Find the right problem
Understand your customers, the problems they face and where a new product or service could help. Choose a specific problem to solve.
You get / A clear problem, target users and ideas to test.
Product & venture development
Test your idea.
Build a working product.
Have an idea for a new product, service or business? We help you assess the opportunity, build a prototype and test it with the people who would use it.
Venture Lens combines commercial judgement with hands-on product development. For founders, business teams and advisory partners who want to turn an idea into something they can evaluate.
Business caseUser testingRapid prototypingOur own products
01 / VENTURE LENS
Is your idea worth building?
Let’s find out.
Venture Lens
Before you commit to a full build, we help you answer four questions: Who needs this? Will they use it? Can it work? And how could it make money? Start with one question or work through them in a focused sprint.
Test the business idea
Talk to potential users, review alternatives and test your assumptions about demand, cost and revenue.
You get / What we learned and a recommendation to proceed, change direction or stop.
Build a prototype
Build an interactive prototype around the features that matter most. Let potential users try it before committing to a full product.
You get / An interactive prototype and feedback from testing.
Product strategy
Decide what belongs in the first release, what it could cost and how to reach your first customers.
You get / A first-release scope, build options and a route to market.
A focused piece of work or a complete Venture Lens sprint.
Scope,
timing and deliverables agreed before we start.
Start where you need help.
We agree the scope, fee and deliverables before work begins.
Focused review
You have an idea or a decision to make. We assess the problem, the business case or the product direction.
A written recommendation and next steps. Discuss a focused reviewVenture Lens sprint
A connected piece of work covering discovery, validation, a prototype and a plan for the first release.
A prototype, user feedback and a build scope. Discuss a Venture Lens sprintOngoing product guidance
A scoped retainer for product decisions, prototype reviews and planning the next stage with your team.
Agreed review sessions and practical direction. Discuss ongoing guidance02 / HOW WE WORK
A conversation.
A prototype. A plan.
Each stage answers a specific question before you invest further. We use modern development tools, including AI, to shorten the time between an idea and something you can test.
-
01
Understand the idea
Tell us what you want to build, who it is for and what you need to find out.
-
02
Build something to test
Agree the scope and create a prototype, or start with customer research if the idea needs more work.
-
03
Review the feedback
See what users understood, what they valued and what needs changing.
-
04
Agree the next step
Decide whether to build, revise the idea or leave it there. Agree costs and responsibilities before further work.
VENTURE LENS IN PRACTICE
What could we work on?
Three examples of how an engagement could start. These illustrate the approach; they are not client case studies.
THE STARTING QUESTION
“Could this idea
“Could this idea
become a business?”
A founder has an idea for an app that helps independent instructors manage bookings.
We investigate
How instructors handle bookings now, where existing tools fall short and whether they would pay for an alternative.
We make it testable
A prototype of the booking journey, put in front of potential users for feedback.
You leave with
A clearer target customer, a tested prototype and a proposed first-release scope.
THE STARTING QUESTION
“Could we turn this
“Could we turn this
service into a product?”
A business handles the same customer requests manually and sees an opportunity for a self-service portal.
We investigate
Which requests repeat, what customers want to do themselves and where the service still needs a person.
We make it testable
A prototype of one frequent customer task, tested with customers and the service team.
You leave with
A prioritised feature list, feedback and an assessment of integration needs and build costs.
THE STARTING QUESTION
“How do we help a client
“How do we help a client
test a new offering?”
An advisory team sees a potential subscription service within a client’s existing business.
We investigate
Who would buy it, the value they expect and the assumptions behind pricing and delivery costs.
We make it testable
A service concept and a prototype of the customer experience, reviewed with the partner and potential users.
You leave with
Evidence for the client’s investment decision and options for a pilot, with responsibilities agreed.
03 / BUILT INSIDE THE STUDIO
Products we’re building.
We build our own software too. TRIM and STREAM are products in development, shaped by testing and feedback.
WATERSPORTS & SESSION INTELLIGENCEIn development
TRIM
Time on the water.
A better record of it.
TRIM
A watersports app in development, bringing session tracking, wearable data and local conditions into one place.
Explore TRIM
PERSONAL HEALTH & LIFESTYLE INTELLIGENCEIn development
STREAM
A clearer view of
your health information.
STREAM
A health and lifestyle app in development, helping people bring their health information and everyday habits together.
Explore STREAMBoth products are being developed and tested. Features and availability will change as the work progresses.
04 / WORKING WITH PARTNERS
You know your customers.
We help build the product.
For advisory firms and industry specialists who want to help clients test a new idea or develop a product.
Your relationships and industry knowledge bring the context. DC Raine adds product strategy, validation and hands-on prototyping.
Discuss working togetherClient context & market access
The customer problem, industry knowledge and relationships needed to understand and test the opportunity.
Product judgement & building
A structured investigation, a prototype people can try and a practical scope for what follows.
A clear working arrangement
Client responsibilities, fees, delivery roles and IP ownership, agreed for the specific engagement.
Work together on a project, agree ongoing product guidance or discuss a joint venture. The arrangement follows the work.
05 / THE STUDIO
Business thinking.
Hands-on building.
Duane CooperFounder · DC Raine
Duane’s experience spans most of South Africa’s major banks and insurers, as well as smaller fintechs.
He brings that experience to product strategy and hands-on software development, working directly on product decisions, prototypes and selected client engagements. The studio also develops its own products, including TRIM and STREAM.
The focus is useful software, intellectual property and partnerships that can grow into a business. Based in South Africa, with a way of working that supports collaboration across locations.
Talk to DuaneBEFORE WE START
A few practical questions.
Clear expectations make better projects.
Do I need a fully formed idea?
No. You might have a customer problem, a rough concept or a product that needs a new direction. We start by defining the question you need to answer.
What does an engagement cost, and how long does it take?
That depends on the question, the prototype and the testing involved. After an initial conversation, we propose a defined scope, fee, deliverables and timeline. Further work is agreed separately.
Is a prototype a finished product?
A prototype lets you test an idea and key parts of the experience. A production release needs a separate scope covering reliability, security, data handling, integrations and support.
Can you help build the product after the sprint?
We can discuss the next stage once the idea has been tested. That may mean a further build, refining the prototype or working with a delivery partner. The sprint does not commit you to a full build.
Who owns the intellectual property?
Ownership and usage rights are agreed in writing before work begins. Client work, existing studio IP and jointly developed products may need different arrangements.
Can an advisory firm bring a client engagement?
Yes. We can work alongside an advisory team on discovery, validation and prototyping. Each engagement defines the client relationship, responsibilities, confidentiality and commercial terms.
HAVE AN IDEA? LET’S TALK.
Tell us what you
want to build.
A new product, service or business idea.
We’ll help you work
out where to start.