[velominati]

Money helps, but it's neither necessary nor sufficient.

I've been at a company that many considered to have excellent design and that received a lot of attention here (Heroku). There was a culture that permeated the company around beautiful design and what I would call "maker excellence". It was a place where people who liked building great things (both engineers and designers) felt at home.

[pc]

Yes, well said. Heroku was an inspirational product when we were starting out.

[atonse]

Yes! I used to love all their Japanese themed stuff in the beginning.

I totally understand the need to be a bit less "opinionated" as you expand your audience, but they were definitely memorable.