Product development isn’t a straight line. This month it’s been more of a spiral of tasting, talking, tweaking and testing. The ideas take shape somewhere between deep dives and long coffees with people who really know their subjects.
In the past few weeks, I’ve been working with a range of experts, from designers to food specialists, wine merchants to coffee professionals. Each brings their own ideas, and their insight is helping shape the experiences and products we’re developing.
Some of that work has taken place behind the scenes: on iPads in quiet corners of coffee shops, sketching out how ideas might look, sound, or feel when they land in someone’s hands. Other moments have been far more hands-on, like comparing cupping notes, chatting through food pairings, or learning how best to communicate complexity without losing clarity.
Today marks a small milestone: I placed the first order for initial printed materials. There’s a satisfaction in clicking "confirm", turning something from an idea into a tangible object.
With our first event fast approaching on 13th June (The Science of Wine) there’s now a clear deadline. But it’s more than just a date in the diary. It’s a launch pad. A chance to test some of the wider concepts under development and begin sharing this journey more publicly.
Collider Cafe is about sparking curiosity. But it’s also about care in content, design, and experience. And right now, it feels like something is beginning to come together.
