The Sunday Interview with Metis Black Part 1
Metis Black
Metis Black is the president of Tantus Inc. Tantus has an earned reputation as a company that produces high quality and affordable products, with an emphasis on safety and health as well as fun. She has agreed to spend some time discussing Tantus and her ideas about sex toys with us. We appreciate her time and think that you’ll appreciate her expertise and knowledge about sexual health and well being, as well as great toys.
Sextoys – Tantus is an industry leader in the innovation of sex toy designs. It seems as though with each twist and curve of a Tantus dildo, vibrator or anal plug, there is intent to maximize stimulation with minimal changes in angles, sizes or textures. What elements, such as research or customer feedback, drive these designs, and how do you eliminate designs from consideration?
Metis Black –We actually have a really simple system of designing dildos, plugs, vibrators and cockrings. We use our products- I know it sounds simple but very few other manufacturers do that. We’ll design a product and create a prototype on a 4 axis C & C machine (just like you’ve seen on Monster Garage or American Chopper). Then we’ll play with the prototype and find out if the angles work, if the neck is long enough, if the base is comfortable or fits into a strap-on. If it doesn’t play perfectly we redesign and make another prototype until it plays like we think it should. We also take customer suggestions. Design eliminations are easy- we eliminate any product not selling. There’s no need to have thousands of SKU’s with no regard to customers wants and needs.
Sextoys – Tantus uses the highest quality materials in these designs, yet the prices are highly affordable. With the commitment to quality, safety and health that Tantus demonstrates, is it difficult to strike a balance between quality and cost?
Metis Black – Tantus Inc is the largest purchaser of platinum grade silicone in North America (we’ve heard this from several raw silicone sources). We buy more silicone than Fisher Price or Fleetwood RV. Because we purchase so much, we have our own unique blend which meets our specifications, and are able to negotiate good prices so that we can make products cost effective. The other thing we take pride in is that we make all of our products here in the USA. While our labor costs are more, we have total quality control and a lot less freight expense. This is important as we strive to make the most safe sexual health products available.
Read Part 2 – Read Part 3 – Read Part 4
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February 22nd, 2009 at 11:59 am
Tantus are pre-eminent because of their attention to detail and envious customer focus. They are a perfect example of brands being about passionate people.
February 23rd, 2009 at 10:43 am
[...] Metis Black Interview Part 1 [...]