With International Women’s Day around the corner, the female founder of the eco pregnancy test brand Hoopsy has won a £150,000 SEIS investment following a competitive pitch event.
Lara Solomon, who has launched and sold two successful businesses, created the brand following her own journey of trying to conceive a baby aged 45 and single via IVF and embryo donation.
Pitching at the The Atlantic Academy’s Pitch Event Series in London on the 21st February, Lara was awarded the top prize guaranteed by event partners SFC Capital.
She will use the funds to progress regulatory approvals for the second version of the pregnancy test and to hire a full time marketing team member.
Hoopsy makes pregnancy tests out of 99% paper. The tests have an hCG sensitivity of 25mIU/ml and are over 99% accurate from the day of an expected period. Clinical trials have taken place to prove the accuracy and laboratory tests to ensure the sensitivity levels of the tests. It’s also registered with the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
Lara said: “My goal with Hoopsy is to provide sustainable healthcare products that help women, their partners, and the planet. Knowing that every test we sell means one less plastic test thrown in the bin, is what makes me jump out of bed each morning.
“Achieving this investment will mean big things for us, namely so we can improve version one of the pregnancy test to make it 100% plastic free and more intuitive to use – the days of performing acrobatics in order to use a pregnancy test could be a thing of the past!
“We’re a cost conscious start-up and will make our investment go a long way to achieve further scientific credibility, retail listings and brand awareness to put us front of mind for women who are trying to conceive.
