Designing Coffee Gear People Actually Use | DOM SYMONS from Subminimal!

What does it actually take to turn a coffee idea into a real product?In this episode, we sit down with Dominic Symons, Founder of Subminimal and designer behind tools like the NanoFoamer and Subscale. We unpack what separates genuinely useful coffee equipment from the endless stream of gadgets hitting the market.From identifying real problems behind the bar to prototyping, manufacturing, patents, and raising over $1.5M through Kickstarter, Dominic shares what most people misunderstand about launching a product, and why simplicity is often the hardest design challenge.We also explore copycat culture, protecting ideas, and why many concepts should never make it past the sketch phase.If you’ve ever wondered how coffee tools actually come to life, this episode is for you.If you're new here (welcome), our show dives into some of the best coffee conversations on the internet, but we will always remind ourselves at the end of the day - It's Just Coffee! https://subminimal.com @subminimal Products mentionedNanoFoamerNanoFoamer PROSubscaleFlick WDT Tool CHAPTERS 00:00 Intro 00:24 Meet Dominic Symons (Subminimal) 02:04 Raising $1.5M on Kickstarter 03:01 Is Kickstarter Still Worth It? 04:33 Product Development Reality Check 09:15 Why Milk Frothing Needed Innovation 12:35 From Side Project to Global Product 14:09 What Makes a Great Coffee Tool? 15:41 Copycats, Patents & Protecting Ideas 18:22 Product Ideas That Didn’t Make It 23:25 How to Start Designing a Product 26:36 Finding Manufacturers & Production 28:08 Real Cost of Launching a Product 32:11 Filming the Kickstarter Campaign 34:17 Coffee Market Update 36:16 Brands Pushing Innovation 37:11 Coffee Trends That Might Be Overhyped 39:09 Where to Find Subminimal 40:01 Outro Want more coffee content? IT'S JUST COFFEE: https://linktr.ee/itsjustcoffeepod?utm_source=linktree_profile_share&ltsid=4e8cead0-6644-4c4a-b419-28c825b1b236 Want to get in touch? Hit us up at hello@itsjustcoffeepod.com for any questions or comments. Proudly sponsored by: Marco Beverage Systems: https://www.instagram.com/marcobeveragesystems/ Apax Lab: https://apaxlab.com/ Condesa Co.Lab: https://condesacolab.com.au/ Riverina Fresh: https://www.riverinafresh.com.au/ Thanks for listening! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices