A few client projects a year.
We build our own products first, which is why we only take a handful of client projects each year. The ones we take, we build the way we build our own: end to end, and we keep running them afterwards.
What we do
Mobile apps
iOS and Android from a first sketch through to the App Store and Play Store. One codebase, both platforms, native where it matters.
- Design and build, then the release itself
- Store listing, screenshots, review submission and the rejections that follow
- Sign in, payments and subscriptions wired to a server that verifies them
- Crash reporting and analytics from day one, so you find out before your users tell you
Web and product sites
Marketing sites and web products, built fast and kept that way. Most of it is static, so there is less to go wrong and less to pay for.
- Built to load quickly on a phone on mobile data, which is where most people will see it
- Search, structured data and the technical work that decides whether Google shows you
- A content setup you can edit without ringing us
- Hosting, domains and certificates, set up once and left running
Ongoing operation
We don't hand over and disappear. Someone is still responsible for the thing after it launches, and it is us.
- Updates as iOS and Android break things underneath you, which they do every year
- Monitoring and alerts that reach a human
- The 3am fix when something goes down
- Server costs kept honest as you grow
How it works
1. A conversation
Free, and usually short. What you want to build, who it is for, and whether we are the right people. We will say so if we are not.
2. A fixed scope and a fixed price
Written down before anything starts: what you get, what it costs, when it lands. You are not paying a day rate while we work it out.
3. Build, in the open
You see it working as it goes rather than at the end. Weekly, on a real device you can hold.
4. Launch, then keep running
We handle the store submissions and the launch. Then we stay on to run it, month to month, for as long as you want us.
What we have shipped
We are not describing this from theory. Kerbnow reads UK parking signs and tells you whether you can park, and it is live in both stores. RHUL Mobile is the campus app for Royal Holloway students, rated 5.0, and we have run it since 2020. Skelland Brown is client work.
We also write about the parts people usually find out the hard way: what an app costs, shipping to the App Store and Play Store, and the stack we ship with.
Common questions
What does an app cost?
It depends on what it does, but we quote a fixed price before starting rather than billing by the day. We have written up how app pricing actually breaks down, including the parts people forget, like store fees and running costs after launch.
How long does it take?
A focused first version is typically a few months from first conversation to being live in both stores. Store review itself adds days, not weeks, though a rejection can add a round trip.
Do you work with people outside the UK?
Yes. We are a UK studio and we work in British hours, but the work is remote and the clients do not have to be here.
Can you take over an app someone else built?
Sometimes. It depends on the state of it. Send us the repository and we will tell you honestly whether it is worth continuing or starting again.
Why do you only take a few projects a year?
Because we build and run our own products too, and because we stay on to operate everything we ship. Taking on more would mean doing both worse.
Who owns the code?
You do. It is yours at the end, in your own repository, whether or not you keep us on afterwards.