Ottowa, Ontario-based Clearwater Clinical Limited, a provider of medical-grade mobile devices and cloud-based data management solutions for the hearing health industry, has announced that it closed $6 million in Series A funding. The round was led by Whitecap Venture Partners, a Toronto-based early stage venture capital fund that invests in high-growth companies in Information & Communications Technologies (ICT), Med Tech, and Food Tech.
According to Clearwater Clinical, Whitecap Venture Partners will work closely with the company on a number of strategic initiatives, including product development, go to market programs, and future financing strategy. BDC Capital Healthcare Venture Fund is also participating significantly in the funding, and along with other investors brings the total capital invested in the company to date to $9.5 million.
Clearwater Clinical will be using the funds to scale the success of its audiology business unit and signature product, SHOEBOX Audiometry, the first clinically-validated tablet-based audiometer. The tablet-based testing platform is deeply integrated with the company’s cloud-based data management system which enables customers to derive insights from clinical data and analytics that were previously unavailable on legacy solutions. Last year, the company saw triple-digit growth in both revenue and unit sales.
Children undergoing hearing testing via notepad-friendly SHOEBOX Audiometry.
Customers in a number of industries – including hearing care, industrial workplace testing, retail and pharmaceuticals – are deploying SHOEBOX Audiometry to scale their audiometry services. In addition, Clearwater Clinical will continue to promote the expansion of its service offerings, grow its overall sales presence throughout North America, and expand business initiatives into Europe.
“Hearing loss is the world’s leading disability, affecting almost 640 million people globally, and yet there has been very little innovation to audiometers in the last 50 years,” said Michael Weider, CEO of Clearwater Clinical. “SHOEBOX Audiometry is satisfying an enormous need in the market by providing a simpler and more cost-effective approach to hearing testing. At Clearwater, we believe that it is possible to leverage the power and portability of software defined diagnostics and tablet technology to revolutionize the hearing health industry and make it possible for every person on the planet to have access to a hearing test.”
SHOEBOX Audiometry is an accurate, mobile product that is being used to increase early detection of hearing-related conditions. SHOEBOX Audiometry makes it possible for almost anyone to perform hearing testing in any reasonably quiet environment.
“The global hearing market is ready for disruption and Clearwater is positioned to lead that effort,” says Carey Diamond, Partner at Whitecap Venture Partners. “Under the leadership of accomplished entrepreneurs, Clearwater is blazing a trail with its novel approach to hearing testing. With this latest injection of funding, we anticipate Clearwater will continue to be a major innovator in this emerging space.”
“The current audiology infrastructure is inadequate to meet the needs of the incoming wave of an aging population and hearing damage from ubiquitous personal devices,” added Amine Benmoussa, Principal with the BDC Capital Healthcare Venture Fund. “The innovations incorporated into the SHOEBOX platform give Clearwater a clear advantage in this market and in potential new markets.”
Clearwater Clinical designs and manufactures medical-grade devices that enable effective, low-cost treatment of common medical conditions. Co-founded in 2005 by Dr Matthew Bromwich, an ENT specialist, and led by CEO Michael Weider, the company is combining medical, technical and entrepreneurial expertise to be a leader in the mobile health (mHealth) transformation. Clearwater Clinical is comprised of two divisions – SHOEBOX Audiometry and MODICA. SHOEBOX makes it possible to test the hearing of more patients, in more locations with less effort and exceptional efficiency. MODICA is a HIPAA-compliant medical camera app designed so that physicians can securely record, archive, manage, and share photos and videos directly from their iPhone. Clearwater Clinical was recently recognized as an innovator in mobile, digital and connected healthcare in the 2016 Global Digital Health 100 Award List.
Whitecap Venture Partners is a Toronto based early stage venture capital fund investing in high growth companies across three verticals: Information and Communications Technology (ICT), Med Tech and Food Tech. Its team of operators and investment professionals partner with entrepreneurs in verticals where they have deep domain expertise and can bring significant operational and strategic value to companies.
Source: Clearwater Clinical
