RB, the leading consumer health and hygiene company behind brands such as Lysol, Durex, Nurofen, Strepsils, Gaviscon, Mucinex, Scholl, and Clearasil, has launched a startup programme on crowdfunding platform Indiegogo. The “Healthier Tomorrow Challenge” invites entrepreneurs with innovative health and well-being solutions to enter for the chance to win mentorship, product development support, and access to global supply chains with an RB project partner.
“We’re always on the lookout for innovators who we can partner with to discover new solutions that will enable our consumers to lead healthier lives and happier homes,” said Dave Challis, RB’s Head of Innovation. “This program enables us to connect with passionate thinkers around the world that, similar to us, are willing to disrupt the health and wellness space to make a real difference in people’s lives.”
This opportunity to potentially tap into RB’s industry expertise, business connections and mentorship is available exclusively to Indiegogo campaigners whose innovations which fulfil the RB criteria and specifically fit within the following focus categories:
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Drug-free respiratory innovations to help detect, relieve and prevent flu symptoms— potentially reducing costly trips to the doctor – such as diagnostics, air monitors, purifiers, and wearables.
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Drug-free pain relievers such as powered and mechanical devices that can help to soothe pain and don’t require a prescription.
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Baby monitoring tools that help keep tabs on babies’ vital signs, hydration status, temperature, and much more.
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Vitamins, minerals and supplements (VMS) analyzers that provide people with more personalized ways to improve their own health and wellbeing. These products could include wearables, sensors, or machine-learning apps to deliver suggestions tailored to their users.
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Sexual wellbeing solutions that invigorate the intimate experience, such as VR sex technology, long-distance sex toys, and digital sex technologies.
Those with a prototype or proof of principle for a game-changing product in the connected health and wellness space that do not fit in the above categories are also invited to submit their ideas.
Interested entrepreneurs worldwide must submit their projects for consideration by January 17, 2017. The submissions will be reviewed in January, semi-finalists will be interviewed through early February, and up to five finalists will be selected to pitch their ideas to RB leaders at the company’s United Kingdom headquarters March. The finalists will be guided by an RB project partner and will receive mentoring from senior RB leaders, in addition to receiving industry-leading product development support and access to global supply chains.
“We’re very excited for this collaboration with RB as it strengthens our commitment to helping entrepreneurs through every step of their journey,” said Indiegogo Co-Founder Slava Rubin. “We’ve seen an incredible amount of growth among health and well-being projects on Indiegogo during the last few years. This program gives entrepreneurs a unique opportunity to be noticed by the RB innovation team and to work with them to bring their innovations to market faster.”
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Published Nov 18, 2016 3pm EST / 12pm PST / 8pm GMT / 9pm CET