer procreate and I wanted answers. What I found out was quite surprising. Leading GYNs and physical therapists were recommending peri- to post-menopausal women go out and buy a vibrator, lubricant, and commit to a sexual wellness routine. These “tools” help strengthen your vaginal muscles, improve natural lubrication, increase libido, and provide a host of physical and emotional benefits. Essentially addressing the very symptoms that are keeping women from sex in the first place.

So I found myself leaving my dream job to start Tabu. It became clear to me that this problem was due to a lack of education mixed with the discomfort that comes with talking about sex. I’ve spent my whole career telling stories and building brands in difficult and poorly understood industries and I’m all too familiar with how “taboo” sex can be (raised by a Muslim Middle Eastern mama, it’s simply not on the table). Our job at Tabu is to acknowledge that. And to reframe it. To help people understand how sex is connected to our physical and emotional health and give them the confidence and support to embrace it as part of a healthy lifestyle.

I know the shift isn’t going to happen over night, but I’m so encouraged by our momentum so far. The most rewarding part of my day is hearing from our members – it’s clear that we’re not selling a “toy”. We’re helping someone rediscover her body again after 10 years. Or helping a husband support his wife who just beat cancer and has limited options when it comes to treatments for symptoms like vaginal atrophy or dryness. Or helping create a new favorite morning ritual between a married couple who had never considered buying something “like this”.

It’s the last place I expected my career to take me, but it feels like the most important work I’ve ever done.

Let’s say your best friend was visiting the area and you wanted to show them the best time ever. Where would you take them? Give us a little itinerary – say it was a week long trip, where would you eat, drink, visit, hang out, etc.
A proud Gaucho, I just recently made the move back to Santa Barbara. Paradise has a lot to offer, but it would be full of beach days at Butterfly, hikes to Inspiration Point and Cathedral Peak, and plenty of time in the Funk Zone.

Shoutout is all about shouting out others who you feel deserve additional recognition and exposure. Who would you like to shoutout?
Kyle Fretwell – my boyfriend turned fiancé a week after I launched Tabu. With just $70k in funding from friends and family to get the company off the ground (brand, products, etc), Kyle spent nights and weekends building the website – making sure our first impression was one we could be proud of.

Website: https://www.heytabu.com/

Instagram: @heytabu

Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/natalie-waltz/