From the pharmacy to the “pussy cream business”: How Vivien Karl runs her startup between sports and Insta stories

Vivien Karl uses social media to raise awareness about intimate issues, wants to break taboos surrounding intimate care, and describes her startup as a “pussy cream business.”

In addition to her job as a pharmacist and her doctorate, the 31-year-old developed a new formula for intimate cream and thus founded a successful business model.

In the pharmacy, customers repeatedly asked her about intimate creams. "That was the first time I ever really looked into the subject—what's actually in them? How is it packaged?" she explains.

What she discovered astonished her. Most women buy creams with questionable ingredients, often Vaseline-based, and the packaging was unsightly. So, working in the back office of her pharmacist, she began creating an intimate care product that she would want for her most sensitive body part—with almond oil, hyaluronic acid, and lactic acid.

This is how "Intimate Cream 01" was born. According to Karl, it is still the best-seller among the eight products offered online by the Dr. Vivien Karl brand. The range extends from SOS intimate care spray, hyaluronic acid- and lactic acid-based lubricants, to intimate and perineal oil. The intimate care products range in price from €24 to €43. New to the market: a rapid vaginal yeast infection test.

The feedback from testers of her first trials of the intimate cream was so positive that she decided to pursue an entrepreneurial career. Fast forward: Now, in 2025, the startup has a team of twelve with an office in Berlin-Mitte. "I'm still a licensed pharmacist, but I'm the full-time founder and managing director – together with my co-founder Julia," says Karl.

Karl's days start early: at six, before nine she has already exercised and planned LinkedIn posts – then the rest follows: meetings, product development , strategy work .

In the interview, Karl explains how she organizes her calendar between the Berlin startup world, Hyrox workouts, and trying to think about health as a whole, and why she considers the phrase “I don’t have time for XY” to be a myth.