After winning the University of Chicago's College New Venture Challenge, Fillow is getting ready to launch its signature product, which aims to change the menstrual cup market with a period disc that comes with an easy-to-use applicator.
Born in Chicago, the UChicago spinout has already made a name for itself in Chicago's startup scene. Fillow's was the first all-female team to win UChicago's venture competition and was awarded $75,000, which one of its founders called the biggest investment size "that was and still ever has been" awarded in the competition.
Fillow was also one of 15 startups to receive funding from Chicago venture capital firm LongJump in 2022. Every company in LongJump's portfolio is led by either a woman or a minority founder and received a check size of around $100,000.
"Since then we've just been working on the product, perfecting the design and going through numerous design iterations to land on our current product, which we describe as a perfect mashup between tampons and cups," Fillow co-founder Camryn Ross told Chicago Inno. "We realized that current products on the market are based on the designs that are nearly a century old with close to no iteration made on the product itself."
Co-founder Phoebe Choi added that one unique thing about the startup is that it started as a group of friends.
"After quarantine, our long-awaited reunion got cut short because one of our founders had a period leak" and they decided it was time to find a better solution, she said.
To date, the Chicago startup has raised just under $700,000 and plans to go after another round soon.
Named to Chicago Inno's 2021 25 Under 25 list, which features 25 rising Chicago tech leaders age 25 and younger, Fillow's founders Choi, Ross, Helena Kim and Mary Woo have continued to tap into resources and networks across the city, including mentorship at the Matter incubator and funding opportunities at the Polsky Accelerator.
Ross said that the startup had the benefit of "coming hot off" the competition, and they were able to make connections through UChicago's Booth School of Business to keep the momentum going when other startups stalled due to economic headwinds.
Fillow also launched a Kickstarter campaign this week that Ross hopes will get the word out and be a "traction point" for its upcoming raise.
"We wanted to show people's interest and to build a story that people are really demanding the product and are patiently waiting for the product," she said.
After working on the first prototype and focusing on research and development over the past few years, Fillow plans to begin manufacturing by the end of the summer before conducting safety testing with its goal to launch an online store by February 2024.
