# Afterschool Podcast, Episode 20 - Ti Chang, 'Women in Industrial Design' Show Organizer (06/12)

- Show: [Core77 Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast)
- Published: 2014-06-12
- Length: 1h 14m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize
- Listen: https://soundcloud.com/corejr/afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organizer-0612

## Summary

Ti Chang, co-founder of Crave, explains how she bootstrapped her first company, Incognito, by sourcing jewelry-grade manufacturers in China via Alibaba and validating the market through the Venus trade show in Berlin. She details the pivot to Crave after merging with co-founder Michael Tapolovac, leveraging angel funding to scale production and launching the Duet vibrator through a successful crowdfunding campaign on Siki. Chang also discusses her role organizing the Women in Industrial Design show, highlighting the systemic lack of recognition for female designers and the importance of creating visible platforms and supportive workplace environments.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=0) Introduction: The Women in Industrial Design Show and Sex Toy Design Trends
- [2:52](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=172) The Cultural Shift in Sex Toy Design and Market Acceptance
- [5:30](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=330) Founding Incognito: Bootstrapping, Sourcing, and Prototyping in China
- [16:09](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=969) Market Validation at the Venus Trade Show and First Production Orders
- [20:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=1241) Merging with Crave: Acquiring Incognito and Scaling Operations
- [26:21](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=1581) San Francisco Startup Culture and Wearable Tech Design Challenges
- [37:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=2262) Standardized Components and Designing for Specific Use Cases
- [42:49](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=2569) Crowdfunding the Duet on Siki and Product Launch Strategy
- [46:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=2801) Organizing the Women in Industrial Design Show and Community Building
- [55:17](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/core77-podcast/2014-06-12-afterschool-podcast-episode-20-ti-chang-women-in-industrial-design-show-organize#t=3317) Addressing the Lack of Recognition for Female Designers

## Topics

- [Industrial & consumer product design](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/industrial-design)
- [Manufacturing partners & offshoring](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/manufacturing-partners)
- [Crowdfunding & preorders](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/crowdfunding)
- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)

## Most relevant to

early-stage companies

## Mentioned

- Crave (company)
- Incognito (company)
- Alibaba (tool)
- Venus (other)
- Siki (other)
- Duet (product)
- Astro's Design Studio (other)
- IDSA (other)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [ICYMI... HIBT Lab! Malala Fund and Our Place: Shiza Shahid](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-01-12-icymi-hibt-lab-malala-fund-and-our-place-shiza-shahid) (How I Built This)
- [Minted: Mariam Naficy](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2018-06-04-minted-mariam-naficy) (How I Built This)
- [389: Blobs Are Not Stressful](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/embedded-fm/2021-10-14-389-blobs-are-not-stressful) (Embedded.fm)
- [KiwiCo: Sandra Oh Lin](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2023-12-25-kiwico-sandra-oh-lin) (How I Built This)
- [Founder Feature: Tabi and Meena Hoshmand of Tursh](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-startup-cpg-podcast/2025-11-14-founder-feature-tabi-and-meena-hoshmand-of-tursh) (The Startup CPG Podcast)

## Citing this page

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