Big Stories, Small Spaces: The Rise of ‘Never Too Small’

Tiny homes are having a big moment. Whether it be a response to the rising cost of housing, a dwindling supply, or an ongoing push into living more intentionally, living small is in vogue. And here in Australia, ‘Never Too Small’ is helping millions of us to make the jump.

For a long time, the Australian dream was to own a nice, big house that you could make your own. For younger Australians, that dream is becoming less and less likely every year, and increasingly, this cohort is turning to smaller space living, for both affordability and sustainability.

Making the jump isn’t as easy as simply squeezing everything you own into a smaller footprint, though, and many (such as myself) have taken to YouTube-based edutainment to skill themselves up.

One such YouTube channel stands tall in the Australian market. Never Too Small, formed in 2019 by former filmmaker Colin Chee, has amassed hundreds of episodes diving into the art of small-space living. Featuring interviews with the architects who purposefully design small spaces for maximum impact, alongside conversations with the people actually living in cramped quarters, Never Too Small has amassed a sizable audience: with 3.1 million subscribers, and episodes regularly enjoying hundreds of thousands of views. 

The channel isn’t only dedicated to Australian properties, though, having expanded out to detail the living quarters of people across the globe: from Tokyo to Paris, and Amsterdam to Spain. In fact, the business recently kicked off a new initiative that brings the brand’s penchant for storytelling to the medium of print—but we’ll get there. 

As all things do, Never Too Small started small. In fact, as Chee tells me, it largely started as a way for him to learn more about how to get the most out of his own small space.

Strong Foundations

A Malaysian-born filmmaker, Chee’s journey into small-space living started back in 2013 with the purchase of a “shitty” off-the-plan apartment that looked a lot better in the marketing material. 

“When I got the apartment, it wasn’t what I was expecting,” he says. “I started thinking about how I could improve it, looking around on Instagram and YouTube for some help. I realised I couldn’t afford an architect to do the work for me, but I figured I could use my filmmaking skills to make some videos and chat with architects as a way of getting some free advice from them.”

This lightbulb moment coincided with a lull at work at his content agency job, and his former boss (now business partner) James McPherson affording him the ability to use the studio equipment for his architecture-focused idea. 

“I went online and found local architects in Melbourne, that’s where it started. I sent about 20 emails to different architects, and got two responses back,” Chee says. “One of those responses ghosted me after one email, and the other one that came back to me ended up being the first episode of Never Too Small.”

That episode, focusing on a micro-lux apartment in Melbourne designed by Studio Edwards, started a four-episode run that Chee pulled together on his own—and then, he left it. Work picked up, and he wasn’t sure if the series would actually take off or be worth his time. But, much to Chee and McPherson’s surprise, people were watching. 

Those first few episodes generated enough views on YouTube that the pair decided to make more, eventually earning enough money from YouTube to fund a ticket to Sydney to film with local architect Brad Swartz, which, as fate would have it, ended up being the channel’s breakout video.

That video (embedded below) has amassed 18 million views as of the time of writing, which, as Chee put it, convinced them that they were doing something right and gave them the confidence to start a company dedicated to creating more Never Too Small.

A Sprawling Estate

At this point, Never Too Small has grown to the point it has featured internationally recognised architects, as well as beautiful concept homes the world over, and has built up an international audience of millions. But it isn’t just house porn.

“Our brand evolved over time to tackle bigger questions, and not solely focus on small-apartment design,” Chee explains.

“As we evolve, we’re digging deeper into how design impacts people’s stories, and what kind of hacks people have to actually live in small-footprint homes.”

A big part of that is the documentary series NTS has kicked off: Small Footprint, which explores how to design future housing; How I Live Small, which features the people living in small spaces rather than the architects who make them; and Wonderful Waste, which explores how best to use waste products in design and architecture. 

These series often run concurrently with the channel’s more traditionally structured episodes and deliver a different perspective on the conversation between architect, designer, builder, homeowner, and renter. These more topic-oriented videos tend to do well with the channel’s diehard fans, who are a more engaged group of designers, architects, and enthusiasts.

One of the benefits of having such a dedicated audience, Chee explains, is that Never Too Small is able to do annual audience surveys to gauge interest in what they want from the publisher. As it turns out, the Never Too Small audience really wanted a magazine. Thankfully, Chee had wanted to do it too.

The ‘Rebellious Sister’

That magazine is now in its fourth issue, launching quarterly, and explores the topic of small-space living from a more holistic perspective. It certainly focuses on the small spaces themselves, but also the concepts behind them, the ideas that make them happen, and the ways people make them their own.

For example, Never Too Small’s third issue focuses largely on Japan and its ethos of maximising space. Within it, we hear from Japanese architects who have built out their own homes to fit their cities and how they’ve imprinted personality into the objects they surround themselves with. It’s a fascinating read, and it sold out across Australian and European distributors. 

One of the key selling points of the magazine, to me at least, is how premium it feels, with thick and robust paper used in its construction, rather than anything flimsy. Chee and co. were mentored by the makers of Frankie magazine, and it shows. 

“Every chapter, and every topic, has its own feel in our magazines. It does make the graphic designer’s job 100 times more difficult, though,” Chee laughs.

“With the magazine, we didn’t want to do anything glossy; we wanted something a bit more experimental, playful, and out there.

“When I first explained my vision for the magazine, people said I was crazy, but when I started Never Too Small I didn’t know anything about YouTube it worked out.”

The magazine also allows the Never Too Small team to flex their skills outside of the core brand’s minimalist design language. Chee explains he sees the NTS magazine as the “rebellious sister” of the YouTube channel, using handwritten fonts and bold, colourful flatlays to create the energy needed to make print pop. 

DIY Home Inspo

Another major change in the kinds of stories being told by the Never Too Small team (which is no longer just Chee shooting, editing, and uploading the videos himself, but a dedicated team of videographers, editors, designers, and writers) is a deeper and intentional focus on showcasing DIY. 

As time goes on, more and more episodes feature live-in designers who use their DIY skills to make a home that works for them, rather than one made by someone else. The goal, according to Chee, is to inspire more people to make the changes themselves, rather than assume they need an architect’s hand.

That idea came from an interaction Chee had on the streets of Melbourne, where a viewer told him about how he had watched NTS episodes, and used Ikea bookcases and chairs to make his own version of something an architect had done that better fit his needs—at a fraction of the cost.

“He said by doing that he had totally transformed his apartment, just by stealing the ideas from NTS and going to Ikea,” Chee laughed. 

“That’s why I started talking to architects (in the first place), to learn. It’s nice for people to steal ideas in a way, and make them their own, so I kind of see the purpose of Never Too Small through that.”