Instant Alert: The woman behind 'female Viagra' sold her company for $1 billion — see how she spent the money

MANAGE SUBSCRIPTIONS   |   UNSUBSCRIBE   |   VIEW ONLINE   The woman behind 'female Viagra' sold her company for $1 billion — see how she spent the money by Melia Robinson on Feb 1, 2017, 1:14 PM Advertisement Cindy Whitehead, the serial entrepreneur who built the company behind the "female Viagra," has a new venture aimed at helping women avoid the pitfalls that nearly ended her career. In August 2015, a little pink pill designed to boost women's sex drives was approved by the Food and Drug Administration. The next day, Whitehead sold the company behind the drug to a pharma giant for $1 billion. That's when everything fell apart. The buyer, Valeant Pharmaceuticals, became embroiled in scandal for jacking up the prices on some of its drugs. It doubled the cost of Addyi, the libido pill, which some say is the reason it never found its footing in the market. Whitehead stepped down as CEO in 2015. In an interview with Business Insider, Whitehead said she's since turned her focus to helping female founders make breakthroughs of their own. The Pinkubator, which opens February 1, is a startup incubator based in Raleigh, North Carolina, where entrepreneurs will launch new products and companies under the guidance of Whitehead and handpicked mentors.  Take a look inside. SEE ALSO: The woman behind 'female Viagra' sold her company for $1 billion — that's when everything fell apart The Pinkubator is no ordinary startup accelerator. For starters, it was built with the money Whitehead made from selling her last startup, Sprout Pharmaceuticals, which was responsible for the "female Viagra." Whitehead hopes to leverage her own experience to help female founders find success. "Being in this position, the best way to pay it forward is to say 'I stepped on that mine. Step left,'" Whitehead told Business Insider in October. "You've been there. You've done that. And hopefully they're advantaged by your own experiences — successes and failures." Whitehead describes the Pinkcubator as a membership service for women-led or women-focused businesses, which means men can join if their startups are relevant to women's needs. Entrepreneurs can join for $500 a month, or $99 for access to mentorship, networking events, and special pricing on brand-building services, without the office space. See the rest of the story at Business Insider   Share the latest business news with your network:    Email sent to:   |   Manage your email preferences   |   Unsubscribe Terms of Service   |   Privacy Policy Business Insider. 150 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10011