- Words by Angela Cowan Photography by Don Denton
Aaron Gray, vice president of La-Z-Boy Vancouver Island, has spent just about his entire life in and around the furniture industry. He recently relocated to Nanaimo to get back to the family business乌鸦传媒擜aron乌鸦传媒檚 family has owned and operated Vancouver Island乌鸦传媒檚 La-Z-Boy locations for more than 20 years.
乌鸦传媒淚乌鸦传媒檓 helping [my father] run the day-to-day business here,乌鸦传媒� says Aaron. 乌鸦传媒淚 had a tenure with La-Z-Boy, so it was an obvious fit.乌鸦传媒�
乌鸦传媒淏eing centrally located is amazing,乌鸦传媒� he adds. 乌鸦传媒淵ou can go to the mountain, you can hop on the ferry to Vancouver, and you乌鸦传媒檙e never far from a hike or a walk. Every month I find something new that I乌鸦传媒檓 into.乌鸦传媒�
After working for La-Z-Boy corporately for the last decade, being back in a role that乌鸦传媒檚 on a more intimate level feels like coming full circle.
乌鸦传媒淚 worked in the family business from when I was about 13 to when I was 20, and then I moved to Toronto to try and get away from it,乌鸦传媒� he says, laughing.
He went to school for art and graphic design in his early 20s, but found he kept being pulled back to the furniture industry.
乌鸦传媒淵ou乌鸦传媒檙e merging everything from industrial design to fashion,乌鸦传媒� he says. 乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 everything. The build quality of the furniture, the actual wood and the tacks, as well as the fabric and design. It乌鸦传媒檚 a merging of worlds for sure.乌鸦传媒�
He loves the travel, the trade shows, the unique challenges and the melding of form and function.
乌鸦传媒淚t乌鸦传媒檚 a fast-paced industry and I thrive on change. And I saw that it put food on my family乌鸦传媒檚 table growing up, so as far as following in my father乌鸦传媒檚 footsteps, I have this love and respect for this industry,乌鸦传媒� he adds.
The 7 Sins
Envy:
Whose shoes would you like to walk in?
Alex James, the bassist from the British rock group Blur. He lived life in the 乌鸦传媒�90s unapologetically as a rock star and then retired to a farm in Oxfordshire as a cheesemaker. Both of his lives are incredibly glamorous in their own ways. There乌鸦传媒檚 something about living out a romantic existence as an artisan in the English countryside, making a product you乌鸦传媒檙e passionate about. I would gladly trade my skinny jeans for wool and a pair of wellies.
Gluttony:
What is the food you could eat over and over again?
I love eating out and when I travel I base my stops around restaurants I want to try. To choose one food though, it would be anything Italian. It乌鸦传媒檚 a cuisine based on the simplicity and quality of its ingredients.
Greed:
You乌鸦传媒檙e given $1 million that you have to spend selfishly. What would you spend it on?
I have this idea of renting and furnishing a room in an old five-star hotel in Paris: getting room service, throwing parties, drinking nice wine and dining at cafes. In my mind it乌鸦传媒檚 a Wes Anderson movie with a Serge Gainsbourg soundtrack. Just pure escapism. And it would end with the hotel manager politely informing me by folded note that I no longer have credit and need to vacate the room immediately.
Wrath:
Pet peeves?
Baseball hats in restaurants. Why grown men don乌鸦传媒檛 see a problem with this and insist on sitting down to a nice meal with a baseball hat on is beyond me. I乌鸦传媒檓 not a crazy stickler for manners, but this one takes the cake.
Sloth:
Where would you spend a long time doing nothing?
My bed. I feel at this stage in my life I乌鸦传媒檝e gotten to understand the pleasure behind having a nice mattress, perfectly weighted duvet and a solid pillow. Saturday mornings are the best. My girlfriend and I sleep in, drink a pot of coffee and watch English football.
Pride:
What is the one thing you乌鸦传媒檙e secretly proud of?
A few years ago I restored a 1966 Vespa in a ground-up build. I literally knew nothing about mechanics, and while old Vespas are about as complicated as a lawnmower, it was still a challenge for a guy who didn乌鸦传媒檛 have a clue what a carburetor was.
Lust:
What makes your heart beat faster?
I乌鸦传媒檝e played in bands since I was a teenager, and there is nothing that makes me feel more alive than playing a show. It乌鸦传媒檚 nerve-wracking but at the same time full of this all-consuming excitement. Anything can happen: equipment can break, the bar could be empty or packed, pints can fall and fry electrical equipment乌鸦传媒t乌鸦传媒檚 the organized chaos that gets my adrenaline flowing.
Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
Like Boulevard Magazine on and follow them on
