Ottoman

Tushy

The ergonomic toilet stool designed to help humans poop better.

Role:

Director of Product Development, Product Designer

Responsibilities:

Owned every phase of the product development cycle: Concept creation, user research, prototyping, feasibility, manufacturability, validation, manufacturer visits, launch

Project Duration:

9 months

Launched:

November 2019

The Ottoman

The Ottoman by Tushy is the ergonomic and aesthetic solution for opening up your bowels in the bathroom. Voted as Wirecutter’s Top Toilet Stool of 2021.

Toilet stools have been scientifically proven to open your colon in a seated position to allow users to empty themselves fully, not just partially. The Ottoman was developed after studying the bathroom behaviors and tools used in cultures around the world. We translated these insights into a product that would provide the same physics on sit toilets.

Influenced by forms of the foot and toilet, the Ottoman showcases a design that comfortably positions the foot at the right angle when in use and subtly hides underneath the toilet bowl when dormant. The Ottoman features a continuous curvature surface for one wipe cleaning along with removable magnetic legs that allow height changes dependent on the user and toilet height. And last, but certainly not least, the Ottoman was designed with sustainability as one of its highest priorities using only a combination of recyclable and compostable packaging materials.

Since its launch in 2019, it continues to be one of the highest selling toilet stools in the market with millions of dollars in sales.

Problem

Americans have trouble pooping quickly and effectively which can lead to extended time on the toilet, incomplete evacuations, harmful straining and a messy cleanup.

Insight

Western toilets are designed for sitting with our thighs and torso at a 90 degree angle, while squat toilets found in the Eastern hemisphere are designed for squatting with our thighs and torso at a 35 degree angle which effectively opens up our colons.

Objective

Our goal was to create an intuitive solution that leveraged proper pooping physics without needing to completely change western bathroom behavior.

Deliverable

We designed a toilet stool that effectively raises the legs and opens the colon so people can poop more quickly and more efficiently!

User and Market Research

Did you know that sitting on a toilet at a 90 degree angle only allows about 70% of poop to leave your body? Imagine only emptying 70% of your garbage and leaving 30% every time you take out the trash. It will start to rot, smell and cause issues. Same with pooping. You’re body’s a temple, take out the trash properly.

After spending time in China and South Korea, it became very clear that we needed to up our bathroom game here in the US. Most bathrooms in China have squat toilets where the bowl is level with the ground and instead of sitting on a toilet seat, you squat above the bowl in a lower angle. This positioning is more natural for the body and allows the colon to unkink and open up for a clean and easy poop.

Pooping Pain Points

During the development of the Ottoman, we interviewed lots of customers, friends and family members to understand their current bathroom behaviors and determine what kind of product would add value and elevate their experience. The most common pain points we discovered: taking too long to poop, strenuous and sometimes harmful pushing and too much wiping.

People were sitting around and waiting for their colons to slowly push through the kinks.

Excessive straining can lead to hemorrhoids, anal fissures, hiatal hernias, and rectal prolapse.

When you can’t fully clear the colon, it can lead to excessive wiping which can be painful and potentially harmful.

Competitor Pain Points

There were only a couple of products on the market trying to accomplish the same goal we were, however their execution was not to our liking nor their customers. So we analyzed thousands of reviews from competitor products, tested them ourselves, tore them apart and synthesized the data we needed to create the best toilet stool we could. We found that other stools were too bulky, very ugly, hard to clean, and only came in one size.

Other stools were big and bulky and did not store well in the bathroom

Customers thought competitor stools were ugly eye sores that did not fit the aesthetic of their bathroom.

Other stools had lots of nooks that captured grime and were difficult to clean.

Toilets and humans come in all different sizes, yet competitors only offered one size.

Design Requirements

Using our research insights, we derived the most critical design requirements we needed to hit our customer’s most important needs: a toilet stool that met the visual, hygiene and space requirements of their bathroom while offering the best functionality for a comfortable and effective poop.