Design Manager was founded in 1984, over 35 years ago.
We released the first version of interior design software for Windows; then, we were the first company to bring cloud software to interior designers; and now, just this past quarter released our first native iOS app. We have seen the highs and lows of the economy and massive changes in the design industry -- but one thing remained constant, we grew our client base and always found innovative ways to serve them. Through it all, our mission has remained the same: helping designers run successful businesses where they are able to focus on design while technology takes care of the rest.
In other words, Design Manager has enjoyed a long, steady history of growth and accomplishments. However, our limited team size prevented us from acting on your needs as quickly as we would like, especially as new technologies opened up a world of opportunities to help you build your businesses. Enter 1stdibs -- a company that launched it's trade program just three years ago and has already increased to over 50,000 registered designers.
We know that 1stdibs will be an excellent partner for us given their similar dedication to the art of interior design. 1stdibs has demonstrated this dedication over the past three years with initiatives ranging from a Trade Rewards program oriented around brand growth to a recently-opened gallery in NYC.
We are beyond excited by the possibilities that are now at our fingertips by joining the 1stdibs family. Together we can:
- Give you a better Design Manager with more features, faster (and with promotional pricing at launch!)
- Provide robust integrations between eCommerce + DM to make your day-to-day work easier
- Unlock exclusive perks on 1stdibs typically reserved for Bronze+ level customers
And that's just day one! We share a vision with 1stdibs on how we merge our platforms to provide the industry’s first at scale integration between a marketplace and workflow tools. And we want you to be a part of shaping that vision - we are setting up a Design Manager User Group that you can join to take part in shaping our roadmap.
As we prepare for this new stage for Design Manager, we want to express our heartfelt gratitude to you, our clients of many years, through a couple of personal statements from some of your favorite DM team members:
From Joseph Kissel, CEO
Design Manager is very happy and excited to announce that we are joining the 1stdibs family. Over the 27 years that I have worked for, and the 14 years that I have run, Design Manager, we have always valued the honest relationship between DM and you, our customers. Putting your businesses first has always been the goal of all my teammates that you have learned to trust over the years at DM. That is why it was our top priority to find a partner that could not only help us develop the features and software improvements that you all deserve but also champion your businesses as much as we do. Please know that the full DM team you have worked with is remaining and we will hopefully be adding many more helpful and caring personalities to our team to help better serve your needs. We look forward to the future with 1stdibs and to helping you continue to grow your businesses.
Sincerely,
Joseph Kissel
From Brad Martin, President:
After just celebrating my 21st year with Design Manager, I cannot adequately describe how much I have enjoyed continually improving and evolving the product;, developing lengthy and enduring client relationships; and admiring all the amazing individuals who have become members of the Design Manager team over the years.
As the design industry has become increasingly dynamic, with the needs of both designers and their clients rapidly evolving, we realized that gradual growth was no longer going to serve designers needs. By partnering with such a successful and respected company as 1stdibs, we are thoroughly confident that Design Manager can continue to provide solutions for all your business needs, both now and far into the future.
Our team is thrilled to be joining the 1stdibs family and you will continue to hear the same familiar, trusted voices you associate with Design Manager. We are beyond excited about the amazing new services and features we will be debuting with this partnership, all of which enable us to remain your biggest advocates and supporters of your ongoing success!
Thank you for all the years of loyal support.
Sincerely,
Brad Martin
"I feel very positively about our relationship with 1stdibs. After working here for so many years, I think a lot of good things will come from this partnership -- not only for us as a company, but, more importantly, for our clients. I am excited to take on new challenges and grow with our team to take Design Manager to the next level -- something I have been striving for for over 14 years." - Jamie Daddario, Development Team
"I’m very excited to be working with another company as willing and eager to engage with the Interior Design Industry as we are. I look forward to sharing our knowledge and putting together a more complete package for our friends in the industry." - Rob Gordon, Support Team
"After working for Design Manager for the past 4 years and working closely with our clients, I am excited to join forces with 1stdibs.com, a company that values the interior designer as much as we do at Design Manager. This new opportunity will help us better serve our clients and build out the software to become even better than it is already.” - Janna Chanoux, Sales and Marketing Team
As you can see, our team members are really excited about what the future holds. 1stdibs has a brilliant management team and top notch engineers so we couldn’t be more excited to work together to solve designers’ workflow problems. Today we take our first steps as a united force on our journey to bring interior designers the best products and services in the world.
