The Spotlight
Dr. Donna Gasparro & Candice Raic
Co-founders
Blending deep medical expertise with sharp business acumen, sisters Dr. Donna Gasparro and Candice Raic are redefining the standard of care for women in Canada. They are the co-founders of Femme Women’s Wellness, Medical & Cosmetics Clinic, a holistic sanctuary that challenges traditional healthcare silos by integrating medical, wellness, and cosmetic services under one roof. By combining Dr. Gasparro’s patient-first medical philosophy with Candice’s strategic operational leadership, they are actively building a community where women feel heard, supported, and empowered at every stage of life.
About Femme Women’s Wellness, Medical & Cosmetics Clinic
Founded by sisters, Dr. Donna Gasparro and Candice Raic, Femme Women’s Wellness, Medical & Cosmetics Clinic, is an integrative healthcare clinic catering to women in Toronto that curates a personalized medical and holistic healthcare plan to each patient’s unique health journey. With Candice’s business acumen and passion for empowering the women around her, coupled with Dr.Gasparro’s deeply compassionate, holistic approach to patient care and commitment to clinical excellence, Femme has been thoughtfully designed for women and is operated by an all-female team.
With three divisions — Medical, Wellness and Cosmetic — a woman’s healthcare journey is fully optimized with practitioners in all three divisions collaborating to enhance each patient’s experience and well-being. Among Femme’s many defining features, the clinic’s fully integrated medical healthcare membership holds a special place in the hearts of so many women. The medical team provides a comfortable environment for patients to discuss concerns, while also working with the other practitioners in the office to help chart the best course for each woman’s healthcare journey, whether it involves the clinic’s Naturopathic Doctor, Physiotherapists, Pelvic Floor Physiotherapists, Chiropractors, Psychotherapists or Massage Therapists. Regardless of the nature of the appointment or treatment, the team of Nurse Practitioners, Physicians and Wellness Practitioners are committed to providing exceptional, holistic and personalized healthcare. The clinic also provides a variety of Cosmetic and Aesthetic treatments such as personalized facials and peels, neuromodulators, fillers, laser hair removal and microneedling to name a few. Giving women convenient access to all of their medical, wellness and cosmetic needs in one beautiful space with a team they are familiar and comfortable with.
While Femme’s membership is what provides true holistic care for women, membership is not required to access the services. Women, irrespective of membership status, are welcome to utilize the clinic’s services.
Connect on LinkedIn: Dr. Donna Gasparro | Candice Raic
Company Snapshot
Problem Solved: Quality, integrated female-focused medical, wellness, and cosmetic care. End the fragmented "doctor yourself" navigation of life phases.
Unique Solution: Femme offers a beautiful, integrated healthcare clinic experience. See your medical and wellness team (MD, NP, ND, PT, etc.) - all aligned on your personalized care plan for your best self.
Market Opportunity: Toronto's first holistic, female-focused medical, wellness, and cosmetic clinic. Created by women, for women - we offer personalized healthcare that is thoughtfully tailored to each woman’s experience.
Vision & Impact: To empower women through health. We recognize their complex, distinct needs and provide an integrated, judgment-free healthcare team that treats every patient like family.
The Spotlight: A Conversation with Dr. Donna Gasparro & Candice Raic
Interviewed by Sherry Shannon-Vanstone, Co-founder, Women Funding Women Inc. (WFW).
Published December 7, 2025
Sherry: We’re excited to welcome Dr. Donna Gasparro and Candice Raic, sisters and co-founders of Femme Women’s Wellness, Medical & Cosmetics Clinic - our featured founders for The Spotlight, presented by Women Funding Women in partnership with the Scotiabank Women’s Initiative (SWI™). Thank you both for speaking with me today. Let’s start with the big question: what inspired you to work together and create Femme?
Dr. Gasparro: I knew from my earliest memories that I wanted to be a physician - it’s always been my purpose. Candice, on the other hand, is gifted in so many areas - business, science, animals - you name it. Because of our age gap, I never wanted to push her to join me; she could’ve chosen anything.
One Mother’s Day, we were talking about my next steps as a doctor. I loved my cosmetic work, but I also felt called to take care of the women waiting hours to see me as a female physician at the walk-in clinic. I told Candice, “I can’t leave my female patients.”
And she simply said, “Then why don’t you just take care of women? I’ll do it with you.” That was the spark. We asked ourselves: If we could build the ideal healthcare experience for women at every stage of life, what would it look like? That’s where Femme began.
Candice: Once we committed, everything flowed naturally. Being sisters helped - there was total openness about our experiences as women and how those experiences could have been better. We did our research, built our business plan, found a property, and within eight weeks Femme was becoming a reality.
Dr. Gasparro: And honestly, working with Candice is a gift. She’s brilliant in areas I’m not - especially business. I can say, “Here’s an idea,” and she’ll instantly know how to make it better. It lets me focus on keeping our medical care top-notch, while she runs the business with so much competence and heart.
Candice: I always joke that we’re like a Venn diagram - our expertise is different, but the overlap is exactly enough.
Sherry: I love that. When did you officially open?
Candice: We just celebrated our two-year anniversary a couple of weeks ago!
Sherry: Congratulations!
Candice: Thank you!
Surprises in Year One & Two
Sherry: Looking back over the past two years, what surprised you most?
Candice: Healthcare in Canada is very siloed. We wanted to change how women think about caring for themselves - by integrating medical, wellness, and cosmetic care in one beautiful, supportive space. It’s really a shift in mindset - your health isn’t just one thing. When medical care connects with wellness, lifestyle, and confidence, you can really address the person as a whole and provide solutions that actually help them to feel their best.
Dr. Gasparro: Personally, I didn’t expect how much administrative work comes with wanting to offer every service a woman may need. For example, we recognized early the need for pelvic floor physiotherapy but then later recognized that we may need pessaries. That became this huge project - certifications, sourcing, inventory, logistics. I’ve always focused entirely on patient care, so learning the “behind the scenes” of delivering it was a surprise.
Candice: For me, it was accepting that perfection isn’t always possible. I’ve had to embrace the 80/20 rule: if we’re 80% prepared, we get going with an idea or project. As long as we have a pretty good idea of what the other 20% looks like, you figure that out along the way. That’s hard for perfectionists!
Dr. Gasparro: But that thoroughness is also what ensures we deliver the kind of care we’d want for our mothers, daughters, and friends- which is really why we opened Femme to provide thoughtful and quality care we would want for our family and friends.
Rewards of the Journey
Sherry: What have been the most rewarding moments?
Dr. Gasparro: Working with my sister every day - it’s the best part. And witnessing our vision come to life. Women tell us, often with tears in their eyes, “I’ve never felt so heard.” That’s our standard. We’re experts, but we treat our patients like family.
I’ve also made the conscious choice of not using AI scribes in appointments. Being in the room with a patient is sacred. Women share deeply personal parts of their lives with me. My job is to listen, to synthesize everything - science, experience, and the art of medicine - to help them feel better. There’s no greater reward.
The Next Two Years
Sherry: So, what’s next?
Dr. Gasparro: My first answer is always something humorous - I want to leave my sister more ridiculous notes on her desk. But truly, we’re seeing exponential growth as women share their experiences with friends, and I’m excited to keep building that community.
Candice: And partnerships. We already collaborate with women-owned businesses - spotlighting them in our newsletter, hosting exclusive events, sharing opportunities with each other’s client bases. Over the next couple of years, we want to expand that even more. The basis of everything we do is around empowering women and there’s so much room to support each other- we want to continue that.
The Money Conversation
Sherry: Let’s talk about money - my favourite topic. How did you finance Femme?
Candice: With any fundraising, the key is choosing the right partners. They have to share your values and understand your industry, because your needs at startup aren’t the same as your needs in year two or year six.
And people often forget that debt can be a smart part of your capital strategy. A line of credit is essential in those early days when cash flow is unpredictable. You don’t have to jump straight to selling equity. You can be creative with finance - convertible notes, SAFE agreements, hybrids - there are lots of options depending on your stage.
Dr. Gasparro: This is exactly why I work with Candice - she just gets the business side so well.
Sherry: You both have more maturity around partnerships than many early-stage founders.
Candice: Finding the right partner can make or break a new company. If you choose wrong, you lack resources, guidance, and alignment. If you choose right, you set yourself up for success.
Sherry: Do you currently have outside shareholders?
Candice: No, not yet. As we grow and consider expansion, that could change. In the next 6 to 12 months, we’ll know whether it’s time to scale to another location or complementary business and what that may look like from a financing perspective.
Competition & Differentiation
Sherry: Who do you consider competitors and what is your main differentiator?
Candice: When we opened, no one was doing what we were doing - an all-female team serving female patients with integrated medical, wellness, and cosmetic care. Only recently have larger executive health providers started creating women-focused divisions, but it’s still a different model.
Dr. Gasparro: Our differentiator is the full experience. It’s warm, calming, and deeply personal. Everything from the pink marble in our beautiful lounge area to the way we greet patients is designed to make women feel cared for. You can’t replicate that with branding alone; it’s cultural. It’s emotional. And once women experience it, they tell everyone they know.
Long-Term Vision
Sherry: So, let’s look further ahead. What’s the big vision? How do you scale?
Candice: I’ve always imagined multiple Femme locations across Canada, maybe even the U.S. We’re still working through the details and only beginning to explore expansion - potentially a franchise model. But whatever form growth takes, it comes down to maintaining brand integrity and having the right team - experts on the business, medical, and administrative sides who share our values. It’s not about cloning ourselves; it’s about building a team we trust because of their expertise and passion. Our job as owners is not to know everything. Our job as owners is to build a team that can help us build the business and continue to create a wonderful experience for women.
Sherry: I love that, and I want to repeat it: “Our job as owners is not to know everything. Our job as owners is to build a team that can help us build the business.”
Dr. Gasparro: From a medical and logistical standpoint, expansion means understanding the regulations in each region. Ontario isn’t BC, and neither operates like New York or Florida. I’m licensed in both the U.S. and Canada, and when we consider new locations, we must ensure proper licensing and a clear understanding of local medical requirements - even when partnering with on-site physicians and wellness practitioners.
Candice: And that ties back to protecting our brand integrity as we grow which is of utmost importance to us.
Advice to other Female Founders
Sherry: What advice would you give to a female entrepreneur when she is getting ready to start a business? Or just in the ideation phase?
Candice: A big one is the 80 - 20 rule as we discussed earlier. Don’t let perfection kill something with real potential. Work hard to have 80% ironed out and ready, know roughly what the other 20% looks like, and go. Trust yourself and your vision and sometimes that means launching before the perfectionist in you is fully ready.
And don’t underestimate simple conversations with other founders or people that you find interesting. A coffee chat can turn into a friendship or even a major partnership. Sometimes it’s just a message on LinkedIn or a call to a friend of a friend. Put yourself out there - networking is huge.
Dr. Gasparro: And prioritize quality. Stay curious about what’s happening in your field so you can offer the best possible service. It’s not just work - it’s part of being genuinely invested in what you do.
Candice: Also, be ready for people not to understand what you’re doing. As entrepreneurs we’re reimagining things; creating what didn’t exist before. So don’t expect everyone to “get it.” Their uncertainty shouldn’t shake your confidence. Your job is to see possibilities others can’t yet see.
Sherry: I’ve had people say, “No one’s ever done it this way. Why are you?” And I respond, “That’s exactly why!” Reimagining is part of the job.
Wrap Up
Candice: This has been such a pleasure - thank you for the opportunity to share a bit of our journey.
Sherry: Thank you Dr. Gasparro and Candice for having this conversation with me. I know that our readers of The Spotlight will enjoy hearing about your journey with Femme and, hopefully, reach out to you directly.
Key Learnings & Advice from Dr. Donna Gasparro & Candice Raic
On the true role of a founder
"An owner’s job isn’t to know everything; it is to build a team that can build the business. Successful scaling requires trusting experts who share your passion rather than trying to clone yourself."
On differentiation through emotional connection
"You cannot replicate culture with branding alone. True differentiation happens when you create an environment where clients feel deeply heard and cared for - that emotional connection is what turns customers into community."
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