Steve Jones studied Industrial Design at Newcastle Polytechnic (now University of Northumbria) from 1988-1992 before starting a career in consultancy in London. He has always advocated diversity as a way to stay on top in design and his own experience has seen him design things as diverse as ladies shoes, books, toys, even an internship in the naval architecture department of Swan Hunter shipbuilders. Later he worked extensively in the furniture industry before moving into lighting and forming Innermost with Russell Cameron in 1999.