28 Aug IU Angel Network Invests in Sunny Period – First and Only FDA Cleared Menstrual Cup Applicator
Boston, MA — The IU Angel Network, an investment vehicle of IU Ventures, is pleased to announce an investment of $35,000 in Sunny Period, a self-care brand focused on providing eco-friendly menstrual products, honest education about menstruation, and ending period poverty.
Co-founded by IU alumna and Kelley School graduate Drew Jarvis and her business partner Cindy Belardo, Sunny offers its customers an eco-friendly menstrual cup plus applicator that inserts like a tampon.
“We have been supporting and tracking Drew as a founder since she was in high school. It’s been wonderful to see how they have iterated both the product and the company over the years,” said Jason Whitney, Chief Venture Officer at IU Ventures and Executive Director of the IU Angel Network. “The traction they received from their pre-sale combined with the mission of Sunny made it an easy decision to bring them forward to the angel network as an investment opportunity.”
Jarvis was a senior in high school when she first tried using a traditional menstrual cup and struggled considerably with the insertion. She questioned why there hadn’t been a menstrual cup that inserts like a tampon.
“I had the opportunity to enter into a business idea pitch competition through my high school, so I entered with my idea for a menstrual cup that inserts like a tampon and won the grand prize of $25,000,” Jarvis explained. “Meanwhile, across the country in Oklahoma, my future co-founder, Cindy Belardo, had won a grant to take a team to India to research 200 menstruates’ first time using a menstrual cup. Their feedback led her to create a Period Club at her university and begin developing an easier to use menstrual cup. We ended up meeting two years later and decided to join up and make this happen together.”
Due to high demand, the Sunny cup and applicator have sold out for the third year in a row. The Sunny team will use the funds from this funding round to switch to a new manufacturer with more efficient and effective manufacturing practices.
“Our number one priority is to fulfill the more than 16,000 back orders so they can join the more than 5,000 happy customers who have already received their Sunny Cups and applicators,” Jarvis said. “Then we will reopen sales and continue to grow our brand.”
While at IU Jarvis studied marketing and international business, minored in French, and was a part of the Big Brothers Big Sisters program—all while building her business. She graduated from the Kelley School of Business in 2002.
“Growing up in Indiana, going to IU just made sense,” she said. “With one of the best undergrad business programs in the country, it was a no-brainer.”
Sunny first came to IU Ventures attention during Jarvis’s last few years as a student at IU.
“They were incredible at making intros and being a resource throughout my time at IU,” Jarvis explained. “But it wasn’t until we showed phenomenal growth and dedication to Sunny that we had a chance to pitch IU Venture’s network. They’ve always been a champion of Sunny and have given us the resources to learn, to grow our network, and to continue to grow our business.”
According to Jarvis, more than 12 billion tampons and pads go into landfills every single year and the average person spends nearly $6,000 over their lifetime on disposable period products.
“One Sunny Cup + Applicator replaces 528 tampons and can be reused for up to a year, reducing so much waste and saving user’s a ton of money,” said Jarvis. “I might be a bit biased, but the $39 billion menstrual care industry hasn’t seen this kind of innovation since the invention of the first menstrual cup in the 1930s.”
Looking to the future, Jarvis and her co-founder are looking beyond products, with an eye toward sustainability and education.
“Sunny has a mission for building sustainable products, inclusive education around periods and puberty, and impact initiatives that will help to end period poverty,” she said. “Since its conception, Sunny has always been more than a product company. My co-fouder Cindy and I are passionate about impact above all. Don’t get me wrong – we have lots of ideas cooking for future innovative products, but it will all be happening alongside our other impact arms.”
The Sunny team continues to fundraise via WeFunder. More information is available at their WeFunder link: https://wefunder.com/sunnyperiod/.
About IU Ventures:
IU Ventures invests in and supports IU-affiliated early-stage companies. Its investment programs include the IU Philanthropic Venture Fund, IU Angel Network, Shoebox Fund and Innovate Indiana Fund. It further supports IU founders through the Executive in Residence Program and IU Founders and Funders Network. Student support is provided through a variety of engagements, including the new IU Venture Fellows Program. Each program takes unique approaches to accelerate and support the positive impacts that entrepreneurs affiliated with IU already achieve across the world. IU Ventures is a recognized leader in increasing opportunities for diverse and historically underserved entrepreneurs and investing in Indiana startups with a shared commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. www.iuventures.com
About Sunny Period:
Sunny is a self-care brand focused on providing eco-friendly menstrual products, honest education about menstruation, and ending period poverty. Co-founded by Cindy Belardo and Drew Jarvis, the company’s first two products are a menstrual cup and menstrual cup applicator.