From the CEO: The “new” economy.

All this talk about a new economy and a changing consumer ethos gets one thinking, especially when your livelihood depends upon selling stuff to consumers. So first I had to find out the real meaning of ethos. 

ethos –noun 1. The fundamental character or spirit of a culture; the underlying sentiment that informs the beliefs, customs or practices of a group or society; dominant assumptions of a people or period. 

It appears our “new ethos” is all about value, and perhaps changing our disposable goods habit. Being old enough to remember a time before chain stores and disposable everything, the new ethos seems a bit like the way my parents lived and the manner in which I was raised. As the saying goes, everything old is new again. 

You see, depression-era parents who made it to the middle class and placed value on quality and longevity of products raised me. In fact, we just moved my 86-year-old mother out of her house and in with us (a story for another time), and she still has the same furniture she bought in 1956, and it still looks great. 

Now, as someone who makes a living selling furniture, this can be concerning at first. 

But you see, we sell furniture that is made to last and was designed along this same “ethos.” DWR is based upon the tenets of modernism, not modern and definitely not moderne (don’t even get me started). That means we believe in simple, well-designed objects that enrich your life and last a lifetime, the stuff that was in the house I grew up in, much of which is still in use in my home today. This got me thinking about the real value of these things and I began to research vintage pieces of some of our core products.

The Eames Chair and Ottoman was introduced in 1956 and has become a timeless classic. This video is very fun to watch – and really shows just how timeless this product is. When it was introduced the mini microphone that Arlene Francis uses in the interview was, no doubt, state of the art. It was also a time when a talk show host could say, “Almost always, when there’s a successful man, there’s a very interesting and able woman behind him,” and not get booed off the stage. While Ms. Francis’ words have become dated with time, the Eames Lounge has endured, becoming a timeless classic.

Then, just for fun I looked up a vintage piece on the web to see what that same chair would sell for today. It turns out that it would be worth over 10 times what it cost in 1956. How many consumer products could last 53 years and still be relevant, never mind be worth more? My answer: the true classics, like a 54 T Bird, a 65 Mustang, an Eames chair or a Womb Chair. 

This Saturday Evening Post cover from the ’50s (thank you, Mr. Rockwell) is just one example of how iconic and timeless these great things are.  

Along those lines, here is a cover we ran in 2004 (no, that is not my mother). 

At DWR, we really believe that the direction the world seems to be headed in is a good one. Owning things that are not disposable, having a real appreciation for quality and functionality, and maintaining a respect for value – as we all gain a greater understanding of how our planet works, these ideals come to be even more critical. 

Here at DWR we are working every day to do our part. Our product offering is reviewed constantly to see if it is truly functional, timeless and made at a quality level that will provide several lifetimes of enjoyment. In addition, we are looking for better ways to manufacture, sourcing materials and processes that do not harm the environment, and choosing resources closer to home to reduce the amount of fossil fuel used to move a sofa from factory to you. 

Today almost 90% of our upholstery products are made in America. We will continue to move manufacturing to North America over the next few years, and believe that we may be able to have over 90% of everything we offer resourced here. We hope all of you are doing the same in your everyday lives. Shopping closer to home, reusing bags, riding a bike instead of driving everywhere and buying things you need that will offer you years of enjoyment, not disposable products that will wind up in the dump. We have all had too much of that. 

Please be sure to let us know what you think and share any ideas you have on how we can all live more responsibly. 

Thanks 

Ray 

Posted by Ray Brunner CEO, Design Within Reach

Comments

[David Sanchez]

This is a very refreshing take. Naturally, I am a little bit skeptical when a CEO talks like this. I truly hope you are being sincere.

I have been complaining for years about "planned obsolescence" and the wasteful nature of our consumer economy. I like to point to the example of the cast iron skillet as a great model for a sustainable product that is well designed, inexpensive and intended to outlast you. It's proof that it is possible to be profitable on the strength of your product and not engineered weaknesses.

I look forward to seeing what DWR does to set an example for other businesses in the coming years.

[Jeremy]

Dear Ray,
A really excellent newsletter you've written there. Like the previous poster, I've always been somewhat suspicious of CEO's banter, however you seem much more sincere & heartfelt in summarizing your values & so forth. My parents also valued quality & longevity & instilled those values in me as well. We don't need more, we just need better & higher quality. Sometimes this costs more up front but it doesn't always have to mean more money. I'd really like to see you concentrate your efforts into selling American made products that are made honestly, & have a price that is an accurate reflection of the product being sold. As Paola Antonelli mentioned previously, there is absolutely no reason Americans should shy away from an American made product & think they only should be buying Italian made merchandise with its extremely high shipping costs & carbon footprint. Of course Italians do so much so well, but there's other options. In light of all this, I'm somewhat surprised to see you've discontinued your case study bed furniture which is American made, & also I think it'd be smart to carry some Blu Dot bed frames. Your bed frame selection is somewhat lacking at the moment! When you have the time, I think it'd be good to get a conversation going with Rob Forbes & maybe post a blog entry from him. He always has very interesting things to discuss & talk about. Last thing I want to say is I seek out substance & quality over flash or style in the choices I make when making purchases. I appreciate a business that can not only make money for itself, but can also be honest & be an asset to the community, plus be great neighbors.

[Lou Sagar]

DWR should respond to the emergence of social retailing by offering its existing fans..and many more new prospective fans, a new transactional model..so that customers, who love your product offering can make a "slow" purchase..take the sting out of "price points" use the social web as an ally, loyalty by new fans will appear, and market share with grow..

[Ray Brunner]

Jeremy-
Thanks so much for taking the time to let us know what you think and for your questions. We do try to be as honest and straight forward as humanly possible.
Regarding the Case Study question, we worked with Herman Miller and the Nelson foundation to bring our American Modern collection together. It is made in America and is 100% hard wood, no veneers. It is made in Vermont by a wonderful family owned factory. After carrying the Case Study collection by Modernica for several years we continued to be troubled by the quality and the lack of connection to the original. I am certain that if you take the time to look at American Modern you will readily see the quality and real value in the pieces. In fact we have moved a great deal of our sourcing to No. America in the last three years. By the end of 2010 we plan to be close to 85% American sourced. In addition we are working with the manufacturers in America to drop ship directly to you from their factory to eliminate a needless trip to our warehouse and then out to you. Once we figured out that a typical piece coming from Europe gets moved eight times before it gets to you, and that if we drop ship it – it only moves once, it became obvious to even me that the positive impact we could have on the environment by making this shift was potentially significant.
I was glad to hear you mention Rob. We miss him around here – but he has moved on. He has a blog at www.studioforbes.com and I hear he is starting a new venture that has something to do with bicycles. We would certainly be pleased to have him contribute to the blog sometime soon.
Please do keep us posted on your thoughts and ideas – I really appreciate it.
Thanks
Ray

[Detective phone cell]

Interesting points! I was actually thinking about this topic last night and this morning (particularly how to incorporate it into my own blog). Thanks for the tips, bro!