Photo courtesy of Design Within Reach.
M
B arry , S enior P rofessional in H uman
Resources (SPHR®), is the chief HR officer at one of the
coolest furnishing stores around, Design Within Reach
(DWR). Its unique approach brings the best in modern design
directly to the consumer through its Studios, catalog and online
store.
DWR is an amazing brand. Barry said, “We are really the only
company in the world that does what we do. We make authentic
modern design accessible by partnering with esteemed designers
and bringing their brands to the market. Our customers are
literally getting a direct experience with high-quality design,
straight from the artists, architects and designers behind it.”
The past few years have been an exciting time for DWR. Rob
Forbes founded the company in 1999 in San Francisco. He was on
a mission to educate the American public about what Europeans
were already enjoying in their homes: the clean classics of
contemporary designers. The effort was successful, and the
DWR brand experienced a meteoric rise. As a result, Americans
everywhere enjoyed a decided upturn in their home furnishings.
As consumers were educated, designers’ reputations grew,
and DWR delivered a whole new aesthetic to homes across
the continent. It seemed a great win-win-win situation, with
customers enjoying beautiful furnishings, designers achieving
profitable recognition and DWR attaining success.
But growth was not easy for the company. It rarely is. In
2010, DWR recruited CEO John Edelman and COO John McPhee
to lead a transformation. Shortly after, the company decided to
relocate its headquarters to Stamford, Connecticut, due to its
proximity to New York City, a vibrant available workforce and the
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opportunity to be part of the exhilarating renewal taking place
in Stamford. The new 30,000-square-foot offices are located in
one of America’s few neighborhoods certified at the Gold level
by the Leadership in Environmental and Energy Design. This
special recognition was awarded because of the 80-acre project’s
environmentally sound design, planning and construction. DWR’s
renovated 1870s brick building merges the industrial past of the
former Yale Lock factory with a moder