MVP of a Smart, Data-Led Menstrual Cup

We partnered with Emm, a UK-based biotech startup, to develop the Minimum Viable Product (MVP) and clickable prototype for their revolutionary smart menstrual cup, turning a visionary concept into a data-driven healthcare product.

The company and product

Emm is a UK-based biotech startup founded in 2020 on a mission to revolutionize female health.

Their product is a smart menstrual cup with built-in biosensors. These analytical devices automatically record the user's blood loss, flow rate, and the length of their period and menstrual cycle.

After collecting this data, the biosensors connect to an application via Bluetooth that can be downloaded on the user's phone and presents them with their health information. This allows users to understand their baseline health, spot irregularities, and have data-backed conversations with medical professionals, enabling earlier intervention for potential health issues.

Scope and Highlights

$1M

Funding round

Native iOS application

Years of partnership

Discovery Workshops

MVP Development

clickable prototype

The Challenge

Emm needed a partner to help build the product's blueprint and create a tangible digital product that could prove the concept's viability to users and investors.

The application was supposed to be a women’s companion–serving as a safe and intuitive environment for users to discuss, read, and learn about their menstrual health.

The main obstacles were translating complex hardware interactions into a seamless user experience and defining a product for a market segment long overdue for technological innovation. We had to design an algorithm to adjust the cup's functionality based on the user's unique menstrual flow. At this stage, Emm also missed a tone of voice for the whole product line.

Key challenges

Building a safe and intuitive native mobile iOS application.

Setting up a product blueprint and general flow beyond current tech limitations.

Designing an algorithm to adjust the cup's functionality.

Building a safe and intuitive native mobile iOS application.

Setting up a product blueprint and general flow beyond current tech limitations.

Designing an algorithm to adjust the cup's functionality.

The Process

From the very beginning, the process was grounded in deep research and close collaboration with the hardware team to deliver the best possible user experience.

The journey started with in-depth discovery workshops and user journey mapping, carefully defining every interaction along the way.

We analyzed the behavior patterns of non-digital menstrual cup users to identify key pain points and areas for improvement, which directly informed the app's features and flow.

Later, we moved from strategy to execution by developing a clickable prototype and then a full Minimum Viable Product (MVP), allowing the Emm team to test their ideas, demonstrate functionality, and secure further investment.

This is how me made it happen:

Conducting deep user research.
Ensuring seamless hardware-software integration.
Building tangible proof of concept.

The Outcome

During our cooperation, we transformed an innovative idea into a functional and funded product. Emm received the MVP and a clickable prototype of a data-driven menstrual health system.

This allowed the company to successfully close a $1 million pre-seed funding round from Innovate UK and Google for Startups in December 2022 and partner with the University of Cambridge to develop biosensors.

The product now monitors flow volume, rate, cycle length, and regularity. Emm has advanced from concept to beta testing and is preparing for full market launch, with the potential to transform personal health and generate invaluable data for female health research.

The success of this project hinged on:

A research-first approach that prioritized understanding the end-user's needs and behaviors.
Deep integration between hardware and software teams, ensuring a cohesive and seamless final product.
An iterative process that moved from discovery and prototyping to a fully-fledged MVP, validating the concept at each stage.

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