Take one designer and add an iPad; the story of Plinth
My name is John Bull, I’m a Product Designer from Somerset in the UK.
“I bought my first iPad in 2010 and immediately fell in love with its sleek, lightweight design. To carry such a useful computer with me everywhere was a game-changer, and I also loved the touchscreen interface; sketching, exploring the internet and playing games instantly became so much more…. connecting.
Then I started looking for something to stand it on…..”
The perfect stand…
?
- Will hold your tablet STILL while you work – especially while typing.
- Provides a comfortable angle for typing, with a clear view of the screen. On different tables and desks, this angle varies.
- Doesn’t add bulk or clutter. I personally favour a thin, light case for protection. I don’t like fold over covers – I want my tablet to be a tablet: as simple and elegant as possible.
- Is as small and light as possible – easy to keep with me always.
- It must be as fast and easy to set up as possible – preferably single handed.

Searching for a stand
2010-11I use a 3D printer for my work, so I thought I’d build something simple – which would fit in my pocket and hold my iPad nice and stable at the right angle for working.”
But to make something truly stable AND small turned out to be not so easy….

Could I make one better?
2012-2013Having applied for a patent, I sought to license the design with a big manufacturer, but no one seemed very keen to see my design.
Things were at a standstill until a friend told me about Kickstarter, the crowdfunding website.
Maybe, I should go it alone?

Asking the world for help
Jan-March 2014Re-launched in mid February, by the end of March we had shot past our target of £19,000 to raise £32,000 (the figure I actually needed). The most exciting aspect was the enthusiasm of my backers; their support carried me through some very dark times filled with anxiety and doubt.
However, we were in business.

Made in the UK
April-September 2014As well as aspects such as project control and wanting to support UK manufacturing, I have ethical concerns about manufacturing in China.
Although we had a number of setbacks, by September we were ready for production.

Launching to the world
September 2014The learning curves and obstacles throughout this project have been immense; sleepless nights, spiralling debt and uncertainty whether this was a good idea prevented life ever becoming mundane!
Plinth was really well received at the show and attracted lots of interest. However landing ‘the big order’ still eluded us. It was time to learn a new skill – how to sell.

Making customers happy
2015 - 2016Throughout all the challenges, however, has been the enthusiasm of my customers. Take a moment to look at the customer reviews page and you’ll see what I mean.
I owe them everything.