Femme Den

Femme Den is an underground collective of international women including design researchers, industrial designers, and engineers who are paving the way for a deeper understanding around design and gender. Femme Den and the studio that houses them - Smart Design - work with major brands such as Nike to reconsider how they design products for both male and female consumers. Femme Den Co-founder, Erica Eden, and Senior Design Strategist Nathaniel Giraitis will be in Cincinnati next Monday at the Contemporary Arts Center's "Where Do We Go From Here?" speaker series.

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Q: What is Femme Den and how did it start?

Eden: It was founded by four women in 2006 to search for answers about how to design for women in a new and authentic way. Gender needs to be part of the design dialogue in the world today at the same level as ergonomics, sustainability and the like. Our thinking originated when a client specifically requested to work with our female designers to complement their all male team, which was struggling to find a female perspective. This project took us out of our comfort zone a little bit, having to think primarily as women, not as designers. Afterwards, we started looking at products that were targeted towards women, and found that there is a lot of guesswork involved when it comes to designing for women. Companies are having a really tough time connecting with the female audience. This really encouraged us to dig deeper.

Q: We are hotly anticipating your lecture with Nathaniel Giraitis at the CAC. What topics might be discussed? Why will you be sharing the stage with Nathaniel? 

Eden: While the Femme Den was founded by four core members, it has expanded to reflect Smart Design's thought leadership on the topic. It's not about who started it, it's about who believes in it.  

Giraitis: As a Design Strategist, the conversation of how and why we design something is a passionate topic for me. As we consider the question posed by this series, "Where do we go from here?" we will deconstruct the Femme Den thinking to try to get to the core kernel that makes it so powerful, and then propose how else that unique engine may be applied to other design challenges.

Q: Why did you decide to visit Cincinnati for this speaker series?

Eden: We were asked to speak because we have a relationship with the CAC museum.  Additionally, we recruit from UC/DAAP and we also have several large clients in the area.

Q: What products used day-to-day have design influences by Femme Den?

Eden: Anything from Pyrex Easy Grab glass bakeware, to Cardinal Health Endura scrubs, to Nike Imara watch.

Q: Assuming we know nothing about design, what do you think are possible causes of the lack of female-centered design and understanding about design and gender?

Eden: The women's market is a huge business opportunity. But women are underrepresented in the design industry, only about 10-20% of industrial designers are women. In order to capitalize on this market, we all have to make a stronger effort to find the female perspective. Women (men too!) have changed a lot over the past century. Even 100 years ago, companies knew that the women's market was important. But looking at products today, companies are still relying on stereotypes of the past to connect with women, resorting to the Shrink it & Pink it approach (cute, small, pink products). Women are a multifaceted group that don't fit one mold, companies cannot reach them with this limited definition of who they are. The good news is that opportunity still exists to connect to women in more meaningful ways than color. That's where we come in.

Q: Aside from gender, what other issues are under addressed in design today? 

Giraitis: One of the reasons why the Femme Den's principles are so powerful is because the female market isn't under-served, it is presumed-to-be-served.  There were plenty of products on the market "just for women," and so one might have easily overlooked the topic as a non-issue, until you realize the majority of those products completely miss the mark because they're based on presumptions about their target user.  If we stop and think about it that way, we can think of many user groups that receive similar consideration, or lack thereof.

Q: What brought the issues regarding gender and design to the fore in your life?

Eden: I grew up in the 70s in Washington D.C. I have childhood memories of protesting for civil and women's rights with my mother.  I have always been aware of the struggles of the generation before mine to achieve equality. While I have not experienced the same barriers in my life, this thinking is ingrained. Today, I am still calling for equity and consideration, but of a different sort…the sort that makes a lot of money for our clients.

Q: What can people who don't work in the design field learn about gender from the Femme Den's work and research?

Eden: Getting the gender equation right requires an awareness of both sexes and a delicate, nuanced approach.  Simply being female does not qualify anyone as an expert on the women's market. We have developed expertise in how to connect with women through products in the marketplace.

Q: I hear you will be stopping by the University of Cincinnati's DAAP. What will you be doing there? 

Giraitis: A number of Smarties are alumni of UC/DAAP, including myself, and so of course we like to maintain our relationship with one of the nation's best design institutions (ahem). I'll be giving a talk to the students along with another DAAP/Smartie, Ryan Devenish, about how the core Smart Design tenet - design is about people, not things - applies to both how the firm designs for its clients, as well as how it creates a fantastic environment for Smarties to work.  Of course, we'll also be sniffing out top talent.

Q: What is one piece of wisdom you can impart on design students that isn't learned in school? 

Giraitis: One thing that is really hard to learn in the classroom is how to design for people who are different from you.  In design school you might create a mood board about your target consumer, or make a persona that "embodies" a cartoon of your user, but how much of your understanding is based on presumptions or stereotypes, and how much reflects the deeper meanings in their life?

Photography provided.