ABOUT US
Smallfry use industrial design as a strategic business tool to drive organic growth.
We are proud of our reputation for being honest, open and direct, if we don’t believe something is right, we think it is only fair to say. Our goal is to design what we know the market wants because we know how to understand them – even when they don’t understand themselves.
Innovation, to us, means strategically implementing well-qualified ideas to add value.
We delve deeply to discover what delights people about an experience and go beyond the obvious to surface their driving desires. Design involves making trade-offs, so we prioritise areas that bring real value. We work alongside customers, consumers, and patients to get the balance right for them and your business.
“If you give people what they want, they will buy it!”
– Philip Kotler, Distinguished Professor of International Marketing at the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University.
We’re not design gurus.
We’re not contractors.
We’re not artisan or craftsmen.
We are commercially astute design strategists, with the creative flair and engineering knowledge to take ideas through to commercialisation. While generating visually appealing concepts is exciting, it’s the precise execution with engineering finesse across all customer touchpoints that truly delivers satisfaction and delight.
We draw upon a unique blend of experts from diverse backgrounds—Psychology, Biochemistry, Ergonomics, Human Factors, Pharmaceutical, Medical Biotechnology, Design, Engineering, and more. We are passionate about advocating the Voice of the Customer (VoC). We do things for qualified reasons. There are no subjective judgements in our choices.
We are passionate about championing the Voice of the Customer (VoC) and base our decisions on sound reasoning rather than subjective judgments.
We use design research and user testing to inform the development of new products, services, and systems. We apply these powerful insights to steer design decisions, ensuring that we remain focused on what our customers, consumers, or patients will value most.
“I have been reflecting personally on the success of the Hoover HL5 upright vacuum cleaner, and the big appreciation of your approach Steve, and that of the Smallfry team too.
Smallfry’s people centric design process proved to be a transformational approach to New Product Development for Hoover. There were a number of key elements that have been noted and greatly appreciated throughout the process:
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- Deep engagement of external stakeholders.
- Successful onboarding of the entire Hoover team, leveraging through strong collaboration, belief, and excitement.
- Laser focus to deliver a super product for Hoover consumers, through robust strategy, design and engineering.
- Returned Hoover to a position of recognised product expertise in uprights – a demanding and highly competitive market.
- 5-star consumer reviews with high appreciation and repeated emotion, for example this recent review on Amazon “Love this Hoover. It gets around the house picking up everything easy to handle and not too heavy”.
- Growing number of trade and consumer awards.
For me the standout point is your process to establish what our consumers really want, even before they know it. Smallfry’s emphasis on this has allowed the development of a highly appreciated product by consumers that sells well on its own merits and great reviews.”
– David Meyerowitz, Chief Executive Officer (UK & Republic of Ireland) at Haier Europe
We apply our robust business acumen to integrate business planning, positioning, feature sets, ROI, commercial terms, legal protection, IP strategy, supply chain security, supplier agreements, quality control, and engineering.
By applying our empathic research findings and knowledge of manufacturing processes, our exciting ideas not only stay true to the original intent but also exceed customer expectations, providing real value, pleasure, and drive business growth.
“Well done to Steve and all the team! The Consumer Insights (CI’s) the best I have come across in the industry.”
– Martin Knight, Chief Strategy officer SDA Haier Europe
We sweat the small stuff. Our dedication to meticulous design detail ensures that every aspect is carefully considered to bring delight to our customers and their customers.
We understand that success lies not in one grand change, but in the compounded impact of many incremental improvements. A well-considered design strategy, founded on sound insight, is essential for business growth.
Happy customers return and happy customers tell others why you’ve made them happy. If you get that right, you shouldn’t need to obsess over shareholder value and growth, success will follow.
For a no obligation discussion about your next innovation, please give us a call us on +44 2476 545678 or Make an Online Enquiry.
50 years of Smallfry
We’ve used our customer-driven, strategic design approach for more than 50 years, with numerous success stories proving its value:
- Created a transformational product range which delivered £500m in incremental sales
- Smashed first year sales target of 800k by achieving 6m units sold within 12 months
- Grew a static category 600% without any PR or marketing support – purely by in-store impulse impact
And it all started long ago, when one of our founders, Tim Fry, designed the Hillman Imp motor car… Read more about our history >