PeeBuddy claims to be the first Indian start-up to have come up with a product that lets women stand and urinate, in a country that still lacks basic sanitation amenities.

It is all set to raise its first round of funding from a clutch of investors next month, after running on a bootstrapped mode for the past two years.

The company wants to use the funds to increase production capacity, expand distribution network across the country and for research and development activities.

Deep Bajaj, who founded PeeBuddy’s holding company First Step Digital, came up with the idea while on a road trip with his family and friends.

“While we (men) ate and drank all along the way, the ladies would not drink at all, worried over the fact that there would be no toilet on the way. We had to stop at almost all the filling stations so that my wife and other female friends could use the toilet, which were way too dirty,” Bajaj said. After months of research, Bajaj found out that there existed a similar product way back in 1919 in the US, which was a funnel-like device made of plastic. However, it did not take off for reasons unknown, Bajaj said.

PeeBuddy’s device is a funnel-like disposable tube made of cardboard that allows women to stand and urinate, without worrying about Urinary Tract Infections (UTIs) while using public toilets. The company has also filed a patent for the product. Bajaj, a serial entrepreneur who earlier ran an events company, quit the venture to start First Step Digital in April 2014.

In the past two years, the company has sold about 1 lakh packs of PeeBuddy, which is being retailed at a price of ₹18 per piece, which is a tad expensive if used daily.

However, Bajaj said while the efforts are on to bring down the price, the product is not being marketed for daily use, but for women-on-the-go (trekkers, cyclers, marathoners, office-goers), pregnant women, women with arthritis and renal-related issues or obesity.

Bajaj told BusinessLine that he targets to double the sales this year, and is in talks with organised healthcare retail chains in metros in this regard. “Retailing a product like this was not easy. Many retailers just shooed me away saying that it was gross. But as soon as we started promoting it as a medical product, we saw a good traction,” Bajaj said, adding that outdoor events such marathons have shown interest in long-term partnerships.

Bajaj has invested around ₹1.5 crore from his personal savings in the venture. With the new funding, the company aims to be the country’s first intimate hygiene product brand. The company also imports products such as sweat-pads, intimate wipes and bio-degradable disposable sanitary pads and tampons.

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