In a world of AI-driven, commoditised products, taste and experience set you apart. At DesignerVC, we embed product design strategy and execution into early-stage startups—turning design into a strategic growth engine that drives real business impact, not just aesthetics.
DesignerVC invests product design strategy and execution into early-stage startups—transforming design into a driver of growth.
We act as an extension of your team, streamlining customer journeys, eliminating friction, and improving retention, engagement, and revenue. By embedding design as a strategic advantage, we help you avoid leaving money on the table—ensuring every interaction maximises business impact.
So far, we've partnered with 12 startups to elevate user experiences and drive measurable growth—doubling revenue to £100m ARR, increasing a fitness marketplace's active users by 300%, and taking an AI product from zero to £3m ARR in under a year, resulting in a £20m Series A raise.
We know that early-stage startups need flexibility. That’s why we offer:
Consulting, execution, or both - we adapt to your goals.
Cash, equity, or a hybrid - tailored to your needs.
Start small, then scale up as trust and results grow.
We understand that trust takes time to build, especially in the early stages. That’s why we offer a low-risk way to start working together. You can begin with a simple cash-based engagement for design services—no long-term commitment or equity involved. As our partnership grows and trust is established, you’ll have the option to transition to an equity-based model, offsetting your costs and aligning our success with yours for the long term. This approach lets you experience the value we bring without any pressure, putting your startup's needs first.
Book an Intro
Map user journeys to uncover pain points and opportunities for growth.
Elevate your product with design that resonates and converts.
Improve key metrics like retention, engagement, and revenue.
Focussing on the end-to-end view, often bridging the gap between Product and Marketing for a seamless user experience.
Work with someone who has experience designing products, used by literally billions of users and knows how to deliver growth, fast!
Designed Products For
Pro:Direct
Move Technologies
Alumni 2021 Learning from the world’s best product people.
Take a look at some recent projects
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Improve your existing product or create something from scratch.
Book an IntroHello! I’m Tom Teague, product design leader (Pro:Direct Sport, Nike, Move Technologies and now multiple AI startups) and investor with a passion for helping ambitious founders grow their startups.
I bring 15 years of experience in product and UX design, combined with a sharp focus on business growth and behavioural economics. Working closely with founders, and co-founding startups myself, has given me a unique business insight as a designer.
"Tom began by understanding our business and the core problem we wanted to solve. He then designed an effective solution, collaborating with many roles within the business in a fast, professional manner. He then helped to evolve the product further with an iterative approach, based on feedback and insights, resulting in a dramatically improved product."
"We had huge success with this project and were able to improve usability, performance and key metrics including conversion rates. I always felt we would not have achieved the outcome we did without Tom, he played a huge part in the success of the project. After working with Tom for 2 years I can safely say he is at the very top of his game within the design and UI space and has key knowledge and understanding around business processes and values."
“Always presents well thought through designs making the sessions very efficient. He has a growth mindset and is constantly looking for opportunities. This is allowing him to design with the understanding and complexity of customer behaviour and commercial models to build it.”
"I always hire people that are Industrious, High Integrity and Intelligent. Tom definitely ticks these, and is a product designer I would hire over and over. He was specifically instrumental in our ability to increase 'weekly active customers' by 25% through thoughtful design and leveraging behavioural psychology. He never runs from a problem and is at his best when he's got context over the whole business."
“Is always willing to listen to feedback and report back findings to teams which would benefit from them as well as implementing solutions to a multitude of problems.”
“It’s a real joy to pick up thoughtful and considered designs with clear scenarios. Trust me I have worked with other designers / product managers who really don’t do that!… and then if I raise any minor questions / clarifications about edge cases, he responds really quickly with a clear and well thought-out answer.”
Want to know more details? Let's talk.
Book an IntroInstantly get an experienced product design leader embedded in your business, who deeply understands your problems and uses data, behavioural economics and business strategy to solve them, fast.
DesignerVC is a unique hybrid between a design partner and an investor. We combine exceptional product and UX design expertise with strategic business acumen to help startups grow. Our flexible model includes cash retainers and the option for sweat equity investments.
Great design isn’t just about aesthetics—it directly impacts user acquisition, retention, and overall business growth. A well-designed product creates trust, improves usability, and keeps customers coming back. Startups that prioritize design outperform their competitors by creating stronger emotional connections with users and solving problems more effectively.
We partner with early-stage AI startups focused on improving human wellbeing. We’re particularly interested in healthtech and wellness companies with strong, ambitious founders, a clear mission, and a product or idea with the potential for significant impact.
We become an extension of your team. This means helping map user journeys, improving your product’s usability, refining your growth strategy, and offering ongoing design and business support. You can start with a flexible cash retainer, and if it’s the right fit, transition into a longer-term equity-based partnership.
No! While design is at the heart of what we do, our approach is grounded in behavioral economics and business growth. We don’t just make things look good; we align design with measurable metrics like user acquisition, retention, and revenue growth.
Unlike agencies, we focus on long-term partnerships and invest in your success—whether that’s through flexible retainers, equity, or both. We care deeply about your business outcomes and bring a venture capital mindset to every decision.
Traditional VCs focus primarily on financial investment and strategic advice. At DesignerVC, we go further by providing hands-on design expertise alongside capital. We actively work on improving your product and user experience, helping you achieve meaningful growth.
If you’re an early-stage founder in healthtech or wellness with a mission to improve lives, we’d love to hear from you. Whether you’re looking to create a product from 0 to 1, grow your existing product, improve user retention, or scale your business, DesignerVC could be the right partner for you.
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