Last week, we sat down with Centreline’s CEO and Managing Director, Neil White, to discuss what brands and businesses often get wrong when developing new physical products, and what he’s learned over years of bringing our client’s ideas to manufacture and market.
What first got you interested in industrial product design?
From an early stage in my education, I was passionate about engineering and technical drawing, and initially focused my A-Level studies on pursuing a career in civil engineering. As my interests developed, I became increasingly drawn to industrial design, which led me to complete a BA (Hons) in Industrial Design with Applied Technology.
What’s the biggest mistake businesses make before starting product development?
The most common mistake organisations make before beginning product development is creating solutions for problems that do not exist, or lack sufficient value to justify solving. A significant proportion of new products fail, and this is often due to an inadequate understanding of market needs and customer demand.
How do you balance creativity with manufacturing reality?
Establish clear technical parameters early in the design process to balance creative intent with manufacturing constraints, while still leaving scope for aesthetic development. Failing to maintain this balance can result in products that lack innovation or are impractical to manufacture due to cost, complexity, or structural limitations.
What separates a good product idea from a commercially viable one?
A strong product idea solves a problem; a commercially viable product solves a problem that customers are willing to pay for, while delivering sustainable profit.
At what stage should manufacturing considerations enter the conversation?
Integrate manufacturing considerations during the concept and ideation stage, at the outset of the product development process. Delaying these discussions until later phases can result in costly redesigns, production delays, and increased manufacturing costs.
Manufacturing should be considered right from the onset. One of the things we pride ourselves on at Centreline is our team’s excellent manufacturing and engineering knowledge. Unlike some consultancies, where the design team produce concepts, and then pass them over to an Engineering team to make them ‘manufacturable’ , leading to design changes, delays and higher manufacturing costs, our team use their experience to produce concepts that are aesthetically and functionally excellent, but also viable and realistic for eventually manufacturing them. This creative and technical synergy distinguishes our team, and is something I’m incredibly proud of.
What do clients underestimate most about the development process?
Clients frequently underestimate the effort required after the initial concept design phase. While a strong concept or MVP (Minimum Viable Product) is an important milestone, successful product development depends on continuous testing, refinement, regulatory compliance, and user adoption. Rather than a straight path to launch, it is an ongoing and iterative process.
What’s one question every entrepreneur should ask before investing in a new product?
Does this product concept provide a valuable solution to a real world problem?
If you’re interested in learning more, check out some of our favourite recent projects here - https://centreline.co.uk/
