Today we’d like to introduce you to Bailey Morgan.
Hi Bailey, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I’ve always known I wanted to build a design firm of my own — I just thought it would begin in my thirties, not in my twenties. I was progressing in the industrial design world, taking on high-level work and solving complex product challenges, but the roles I was interviewing for never reflected the value I could bring. I was often the only Black woman in the room — overqualified for the jobs I was offered and under-valued for the creative leadership I was ready for.
My turning point happened in Chicago. It wasn’t one moment — it was a buildup of being overlooked, minimized, and unable to bring my full creativity to the table. I realized I could either keep waiting for a seat, or I could build the table myself. I chose the latter.
That choice became the foundation for Nudena. In the early days, I supported founders who had brilliant ideas but no clear pathway to turn them into real physical products. What started as industrial design work expanded into branding, strategy, and web development because founders needed more than visuals — they needed the full infrastructure to take a product to market.
The real acceleration came from an unexpected trip. My now-husband — who today is Nudena’s COO and Head of Visualization — encouraged me to attend Michigan Tech Week at Michigan Central, hosted by Femology. That event changed everything for me. I walked in not knowing anyone and walked out connected to the right founders, partners, advisors, and support systems. It plugged Nudena directly into the innovation ecosystem of Detroit and showed me that I didn’t have to build this in isolation — that there was a community here rooting for invention, hardware, and bold ideas.
Today, Nudena has evolved far beyond a design studio. We are a design-infrastructure company based in Detroit. We support early-stage hardware founders through:
a multidisciplinary design firm (industrial design, branding, and web)
a physical innovation ecosystem for prototyping and product development
and a SaaS platform in development that automates the journey from concept → design → manufacturing based on the pain points we’ve experienced firsthand
Our mission is to make sure that great ideas — especially from underrepresented founders — don’t die on the vine due to lack of access, support, or industry gatekeeping.
I didn’t get here by following a conventional roadmap. I got here by trusting my instinct, refusing to settle, and deciding that Detroit deserves a world-class design infrastructure. Nudena is my response to every closed door — and it’s also an invitation: if you have a vision, you deserve a pathway to build it.
We all face challenges, but looking back would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely not a smooth road. My journey has been incredibly rewarding, but also very real.
I graduated from CCS in 2019 as the only Black woman in my industrial design class. I was proud of that, but it also meant stepping into an industry where I didn’t often see myself reflected. I worked and studied across several countries in the EU and later in the Midwest, including Chicago. Professionally, I was doing well — during my time in Chicago, I worked on two consumer products that successfully made it to market and sold out. But the environments I was in weren’t always supportive. I often felt like I had to fight to take up space, prove myself twice, and minimize parts of who I was to fit in.
By the time I left Chicago, I didn’t feel accomplished. I felt exhausted. Even with the wins, I internalized the experience as failure.
Coming back to Detroit changed that. Teaching through CCS and the Community Arts Partnership gave me space to breathe again. It reminded me that design at its core is about people — connecting, solving, and creating. Working with young designers and adults with disabilities re-centered me in community rather than competition. It gave me room to rebuild my confidence and reconnect with my own purpose.
That period in Detroit didn’t magically remove the challenges, but it grounded me. It helped me understand that the problem was never my talent — it was the lack of space for someone like me to grow. And once I understood that, everything I chose to build moving forward came from a much clearer place.
So no, it hasn’t been smooth. But every part of it — the highs, the burnout, the rebuilding — shaped how I now show up as a designer and a leader. And it taught me that sometimes the “detour” is actually the beginning.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Nudena is an emerging design infrastructure company. We specialize in industrial design, product development, branding, and visualization, and we support founders from early concept through manufacturing. Our work ranges from consumer electronics and medical wearables to brand identity and digital experiences.
We are known for combining deep design rigor with an understanding of how products actually get made. Our clients come to us because we bridge the gap between design, engineering, and manufacturing in a way that most studios do not. We focus on function, storytelling, and buildability at the same time, which helps founders move from idea to market much faster.
What sets us apart is our ecosystem. Nudena Design is our service arm, producing high quality industrial design, brand systems, and prototypes. Nudena OS is our emerging software platform that will automate design to manufacturing workflows and streamline the path from sketch to production. Together, they form a full pipeline for founders who need both beautiful design and real technical execution.
Brand wise, we are most proud of the products and stories coming out of Detroit. Our upcoming pilot product, NURA, reflects our belief that design should be functional, emotional, and accessible. We are also proud of the trust founders give us to guide their early product decisions, especially in complex categories like medical devices, mobility, and consumer hardware.
For readers, the most important thing to know is that Nudena is built for founders creating real products. We offer industrial design, branding and identity, website design, prototyping, DFMA reviews, and ongoing retainer support for scaling teams. Everything we do is centered on clarity, precision, and helping people bring impactful products to life.
What are your plans for the future?
Looking ahead, Nudena is entering a major growth phase. For the past year we’ve been focused on refining our service model, building strong client case studies, and proving our ability to deliver high quality industrial design and product development work. Now we are preparing for the next step, which includes expanding our team, securing a dedicated space in Detroit, and launching the first version of Nudena OS, our design-to-manufacturing software platform.
Over the next year we plan to introduce NURA, our pilot consumer product, strengthen our partnerships with local manufacturers, and deepen our work with early stage founders in Detroit’s hardware and mobility ecosystem. We are also laying the groundwork for a physical innovation hub under Nudena Origin, which will eventually include shop access, classes, and an accelerator focused on bringing more Detroit-designed products to market.
We are looking forward to building a company that not only designs products, but helps founders build sustainable businesses around them. Our long term vision is to become a nationally recognized design infrastructure company with roots firmly in Detroit’s manufacturing legacy. The next few years will be about expanding our capabilities, launching our first products, and making Nudena a cornerstone for hardware innovation in our city.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.nudena.co
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/nudena.co
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/nudena
