Porcelain sex toys: this start-up founder wants to make it big

Alina Eynck is raising the start-up Porzelina. In this interview, she talks about harmful substances in conventional dildos, the workload as a founder, and why she's not worried that a porcelain dildo will one day lead to injuries.

Alina Eynck was sitting in her design studio and was supposed to make something out of plaster. Her friends were making sculptures, others something practical like pen holders. But it was all too stupid for Alina Eynck. So she thought: Why not sculpt a sex toy? Now plaster is the worst possible material for this, but she soon discovered porcelain. The prototype became a business idea, then a start-up with design awards and start-up funding. For about three weeks now, she has been selling dildos, anal plugs and love balls made of porcelain.

Ms. Eynck, you make sex toys out of porcelain. What's wrong with conventional dildos or anal plugs made of plastic?

What is particularly critical about conventional sex toys is that they are often contaminated with harmful substances. Stiftung Warentest tested sex toys a few years ago and just three out of 18 came up without pollutants. I find that quite crass. Plastic can absorb substances as well as release them, plus there's the microplastic. This makes porcelain the better material for dildos, for example, because it is extremely slippery, does not absorb substances or release pollutants, and it is also super hygienic.

If I drop a plate, it breaks. Aren't you afraid that this will happen to your customers one day?

Not at all. Of course, porcelain can break if you drop it from a great height onto a hard surface. For sex, the issue of breakage is not a problem, as the intimate anatomy consists of very soft surfaces. And with pure physical strength, it is virtually impossible to break normal porcelain tableware. The sex toys from Porzelina have, compared to plates for example, a greater wall thickness and are closed in themselves. This makes them extra robust.

With elastic plastic, the toy does not have to be shaped as precisely as with porcelain.

Alina Eynck, founder of Porzelina

And hard. Plastic can be bent in all directions, porcelain cannot. Doesn't that restrict you?

That's exactly the difference I've also noticed in product development. With elastic plastic, the toy doesn't have to be shaped as precisely as with porcelain. We took this into account during product development and also used tests to find an ergonomic design that fits perfectly. That's why we also have a dildo that specifically targets what is commonly known as the "G-spot" - now better described as the "CUV zone" - and then one that stimulates primarily through volume. An anal plug and a love ball make the entry quartet perfect.

They probably don't produce the toy themselves, do they?

I found two quaint manufactories in Bavaria that lovingly handcraft this for me. At first I thought they might say something if I ordered dildos from them, because they usually make such small figurines or special plates out of porcelain, but they immediately said: We'll do it, no problem.

You had the idea back in 2014, back then there was presumably no competition in the porcelain dildo market, today it's already different. Why did you leave the project?

I first became aware of it during my bachelor's degree when we were supposed to mold something with plaster. I came up with sex toys at some point, but you can't make those out of plaster. But right next door was a porcelain workshop and that's where I spent a lot of time over the next months and years, presenting the first porcelain dildos at exhibitions. This earned me the name "Porzelina", a mixture of porcelain and Alina and a derivative of Porzelliner, meaning someone who works on porcelain. I already had the name protected in 2017. Because I thought it was too frivolous in my portfolio for a career entry, I then put the project aside and did a master's degree in Cologne, where I learned about entrepreneurship, among other things. In the process, the idea of Porzelina came up again, which then also became the content of my master's thesis. In November 2021, I received the founder's scholarship, in March 2022 the company was founded, and shortly thereafter the product line was awarded the Reddot Design Award.

I founded on my own, though, which is pretty crazy.

Alina Eynck

You talk about "we." How big is your team?

I often talk about "we" because I have quite a lot of supporters who I can always ask for advice and who help me with videos or questions, for example. They therefore also have a part in Porzelina's development. But I founded the company on my own, which is pretty crazy. Most people say you should found at least two or three people to share the workload. Now I have it all to myself: marketing, product development, finances... And I also have to be creative, which is quite a workload and I'm looking forward to the day when I can afford a permanent team.

An investor could help there, right?

I have taken out a loan for this start-up and currently the money is still sufficient. I have a buffer of time to figure out where Porzelina is going. I would be happy to find an investor, of course, but it's not about the money for me. I want to find someone who wants to create something together with me and if it fits, I can well imagine an investment.

Thank you very much for the interview.

About the person: Alina Eynck did her bachelor's degree in design at HSNR Krefeld, during which time she worked as a product designer for one of the top manufacturers of sex toys. In 2021, she completed her master's degree at TH Köln in "Product Design and Process Development", specializing in entrepreneurship and project management.