Why is our aid called Wini?

You may have noticed that our aid is called Wini. Maybe you've also wondered why? There's a very special reason why Wini was the name of our first product!

Since Manigrip was brand new, we sought out all the knowledge we could about arthritis. We were lucky to get a meeting at SANO near Aarhus, which is one of three treatment centers in Denmark for people with shoulder and joint pain (including arthritis).

Here we met a group of arthritis patients who were supposed to help us understand how arthritis affects the body and one's everyday life.

This is where we met Winnie. Winnie was a woman in her mid-70s who lived with her husband in Aarhus. Winie had lived with arthritis and its complications for almost her entire life, especially because she had grown up during a period when people were experimenting with different arthritis treatments, such as the gold treatment, where gold was injected into the blood vessels. The side effects had taken their toll and her fingers were very crooked.

The effects of arthritis created many difficulties in Winnie's everyday life, which she was not shy about talking about. She showed us all the aids that she depended on in her everyday life. Winnie pointed out how all the aids were ugly and there were far too many different types, despite the fact that she still had to be creative in order for her everyday life to be completely coherent. She had had to invent creative solutions herself, for example, to get properly dry after a bath or wring out a dishcloth.

Winnie's insights into everyday life with arthritis were one of the most inspiring moments in Manigrip's start-up, which has helped shape how we approach the idea of assistive devices. It should be nice, functional and fit into everyday life. Winnie's determination to walk, despite challenges, gave us the desire and courage to develop Manigrip's assistive device.

When it came to naming our aid, it felt right to name our product after one of our first encounters with arthritis and one of our greatest sources of inspiration.

And that is why we have chosen to send a loving greeting to Winnie, with our product name: Wini.