Ep196 - Sea to Summit Design Process & New Gear 2026 with Tim Miller

From the drawing board to the sleeping bag, great gear doesn’t just happen…

…it takes 13 years, a children’s IKEA desk, and a whole lot of passion.

In this episode, Ben and Lauren sit down with Sea To Summit’s senior product designer Tim Miller — the mind behind some of the brand’s most iconic gear — for an inside look at what it really takes to design outdoor equipment that lasts. From the Xpot’s award-winning origins to the engineering upgrades behind the new Ultralite XR air mat, Tim pulls back the curtain on the design decisions, trade-offs, and material innovations that keep Sea To Summit at the pointy end of the market.

Be it the bombproof weld construction of the updated air mat range, the clever Memory Lux pillow solving the ‘home pillow hogging the boot’ problem, or the tantalising tease of an airbeam mozzy net on the horizon — tune in for an hour and a half of product insights straight from the source!

Shortcuts:

0:00 — Intro & welcome: Ben and Lauren introduce Tim Miller, senior product designer at Sea to Summit

1:45 — Tim’s background: How he stumbled into Sea to Summit after university, starting unpaid at a children’s IKEA desk

5:00 — The design team: How the long-tenured team of six designers collaborates and avoids working in silos

8:40 — Sea to Summit’s design philosophy: Ground-up original design vs the “me-too” factory approach common in the industry

11:00 — Manufacturing process: Factory visits, quick prototyping, and the story of designing a machine when no existing equipment could make what they wanted

13:10 — Field testing & expeditions: Design team Kimberley packraft trips, testing prototypes in the wild, and the brutal feedback culture

17:15 — Working 2 years ahead: The challenge of designing for 2028 while reacting to what competitors launch today

19:20 — The ultralight balance: Why Sea to Summit won’t sacrifice durability for weight claims, and the lightest-isn’t-always-best debate

25:15 — Sustainability: Sea to Summit’s approach — durability as the best environmental policy, solution-dyed fabrics, and replaceable buckles

31:45 — 2026 sleep systems: Deep dive into the new Circuit sleeping bag — the spiritual successor to the original Trek

37:15 — Women’s fit sleeping bags: Lauren makes a passionate case for keeping women’s specific sizing in the range

39:00 — Air mat updates: The new Ultralite XR — thermally reflective film insulation, dramatically reduced bulk, and the improved weld construction

45:40 — The Comfort Deluxe mat: The 10cm car camping mat that actually folds up properly

51:45 — Pillows: The upgraded Premium Pillow, Down Pillow, and Tim’s passion project — the Memory Lux adjustable pillow

54:40 — Liners: Thermalite vs Coolmax fabrics explained, Tim’s controversial hot tip for the Breeze liner

1:05:30 — Other new products: Pack taps refresh, hydration bladders, and the X range and dinnerware updates

1:06:50 — Community questions: Mat longevity in humid climates, sleeping bag temperature ratings, what’s in the pipeline for 2027/28

1:09:10 — The big teaser: Tim drops the airbeam sealed mozzy net passion project — Sea to Summit entering the airbeam category

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