Jack Fertility lands £500k pre-seed round led by Fuel Ventures to launch home-to-lab test kits for male reproductive health

Jack Fertility, the pioneering men’s health company tackling stigma around male reproductive health, is set to launch its first product: a home-to-lab postal vasectomy test kit called Snip Check™.

The launch is backed by a pre-seed investment round that has attracted over £500,000 since last year, led by Fuel Ventures. This funding will accelerate the go-to-market of Snip Check™ and pave the way for the company’s flagship home-to-lab semen analysis kit, redefining how men can engage with their reproductive health.

Jack Fertility, the Oxford-based men’s healthtech startup founded by Nick Shipley and Lily Elsner, is on a mission to reframe sperm testing as a proactive part of men’s health and wellness. Fuel Ventures led the pre-seed round, which has attracted over £500,000 since last year, enabling the company to bring its innovative solutions to market.

The pre-seed round included angels from Microsoft, Alma Angels, and The Beam Network, marking an important step in Jack Fertility’s purpose-driven mission. They join existing investors Moonstone Venture Capital, FemTech Lab, Founders Factory’s Reckitt Benckiser Accelerator, and the Oxford Seed Fund.

The company's first product, Snip Check™, directly addresses a critical and often-overlooked need. Research shows that more than 40% of men miss vital follow-up appointments after a vasectomy, often due to embarrassment or the inconvenience of attending a clinic. Jack Fertility’s postal kit removes these barriers, enabling men to check the success or failure of their procedure discreetly and conveniently from home.

This investment not only accelerates the launch of Snip Check™ but also the development of Jack Fertility’s flagship offering: a first-of-its-kind, fully postable semen analysis kit. Built in Jack Fertility’s Oxford lab and powered by a proprietary sperm preservation solution, the test kit will deliver accurate, clinic-grade results straight to customers’ doors.

Male fertility is a significant yet often-overlooked factor in reproductive health. Despite common misconceptions, male factors are an equally common cause of infertility as female factors and are the number one reason couples undergo IVF treatment. Yet, men are far less likely to get tested. Jack Fertility is directly addressing this critical gap by providing a stigma-free way for men to conveniently and proactively take control of their reproductive health from home.

By using the Royal Mail postbox network and our proprietary tech, it’s like putting a male fertility clinic on every street across the UK. We're empowering men to take control of their reproductive health and get actionable insights about their fertility, all without ever setting foot in a clinic.

Lily Elsner, Co-founder

The stigma around male fertility has meant too many men avoid getting checked. That's why we've put the customer experience at the heart of our mission to make testing accessible. Our first product, a postal vasectomy kit, removes the traditional barriers and awkwardness of a clinic visit, giving men a simple and accessible way to engage with their reproductive health. We're not just offering a test; we're empowering men to proactively and conveniently take control of their sperm health.

Nick Shipley, Co-founder

At Fuel, we back ambitious founders who are addressing real, everyday problems with innovative, scalable solutions – and Jack Fertility is a prime example. Nick and Lily are tackling an often-overlooked issue that affects millions of men and couples across the UK. While they are just at the start of their journey, it’s already clear that the funding is going directly into solutions that can make a meaningful difference in people’s lives. Male reproductive health has long been hidden behind stigma and awkwardness, and Jack Fertility is changing that by making testing accessible, private and normalised. We’re proud to support Nick and Lily as they bring their first product to market and build a category-defining healthtech business.

Mark Pearson, Managing Partner at Fuel Ventures

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