Ideoli’s passion extends beyond fixtures, furnishings and lighting; we also love having fun, being active and supporting the communities that we work with. As such, ideoli has been a proud, active sponsor of the Barrie Colts Minor Atom AAA youth hockey team located in Ontario, Canada. Recently, the Barrie Colts were in Detroit for a tournament, and while they were in town they watched the Toronto Maple Leafs’ practice on February 1 in preparation for the Leafs’ game against the Detroit Red Wings.Our Co-Founder and CEO George Stroumboulis’ nephew plays on the Barrie Colts, and George’s sister organized a meet-and-greet for the kids with the Leafs’ head coach, Mike Babcock. Coach Babcock was nice enough to sign some autographs for the team as they rocked jerseys sponsored by ideoli. Check out a clip of the meeting on Twitter Ideoli is proud to support the ambitions of the Barrie Colts, and we’re as excited as they are that they got to experience a taste of the NHL!
At Ideoli, we’re firm believers in the “work hard, play hard” mantra. Having some fun outside of work helps give us the energy and new perspectives needed to create incredible products for clients all over the world. We also like to reward our team for their hard work, so we recently rented out the luxury mattress retailer Coco-Mat’s showroom in SoHo, New York City for a night of drinks and gourmet, authentic Greek cooking lessons. Opa! The ideoli team learned and mastered how to create four amazing Greek dishes from appetizers to dessert. We learned the importance of utilizing fresh, organic ingredients…and lots of olive oil, of course. We also took time in between lessons to try out some luxury mattresses made in Greece, which range in cost up to $40,000 per mattress. These mattresses, Ideoli’s products and our Greek cooking all share the important ingredients of quality and care. The Ideoli team had an entertaining night and discovered that cooking is not only fun but a great stress reliever. Check back with us to see what food we cooked and how well it turned out!
As naturally excited as we are to work with partners around the world to invigorate spaces, sometimes we need a good caffeine kick to really get the ideas flowing. Recently, Ideoli was in Shanghai, China, for important meetings, so what better place to stop at for a coffee break than one of the world’s largest Starbucks? Ideoli did not play a role in the construction or furnishing of this location, but that doesn’t stop us from admiring the grandoise design. Opened in December 2017, the Starbucks Reserve Roastery in Shanghai comprises 30,000 square feet and features three impressive wood-carved bars. One of these coffee bars measures a staggering 88 feet long!Arguably the coolest part is how pipes carry raw beans to roasters, then to a two-story-tall bronze vessel decorated with traditional Chinese seals and patterns. We also love the international nature of this location. This revolutionary Starbucks is an absolute tourist attraction, buzzing with people from all over the world experiencing this interactive environment.Located in one of the poshest neighborhoods in Shanghai, this location is quite impressive and a great location to recharge, stay caffeinated and meet new people from all walks of life. Next time you’re in Shanghai, definitely check out Starbucks Reserve Roastery. If you like coffee as much as the Ideoli team, you’ll be happy you did!
With reflection comes growth, so we like to take a step back and think about what lessons we learn each year to see how we can improve. Here are some lessons our team members learned in 2018: 1. Focus on Details: “Always have patience and pay attention to detail,” says Georgios, Product Designer at ideoli. 2. Stay Organized: “Organization is key —especially in marketing —to keep projects on time, making sure all the tasks are completed,” notes Kathleen, our Marketing Manager. 3. Don’t Overlook QC: “Quality control is very important. Catching mistakes before they go out is vital in our industry and saves a lot of time,” advises Armando, Applications Engineer at ideoli. 4. Timing Is Everything: ”If it takes some time to make something happen, it takes twice the time to make it perfect,” says Kostas, our Content Producer. 5. Have Fun!: It may be called “work,” but two of our great team members, Janeen, Director of Project & Client Relations, and Vito, our 3D Renderer, both share that work can be fun! Even with Janeen juggling raising a toddler with the fast-paced environment Ideoli, she notes that she’s had a great time this past year. Based on these reflections, and by applying these lessons going forward, 2019 looks like it’s going to be a productive year at Ideoli!
Ideoli’s team comprises of an impressive group of enthusiastic professionals. This team includes our Board of Advisors, who we meet with regularly in New York City for great brainstorming and strategy sessions.“What’s not exceptional with Ideoli team,” says Allen Keiffer, a retail, design and development expert who serves as one of ideoli’s advisors. “They are pulling folks from around the world with all these diverse backgrounds who come together and melt into this wonderful solid foundation of experience throughout the world.”This great team full of passionate professionals with deep expertise has positioned ideoli to continue to grow at an impressive rate. Our brainstorming and strategy sessions with our advisors allow for free-flowing conversation and the ability for our team to come up with unique solutions to any obstacles we face.” “I’m so excited and I can’t wait to see where they go in the next two years. It’s going to be an explosion of excitement,” adds Allen. With an exceptional Board of Advisors, ideoli is on the right track toward progressive growth. We’re looking forward to the next strategy session!
Ideoli has assembled an outstanding team of passionate professionals, including a Board of Advisors comprised of intelligent, passionate professionals with deep, impressive experience across a variety of sectors. We meet with our Board of Advisors regularly in New York City for amazing brainstorming and strategizing sessions, where we tap into their industry knowledge to help us grow. This team—which includes Allen Kiefer, a retail, design and development expert; Grant Whitmore, a digital and media expert; and Robert Peck, a Canadian diplomat with international expertise—helps ideoli achieve its objectives by drawing from their pasts and providing suggestions on how to move forward. Being leaders in their own respective fields, each advisor brings a specialized skillset to the team dynamic. And these leaders aren’t just subject-matter experts; they’re also passionate individuals who care about quality growth and love working with great teams to solve challenges and surpass business goals.
Ideoli has grown significantly in a short period of time, and we attribute much of our success to surrounding ourselves with great team members, partners and clients. That network also includes our Board of Advisors, an amazing group of people from diversebackgrounds that help ensure progressive growth. We meet with our Board of Advisors regularly in New York City to brainstorm and strategize. Our advisors include: 1. Allen Kieffer: Allen is a retail, design and construction expert who helps ideoli withhis wealth of knowledge and experience in these areas. He’s held notable roles such as the Vice President of Retail Development at Guess and currently holds several roles in the Los Angeles area, including Co-Principal of Caviar & Company, which provides retail development services.Allen has been with ideoli for over two years and has known Ideoli’s Co-Founder and CEO George Stroumboulis for over seven years. His international design experience and North American construction background help ideoli navigate challenges and opportunities in these areas. 2. Robert Peck: Robert has been a career diplomat for the government of Canada for 35 years, holding notable roles such as serving as the Canadian Ambassador to Greece and to Algeria. He has now moved on to tackle new challenges, such as advisingideoli on its international growth and serving as a Non-Executive Director at Energean Oil & Gas. Robert has been with Ideoli for the past two years and can draw from his unique background working with leaders around the world to help Ideoli become a truly international company. 3. Grant Whitmore: Grant has deep expertise in the media and digital sectors, as he serves as the Chief Digital Operations Officer at Tribune Publishing Company. He has also held notable roles such as Executive Vice President, Digital at The New York Daily News. Grant has also been with Ideoli for the past two years and helps ideoli better understand the digital landscape and how to grow in a changing environment. What impressive backgrounds this group has! With this outstanding Board of Advisors, Ideoli is in a great position to continue to grow.
At ideoli, we’re dedicated to bringing our clients’ visions into reality. Doing so not only requires creativity and passion but also a thorough quality control process.From design to prototype to production, our quality control team is there every step of the way to ensure that we deliver what we promise without comprising our high standards. “We start the QC process as soon as we finalize our drawings and we start ordering parts for production,” explains Armando, our Senior Applications Engineer. From there, Armando and his team of dedicated professionals go on site at every major production run to oversee Ideoli’s production lines. He also coordinates the on-site review at clients’ installation sites to make sure that the finished products are as amazing as we envisioned. “We are always on site when the product is installed. We like to oversee the whole process from start to finish,” he says. From the early stages of production to final product installations, Armando and the rest of our quality control team are there every step of the way for our clients. This team comprises a major part of what sets ideoli apart, as we are obsessed with delivering the best quality to clients.
Winning business opportunities can be difficult for any startup, but the Ideoli team has quickly learned some keys to success. When pitching new clients or working with existing ones to expand our relationship, we focus on the following five tactics: 1. Be Transparent — Know What You Can And Can’t Deliver: We pride ourselves on sourcing and creating awesome furnishings, fixtures and lighting, and we’re not afraid to show off our capabilities. At the same time, we’re realistic and know that we can’t always deliver what a client wants, whether it be because of time, cost or some other constraint. We’re always transparent with clients about what we can and can’t deliver, and that helps us close deals where everyone ends up happy. 2. Be Innovative: Creativity is key to our success. If a client can dream it, then we can create it. But if a client isn’t exactly sure what they need, or if we think there’s a way to improve upon their initial plans, we’re more than happy to join the brainstorming process early on. We have an international team with the engineering, design and marketing capacity to continually come up with creative designs and figure out unique solutions to make projects work. 3. We Do What We Say: Our word is our bond, so we take what we say very seriously. If we say we’re going to do something for a client, then we do whatever we can to get it done. Simple as that! And in the event that something goes wrong or there’s a slight change of plans, we’re honest and quick to inform clients. Doing so helps us win new opportunities and strengthen client trust. 4. Be Exceptional: From jumping on a 15-hour flight to grab a beer with our clients, to traveling to the other side of the world to help oversee an installation project, we do whatever it takes to wow clients. We don’t want to just do the bare minimum for clients; we aim to be exceptional! 5. Make It Impossible To Say No: We’re confident we can help clients invigorate their spaces and deliver value to their businesses. So if a potential customer seems hesitant to strike a deal with us, we’re willing to pull out all the stops to ensure they’re as comfortable and confident as we are about working together. Following these tactics significantly improves the odds that we’ll not only win more opportunities but also create stronger relationships with clients and delight them with our work.
To be the best we can be for clients, we operate our business knowing we can, and should, be anywhere and everywhere we can find high-quality employees, partners and locations that inspire us around the world. Specifically, three ways Ideoli has become an instant international business include having: 1. Employees in 10 Countries: Ideoli operates as a lean startup, but that hasn’t stopped us from finding employees and associates around the world who add unique talents and perspectives to our team. We work with talent across the globe in countries as varied as Argentina, Greece, Ireland, Mexico, the US and Vietnam. 2. Clients in 10+ Countries: We love when clients are as passionate as we are about invigorating their spaces, and that has quickly led us to work with clients in over ten countries. We experience the world’s most populated cities, and even the most rural villages, while on the quest to build an incredible client base. In one year, the founders of Ideoli flew a combined 500,000 miles around the world, crisscrossing each-other several times. 3. Products Installed in 30+ Countries: Our best work happens when we are in front of our partners, in person, working together. That mindset has led us to install products in over 30 countries and seeing the world the way we have has positioned us to reach even higher. Ideoli has quickly gone global, and we’re excited to expand our footprint with more employees, suppliers, clients and other partners around the world.
As much as we pride ourselves on the efficiency of our global operations, sometimes companies, including Ideoli, experience delays transporting freight because of some factors beyond most people’s control. Since we also pride ourselves on being honest with clients, we want to share some of these setbacks, which you might also face when dealing with freight. Some examples of hinderances include: 1. Tariffs: Traffic isn’t just a problem on Southern California freeways or Manhattan city streets. The US has recently had backlogs at ports of entry due to companies trying to get shipments into the US before tariffs increase. Large ports such as those in Savannah, GA and Long Beach, CA hit record cargo highs in 2018, which contributed to delays in getting shipments to their final destinations. 2. Government Shutdowns: When the US government shuts down, the resulting shortage of government workers causes freight delays. For example, Ideoli recently had a shipment arrive at the Port of Long Beach that then needed to get delivered by truck to St. Louis. Yet because of the government shutdown that lasted for most of January 2019, fewer government employees were working at checkpoints along the route, thereby delaying delivery by approximately two weeks. 3. Weather: Even when weather forecasts are accurate, it’s difficult to get around the fact that storms can slow down shipments and throw off schedules across supply chains. For example, a freight company had to reroute a shipment for one of our clients due to a series of hurricanes rocking the southern US. Along the way, the freight company accidentally damaged the shipments, but we worked hard to quickly remedy the situation. We sent our top personnel for the job to visit the client’s warehouse, assess the damaged shipments, test all of the products on site and replace defective ones. 4. Worker Shortages: In addition to temporary shortages caused by government shutdowns, prolonged shortages in labor pools also cause delays. For instance, the US faces a gap between the supply and demand for truck drivers needed to move freight across the country. The American Trucking Association estimates a shortage of over 50,000 truck drivers as of 2017, and this factor has been at play for the past several years. If the shortage worsens or other areas of the supply chain face worker shortages, freight could be further delayed. Even though there are some factors beyond most companies’ control, it’s important to maintain clear lines of communication and set delivery expectations accordingly. Doing so can help clients adjust accordingly, rather than getting frustrated and confused about why their orders are delayed.
From restauranteurs in California to distribution experts in Southeast Asia, we work with a variety of partners. Working together is usually a great process for all of us, but it goes especially well when we find these types of partners: 1. Those Who Value Their Vendors: Vendors shouldn’t be commoditized. We prioritize forming deep relationships with our vendors to ensure we maintain our level of quality, value, timeliness and innovation. Whether our partner uses Ideoli as a sole vendor or wants us to work in conjunction with other vendors, we love working with partners who value strong relationships, as it tends to lead to better results. 2. Those Who Trust Our Expertise: When working with partners, they often come with their own expertise such as in distribution or commercial real estate, and we value their insights. Likewise, we love working with partners who trust our expertise based on what they decided to work with us for, whether it’s designing custom fixtures that make a retail interior pop or adding LED lighting to a restaurant to help them showcase their food. We have a lot of varied experience from our work around the world, and we’re happy to share it with our partners. 3. Those Who Collaborate With Us: While we have significant expertise, we don’t want our work to be a one-way street. We love working with partners who collaborate with us to come up with creative designs and solutions to help them reach their goals. When we’re collaborative, we can usually better deliver what our partners want because they have more of a voice in the process. We have a variety of partners we work with around the world, and we always want those relationships to run smoothly. Keeping these qualities in mind helps us deliver the best outcomes for our partners. Facebook-f Linkedin-in Tumblr Envelope