Your big creative partner –
just without the pitfalls

All in one
Design &
development
Experienced
partner
Agile &
fast
Human
centered
We love
what we do
Why SMAL
At SMAL we believe in an end-to-end design process. That's why we offer our clients an all-in-one service portfolio that allows us to support projects from first idea to final market implementation. This way we can create a seamless experience across all touchpoints and can keep a product story consistent and alive.
Design and implementation go hand in hand at SMAL with our in-house development team: the coders and designers work together. The work process is made highly efficient through the shared work space. Their skills merge at important intersections in the project. Thanks to such proximity, the coders and designers can overcome any tech obstacle and go on to push design boundaries.
We offer design and innovation. We are consultants and developers. More importantly, we are idea-makers, a company run by three colleagues and friends – all leaders in their respective fields. Together with this team, SMAL has worked all over the world. SMAL has worked with companies from many different sectors. SMAL has experienced an array of markets. In short, the SMAL team has amassed copious amounts of experience. Experience we are keen to share with you. 
Our locations – Munich, Amsterdam and San Francisco. We develop brand experiences for forward-thinking companies. We work with our clients in a highly collaborative way: the key is to embrace experimentation, embrace curiosity, embrace new ideas. Our lean structure and internal service capabilities optimize our work process in such a way that we can operate on several projects at once. These extensive capabilities allow for agility in the workflow. 
The foundation of a great design is a deep understanding of the customer. We believe in a user centric design approach and a research driven process that builds the foundation for a great experience. We love to try, test and repeat to identify opportunities that serve human needs and bring joy into the usage of products and services.
Reviews come in all shapes in sizes. The one thing all of ours have in common is a compelling story. We are storytellers. We are the doodlers. And we are the ones who make fantasies into a reality. We love what we do and we would love to tell you about it: hello@smal.de
Disciplines

What we do,
and what it means to work with us

Includes

Ethnographic Research
Audits & Benchmarking
Opportunity Framing
Workshops
User Testings
Consumer Research

Innovation from a consumer perspective means uncovering hidden needs and desires you can subsequently act on. We immerse ourselves into your relevant context, you reap the results.

Includes

Brand Positioning
Persona Definition
Benchmarking
Corporate Identity
Naming
Brand Strategy

We help companies identify, create and strategically position their brand. Our core promise is to build your core promise in a collaborative way.

Includes

Brand vision
Portfolio analysis
Portfolio roadmap
Opportunity mapping
Portfolio & Innovation Strategy

Based on research we can help our clients to identify new product and service opportunities within changing markets. We help to build effective strategies for growth by analyzing and planning our clients portfolios.

Includes

Usability Testing
Experience Journey
Qualitative Research
Consumer Observation
Opportunity Framework
User Experience Design

Our consumer-centric approach leaves out nothing on the experience journey. Through observing intuitive behavior, we find out what’s pertinent and valuable.

Includes

Interaction Design
Visual Design
Information Architecture
UI Specification
UI Styleguide
UI Prototyping
Mobile Applications
User Interface Design

UI brings together interaction design, visual design and information architecture which translates to the perfect balance of aesthetics and interactivity with ease of use.

Includes

Product 3D viewer
Shop product configurator
Interactive Infographics
Virtual reality (VR) walk throughs
Augmented reality (AR) experiences
Mixed Reality Experiences

Utilizing web based 3D engines, we are able to create completely new ways of customer interaction experiences. From 3D configurators over virtual reality walk-throughs to new kinds of interactive 3D infographics.

Includes

Concepts & Visions
Design Strategy & Language
Product Development
CMF Definition
CAD & Visualization
Prototyping
Implementation Support
Light Design
Product Design

From ideation to exploration and refinement thereof, we help you craft and implement long-term sustainable product experiences.

Includes

Corporate Touch
Tactile Grips
Parametric Brand Graphics
Interior Design Elements
Product Design Elements
Architectural Elements
Algorithms Aided Design

By integrating specialized software into our design process we are able to create highly complex geometries that would pose some challenges for manual design tools.

An automated process based on variable parameters generates structures and shapes reaching a level of complexity beyond human possibility.

Includes

Backpack
Sleeves and Covers
Product Cases & Bags
Product Accessories
Soft Good Design

Harnessing the capabilities of specialized software like Clo, we are able to develop production ready designs for various soft good products.

Includes

Brand Specific Packaging
Unboxing Experience
Structural Design
Cutter Guide Layout
Prototyping
Sustainability Optimization
Print Specification
User Manuals
Packaging Design

The first physical touchpoint which supports the product, the experience and serves as an informative medium.

Includes

Print Materials
Digital Materials
Logo
Corporate Identity Styleguide
Marketing Materials
Graphic Design

What you can imagine, we can visually create. Graphic design means establishing an identity and influencing perceptions of a brand.  

Includes

Tradeshow Design
Retail Interior Design
In-Store Displays
Merchandise
Hospitality Interiors
Spatial Design

Spaces offer opportunity to create authentic and holistic brand experiences which your clients can immerse themselves in.

Includes

HTML5, CSS3
AngularJS, jQuery
Responsive Layouts
Websites
Web Applications
Web Portals
User Experience Prototypes
Mobile Applications
Front-End Development

Technically developing systems and code to enable visual designs to become ultimate digital touch points across different browsers and devices.

Includes

CMS (Drupal, Wordpress, Joomla, etc.)
Webshops (Magento, Shopify, WooCommerce, CS-Cart, etc.)
Custom Solutions
LMS
CRM
SEO Optimization
Back-End Development

Rich functionality to websites means creating rock-solid back ends that function as the foundation for a fantastic front-end.

Includes

iOS native Apps
Android native Apps
Hybrid Apps
App Development

The power of modern digital experiences comes with solid Apps. We design and develop native iOS and Android Apps.

Includes

Visual Storyboards
Art Direction
Product Photography
Lifestyle Photography
Studio setup and props
Photo Production

Sometimes images say more than words. Beautiful visual assets enrich experiences and help to market products.

Includes

Storyboard
Video Production
Product Trailers
Product Close ups
Art Direction
 
Video Production

Moving content helps to explain product features and use cases in an engaging and immersive way.

Includes

Product Renderings
2D & 3D animations
AR & VR experiences
Product Trailers
Product demonstrations
 
CGI & Animation

We make hidden features visible and bring product visualizations to the next level. All with CGI magic.  

SMAL Benefit

How you can benefit
from our expertise.

Dreaming

Pre-seed

  • Shark Tank
  • Ideation Workshops
  • Rapid Evaluation
Planning

Seed

  • Opportunity Framing
  • Brand Strategy
  • Corporate Identity
  • Product Strategy
  • Technology Strategy
  • Proof of Concept
  • Investor Pitch Support
Founding

Start-up

  • Experience Planning
  • Product & Software Development
  • Usability Testing
  • Partner Sourcing
  • Implementation
  • Idea Protection
Entering

1st stage

  • Experience Management
  • Marketing Support
  • Kickstarter Support
  • Aiding Market Entry
  • Product Maintenance
  • Product Optimization
Growing

2nd stage

  • Experience Audit
  • Product Roadmap
  • Successor Ideation
  • Opportunity Hypothesis
  • Product Development
  • Marketing Material
Expanding

3rd stage

  • International Insights Generation
  • Update Brand Strategy
  • Product Development
  • Vision Showcases
  • Identifying New Business Opportunities
Ventures

We invest in exceptional
business ventures.

With our expertise and experience, we help entrepreneurs to infuse design and technology capabilities early on in their business to gain strategic advantage in the market and foster sustainable growth.

Say hello & pitch your venture