The archive · Product Ideas · Product decision · 2024–2025
Tru Count: an ankle step tracker worn as jewellery raises $130K on Kickstarter
Sisters build a 10mm step tracker for the ankle — where steps actually happen — after wrist wearables missed treadmill and stroller walking.
Tru Count Inc.
What it had to solve
Wrist trackers log arm swing, so steps go uncounted on treadmill desks and while pushing strollers; existing wearables were also bulky and unstylish for 24/7 wear.
How it works
While working at Paystack, Temilola Giwa walked on a treadmill desk and noticed her smartwatch barely counted her steps: most wrist trackers infer movement from arm swing. Her sister Tomilola Famuboni hit the same wall while pushing a baby stroller, so in March 2024 the two set out to build a tracker that measured the feet, not the arms.
The answer was Tru: a waterproof, hypoallergenic tracker only 10mm wide, with a month-long battery, that clips into swappable jewellery — anklets, bracelets, charms or pendants. Repeatedly reworking size and shape to stay tiny without losing accuracy, the sisters made the ankle the default wear spot because that is where the step signal is strongest.
A $7,000 Kickstarter goal turned into more than $130,000 from over 1,000 backers in under 30 days — one of the highest-grossing crowdfunding campaigns tied to Nigeria. The story shows that re-asking where measurement happens, rather than what to add next, can be the whole creative leap.
Why it lands
- Most wearables infer steps from arm swing, so they miss movement when arms are still — a real blind spot, not a marketing story.
- Measuring at the ankle lets the device shrink to 10mm and become jewellery, reframing a utilitarian gadget as something people will wear 24/7.
- Research showed the problem hit women most, so the sisters turned a personal frustration into an underserved market few hardware teams targeted.
- A tiny $7,000 Kickstarter goal acted as a fast market test; overshooting it roughly 18x proved demand before committing to mass production.
What it did
The campaign drew over $130,000 from 1,000+ backers in under 30 days — roughly 18x its goal and among the highest-grossing Kickstarter campaigns tied to Nigeria — with direct sales planned from November 2025.
What you can take
When a sensor sits where the behaviour doesn't happen, move the product to the measurement point — a placement insight can be the whole idea and open a market category leaders ignored.
Since then
The campaign closed among the highest-grossing Kickstarter runs tied to a Nigerian business, with each pledge buying a $119 starter kit containing the tracker, charger and accessories. By mid-2025 the founders were preparing direct sales through their own website from November and exploring jewellery-brand partnerships and retail distribution. As the founders and observers noted, the next test was turning a crowdfunded prototype into a scaled hardware brand — margins and global logistics, not the idea itself.
Sources
- Ex-Paystack employee raises $130k in 30 days for step tracking device
- Ex-Paystack Lead Temilola Giwa and Sister Raise $130K for Tru, a Nigerian-Built Wearable Tech Startup
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