Welcome Dave Perry!
October 22nd, 2019
It is our great pleasure to welcome David Perry, Executive Editor of Furniture Today, to our LOGICDATA global headquarters in Deutschlandsberg, Austria.
David is no stranger to LOGICDATA, but being that this is his first visit to our headquarters – and to Austria – we thought we’d take a few minutes to talk with him about his time on campus, his initial observations and any new insights about LOGICDATA after this “firsthand” experience.
This is your first visit to Austria – what is your initial impression of the country/this region?
“You know, I have seen the Sound of Music, so I imagine these high Alpine Vistas, I haven’t quite seen those, but beautiful countryside, rolling countryside, love the history, love the architecture. I love the high-tech nature of the country. I haven’t been to Europe for a while and Europe is just a high-tech place. I’ve got to learn more about the pastries.”
And it’s also your first time at LOGICDATA’s world headquarters campus – in the short time you’ve gotten to know us all here, what three words would you use to describe us?
- Innovative
- Collaborative
- Inspirational
I love all the things that you do to bring everyone together. I love the signage on the floor that says to be creative, turn right. I mean how cool is that? I love the silent room, because in the United States we’re kind of afraid of silence. A company that embraces silence, – you have to give a silent shout out to that. And I think I love the energy on the campus, there are a lot of young people here. Look at this classroom, now we’re back in school. You know, I was a great student many years ago as I recall. I love it, it’s a really innovative campus.
You had the opportunity to experience the Da Vinci Lab. Why do you think this creative maker space is so fundamental to LOGICDATA’s culture?
One thing I love about the lab is that you let people go in there and work on personal projects, not that everyone all the time is working on personal projects. But you give them permission to work on whatever they want to work on. I love the way that that’s going to get people into the lab. And it’s going to be a place that people are going to want to go. And as they get better, even if they are making something for themselves or their family those skills will help them here at work. Any skill that they pick up there is a positive thing. I love the way you encourage that. In addition to that, you have really cool workstations. I don’t know how to work any of that stuff, but for an engineer it’s probably like Disneyland. A lot of neat stations, I love the natural light, I love the DaVinci touches on the walls. I asked Walter when I sat down with him today what DaVinci would think about the lab, and he said he thinks DaVinci would like it. That’s the ultimate compliment, Leonardo would say “Yeah you’re rocking it”.
What have you learned about LD’s role and impact in advancing motion and wellness solutions for today’s home and work environment?
Well I didn’t realize the history that you started with office and now you’re into the home. So, you obviously have the office part really down well and you’re expanding in the home. Look, you have two products that are very high-tech products. What impresses me is that you own everything. You have engineered everything. Other people are buying control boxes and you’re making them. If you think about the control boxes, the brains, I mean you are the brains, you have the brains, and it’s always good to have the brains. I think it’s a big strategic advantage. Good for you!
What do you think about LOGICDATA’s SILVERlite adjustable base?
I love the way you position it in the U.S. “Good things come in small packages” or “Size matters and we have the smallest”. That is a clever, a double entendre, that is a way to kick through the market clutter and to attract attention. Size does matter with shipping, obviously, the largest size the more are the shipping costs. You are minimizing shipping costs. I love your commitment to online world. The online space is growing rapidly, our research shows it gained 9% of market share in just 2 years. You see the future and you are meeting the future with that product. It is innovative, it is designed for shipping. I just saw the test lab, you can drop a 280 lb. sandbag on it nothing happens. That’s pretty impressive too. It’s the real deal. It is aimed where the market is not only headed, but where it is right now. Strategically, you’re in a really good spot with that.
Describe LOGICDATA’s SILVERlite in 3 words.
- Shippable – Ready to ship, that’s vitally important
- Innovative – A lot of great features
- Stable – Stability means comfort, but also safety. Again very important.
David, thank you for making the trip across the pond. It was a pleasure to spend time with you at our headquarters, sharing our culture and extending a bit of Austrian hospitality. And we especially appreciate your willingness to share your “fresh” perspective on LOGICDATA and our work.
Until next time.