Nottingham Spirk
Nottingham Spirk is a Cleveland-based, 50+ year product innovation firm that delivers end-to-end research, design, engineering, and prototyping services to Fortune 1000 enterprises, mid-market firms, and funded ventures, monetizing primarily through multi-year professional services engagements and IP licensing.
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1970
- HeadquartersCleveland, United States
- Headcount51–100
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
What Nottingham Spirk does
Nottingham Spirk is a privately held, Cleveland-based product innovation firm founded circa 1970, employing 51-100 people and operating for over 50 years. The company provides end-to-end product development services under its proprietary Vertical Innovation® process, which co-locates research, design, engineering, and prototyping to take client concepts from ideation to commercialization. Its reported track record includes over 1,600 patents generated, a claimed 95% commercialization rate, 100% IP assignment, and over $100 billion in cumulative sales generated for client-partners. The company serves three client tiers: Fortune 1000 enterprises (e.g., Procter & Gamble, Sherwin-Williams, Medtronic, Cardinal Health, Mars, General Mills), mid-market companies, and funded venture companies. Notable outputs include the P&G SpinBrush, Sherwin-Williams Twist & Pour (23 patents), Medtronic CardioInsight Vest, Club Car Tempo Walk, and the BodyMedia wearable acquired by Jawbone for $100M+.
The firm's go-to-market is exclusively B2B, delivered through direct enterprise field sales and the EY-Nottingham Spirk Innovation Hub, a strategic partnership established in 2025 with Ernst & Young that combines EY's innovation consulting leadership with Nottingham Spirk's product development capabilities. Revenue is generated primarily through professional services engagements (custom, multi-year contracts), supplemented by a 3-month NS Pathfinder™ growth sprint service and IP licensing/royalty arrangements. Customer segments are organized by vertical: Consumer Products, Medical Devices, National Security, Commercial/Industrial, Food Service, and Packaging. The firm is co-led by John Nottingham (Co-President and Co-Founder) and John Spirk (Co-Founder), with founder ownership implied and no institutional investors disclosed. Recent strategic emphasis has shifted toward AI-enabled hardware and firmware solutions, formalized in the "AI Powered by NS" service line and supported by AI/ML integrations across products such as the EyeCheq autonomous vision screening kiosk, the AiM worker safety platform, and a PERS smartwatch with custom fall-detection ML models.
Nottingham Spirk firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- Nottingham Spirk
- Legal name
- Nottingham Spirk
- Website
- https://nottinghamspirk.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1970
- Operating status
- Operating
- Headcount range
- 51–100 employees
- Short description
- Nottingham Spirk is a Cleveland-based, 50+ year product innovation firm that delivers end-to-end research, design, engineering, and prototyping services to Fortune 1000 enterprises, mid-market firms, and funded ventures, monetizing primarily through multi-year professional services engagements and IP licensing.
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
Where Nottingham Spirk is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Cleveland
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices1 record
Markets served
Nottingham Spirk business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Technology or R&D, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Product Innovation Services: End-to-end product development services from concept to commercialization for Fortune 1000 companies, mid-market companies, and funded venture companies. Revenue generated through client partnerships for innovation consulting, design, engineering, and commercialization.
- NS Pathfinder Sprint: 3-month growth opportunity discovery sprint resulting in product and/or service roadmap. Provides structured innovation engagement for clients.
- IP Generation and Licensing: Generation of patents and intellectual property for clients, with some ventures formed as startups around products before acquisition by partners.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Other | Multi-year contract | Custom Professional Services Engagement |
Go-to-market motion1 record
Distribution channels3 records
Marketing channels6 records
Nottingham Spirk product offering
Product offeringCore offering
Nottingham Spirk is a B2B product innovation firm that takes client products from initial concept through commercialization using its proprietary Vertical Innovation® process, integrating research, design, engineering, prototyping, IoT enablement, and embedded systems under one roof. The firm also offers the NS Pathfinder™ 3-month strategic growth sprint and generates IP and patents for clients, with select ventures formed as startups around co-developed products before acquisition.
Product overview
Nottingham Spirk is a product innovation firm offering Vertical Innovation® — an end-to-end product development service with a 95% commercialization rate. The company operates across multiple service lines including NS Pathfinder™ (strategic growth sprints), IoT Enablement, and Embedded Systems engineering. Their product portfolio spans medical devices (Medtronic CardioInsight Vest, Tactile Medical Flexitouch Plus, XaTek ClotChip, EyeCheq Kiosk, Cardinal Health InPower, Sterifre AURA, TecTraum pro2cool, MidasVIEW), consumer health wearables (BodyMedia Smart Wearable, AI Smart Watch for PERS), consumer products (P&G SpinBrush, Schick Hydro, Swiffer Sweep+Vac, Purell, Buddy FLEX Heater, Huffy Green Machine, HALO Bassinest, Naväge, Hydros, Twist & Pour Paint Container), commercial/industrial products (Club Car Tempo Walk, Cub Cadet Hauler, Troy-Bilt FLEX, Dirt Devil Vacuums, Tech Case, Nikola Labs Vero, Polar Delight, Kraft YES Pack, Febreze Air Duster), and emerging technology platforms (AI Worker Safety Platform, Jacuzzi FX-IR Therapy, Jacuzzi True Water, Zippo FlameScapes, SmartMouth Mouthwash, Ditto Digital Pattern Projection, Rug Doctor). The company has generated over $100 billion in sales for client-partners and holds over 1,600 patents.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Brands
- Vertical Innovation®: The company's proprietary end-to-end product development process that brings together research, design, engineering, and prototyping all under one roof.
- NS Pathfinder™
Products and services
- Vertical Innovation® End-to-end product development service bringing together research, design, engineering, and prototyping under one roof, delivering market-leading product breakthroughs from idea to commercialization with a 95% commercialization rate.
- NS Pathfinder™ 3-month strategic sprint designed to uncover opportunities for growth, resulting in a robust product and/or service roadmap in a given topic area.
- IoT Enablement Service to integrate physical products with digital systems, creating smart and interconnected products that communicate, monitor environments, and make intelligent decisions based on data analysis.
- Embedded Systems Comprehensive engineering service for advanced electronic products with à la carte options supporting an organization's electronic product development efforts.
- EY-NS Innovation Hub Joint go-to-market partnership with Ernst & Young delivering end-to-end innovation services by combining EY's innovation consulting leadership with Nottingham Spirk's product innovation expertise.
Quantifiable outcome
- Generated over $100 billion in sales for client-partners
- +6 more outcomes
Companies that use Nottingham Spirk
Customer profileNamed customers13 records
Segments6 records
Ideal customer profiles3 records
Nottingham Spirk technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
AI capability16 records
Feature6 records
Nottingham Spirk partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
15 partnerships are on record, tiered strategic and core.
- AsclepiistrategicPartnership to accelerate large-scale manufacturing and nationwide deployment of Artemis regenerative wound care platform. Artemis is an extracellular matrix technology for tissue regeneration supporting healing of chronic wounds including diabetic foot ulcers and burns. Collaboration addresses chronic wounds affecting 6 million Americans annually.
- Ernst & Young (EY)coreThe EY-Nottingham Spirk Innovation Hub brings all innovation capabilities under one roof to deliver end-to-end innovation. It combines EY's recognized leadership in innovation consulting with Nottingham Spirk's product innovation expertise and other technology and value chain partners to turn great ideas into real business outcomes.
- EyeCheqstrategicPartnership to develop the world's first AI-driven, fully autonomous kiosk for fast, accurate vision screenings at no cost to consumers. EyeCheq kiosk combines vision screening tools with intelligent design for deployment in pharmacies, clinics, and retail health settings.
- Club Car (Ingersoll Rand)coreDevelopment of Tempo Walk autonomous golf caddie - the first autonomous golf caddie blending tradition and technology. Design and engineering improvements transformed feasibility prototype into market-ready product weighing 95 pounds with accurate GPS tracking.
- MedtroniccoreDesign and engineering of CardioInsight Mapping Vest - breakthrough medical device with 200+ printed EKG sensors for non-invasive cardiac mapping. Medtronic acquired CardioInsight for $100 million as result of clinical success.
- Procter & GamblecoreLong-standing partnership on consumer product innovations including SpinBrush electric toothbrush (acquired for billions in sales), Swiffer Sweep+Vac (first grocery channel vacuum), and Febreze Air Duster.
- Sherwin-WilliamscoreOpen-innovation partnership developing Twist & Pour paint container with 23 patents. This innovation revitalized Dutch Boy brand with sales tripling in first six months and contributed to Sherwin-Williams becoming world's largest paint company.
- JacuzzistrategicDevelopment of patent-pending FX-IR Therapy integrating infrared and red light therapy with hydromassage. Also collaborated on True Water nano bubble technology for self-maintaining spa water systems.
- Tactile MedicalstrategicDevelopment of first-to-market pneumatic compression garment for head and neck and next-generation Flexitouch Plus System with improved UI, 7-inch color screen, and bilateral adapter for simultaneous leg treatment.
- XaTekstrategicCollaboration on ClotChip portable blood-testing device using technology licensed from Case Western Reserve University. Development included UX/UI design and IoT connectivity for point-of-care blood coagulability monitoring.
- Cardinal HealthstrategicDevelopment of InPower connected medication adherence device with audible alerts and pre-filled pill pod dispensing. First major consumer product for Cardinal Health integrating IoT for patient health monitoring.
- MTD Products (Cub Cadet, Troy-Bilt)coreDevelopment of Cub Cadet EZ Stow Hauler (standing storage design) and Troy-Bilt FLEX all-season modular yard care system (Edison Gold Award winner, Lowe's Vendor Partner of the Year).
- Dirt Devil / TTI Floor Carecore20+ year partnership generating 110 patents and 35 vacuum innovations including first handheld corded vacuum, first all-plastic upright, first onboard tools, and first bagless vacuum line.
- Sterifre MedicalstrategicDevelopment of AURA disinfectant system using microspray hydrogen and cold plasma ozone technology for fast point-of-care infection control without heat or harsh chemicals. System received EPA registration.
- JOANN and SVP WorldwidestrategicJoint venture to develop Ditto digital pattern projection system - first-ever digital pattern projection for home sewists combining algorithmic intelligence with digital projection (Multiple IDEA and Fast Company awards).
Scale indicators5 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights6 records
Nottingham Spirk competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Whipsaw: Industrial design and engineering firm known for cross-industry product innovation including consumer electronics and medical devices. Comparable in delivering patented, award-winning innovations for enterprise clients.
- Smart Design: Boutique product innovation and design consultancy with a similar enterprise client base and end-to-end research-to-launch model. Comparable in size and approach.
- IDEO: Pioneering design and innovation consultancy serving Fortune 500 clients end-to-end from research through commercialization. Closest direct comparable on consulting model, client base, and integrated design/engineering capability.
- Ammunition Group: Product design and brand strategy firm led by Robert Brunner, serving global brands across consumer electronics, household goods, and beauty. Comparable boutique scale with Fortune 500 client roster.
- Bresslergroup: Philadelphia-based product design and development firm with research, design, and engineering under one roof. Closely analogous integrated model to NS's Vertical Innovation process.
- Lunar Design: Silicon Valley-based product design and innovation firm working across consumer, medical, and connected hardware for major brands. Similar scale and Vertical Innovation-style integration.
- Frog Design (Capgemini Engineering): Industrial and product design firm, now part of Capgemini Engineering, serving global enterprises on product innovation. Highly comparable offering across consumer, medical, and industrial clients.
- NewDeal Design: San Francisco-based product design and strategy firm with multi-disciplinary research, design, and engineering capabilities serving enterprise clients. Similar integrated approach and comparable scale.
Broad incumbents
- Cambridge Consultants (Capgemini Invent): Long-standing product innovation and engineering consultancy, now part of Capgemini Invent. Overlaps with NS on deep tech and medical device innovation but operates at broader scale with global delivery.
- McKinsey Design (McKinsey & Company): Global consultancy's design and innovation practice serving the world's largest enterprises on product and service innovation. Competes for the same Fortune 500 innovation mandates as NS.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat4 records
Key risks7 records
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
Nottingham Spirk social profiles
Digital presenceNottingham Spirk financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
Nottingham Spirk leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles2 records
Nottingham Spirk funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Nottingham Spirk M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about Nottingham Spirk
What does Nottingham Spirk do?
Nottingham Spirk is a B2B product innovation firm that takes client products from initial concept through commercialization using its proprietary Vertical Innovation® process, integrating research, design, engineering, prototyping, IoT enablement, and embedded systems under one roof. The firm also offers the NS Pathfinder™ 3-month strategic growth sprint and generates IP and patents for clients, with select ventures formed as startups around co-developed products before acquisition.
Is Nottingham Spirk a public or private company?
Nottingham Spirk is a private company. It is classified as founder individual operated bootstrapped and is currently operating.
When was Nottingham Spirk founded?
Nottingham Spirk was founded in 1970. It employs 51 to 100 people.
Where is Nottingham Spirk based?
Nottingham Spirk is headquartered in Cleveland, United States, in the North America region.
How does Nottingham Spirk make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Product Innovation Services are the primary driver. The others are NS Pathfinder Sprint and IP Generation and Licensing.
Who are Nottingham Spirk's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Whipsaw, Smart Design, IDEO, Ammunition Group, Bresslergroup, Lunar Design, Frog Design (Capgemini Engineering) and NewDeal Design. Broad incumbents are Cambridge Consultants (Capgemini Invent) and McKinsey Design (McKinsey & Company).
Does Nottingham Spirk have an API?
No public API is recorded for Nottingham Spirk.