LAYOFF: Diva De Provence
Submitted by advisor on Mon, 12/22/2008 - 1:21am.
Sources inform us that Diva VP of Marketing Amir Girgis has been layed off; another victim of the economic crash.
Mr. Girgis is an industry presence far surpassing that of the puny brand for whom he worked. In fact, for most of us, Mr. Girgis was the brand. Mr. Girgis may have been personally responsible for the return of induction cooking to North America, for his great success in induction begat a myriad of followers. Through his efforts, Diva is also the only manufacturer to have solved the technical challenges of an all electric range with induction top. Production began this year.
Quick! Someone grab him.
Overwhelming response...
I gues it doesn't surprise me to see the number of people commenting on this news item. I had to get on just to put my two cents in. I feel for Amir, its gotta hurt to have spent your life building a brand that cuts you like that. At the same time, its an exciting time to watch. I know a lot of people are watching to see where he ends up, because that will tell a lot about the future of the industry. Best wishes to Amir and whoever ends up picking him up!
Amir
Amir is a very good Marketing person. Their problem was the iceberg moving engineering efforts that seem to have hurt others in the industry as well going back 10 years or so.I think the product is too expensive in large numbers for the current market and the investors have no time for it to grow.He would be a very good hire for someone looking for a hard worker with a vision.Merry Christmas Amir....
amir
i met amir shortly after i started metallo arts, he is by far the best marketing person i have met... above that he is also a great friend to have.... one thing I KNOW is he will not be without a job for long.
Electric range witn induction cooktop
As an aside, for those without the $8000+, 36" space, and dual (50A and 30A) 240v wiring runs for the Diva induction range, Sears is now selling a Kenmore Elite (Frigidaire-sourced) 30" electric range with induction cooktop - http://www.kenmore.com/shc/s/dap_10154_12604_DAP_Kenmore+Elite+Induction+Range for approximately $3000. I would expect to see a similar Electrolux-branded product within a year. Progress!
You are correct
It seems that you are correct, but the point here is not that Figidaire was able to build some piece for Kenmore, the point is that we are recognizing the loss of someone who has changed our industry, a change that we can all see.
Amir saw an opportunity with the Diva line and he made a go of it. The decision to launch induction reflected his identification of an unmet need, pro-style gas performance from an electric appliance. This was not a secret technology, but it was a technology that failed in its last outing 2 decades ago. This was a technology that was avoided by those who should have had more courage. It was Diva, under Mr. Girgis's leadership, that re-developed the segment and made it safe for the big brands to re-enter.
In 6 years, he was able to turn all that around. That is the point.
You are correct Part II
Amir was on the right track as to how he wanted to market the high end brand. Some people or a good portion in the business can't conceive of how to market high end products and only see the price point.Kind of a lazy man's way to sell on price only. Amir saw the value of the high end brand which always has a place in the market. His main problem was the introduction time delayed by engineering time to market which does not surprise me. That was his only challenge. Unfortunately we have too many "low end , cost only " mindsets in the industry. Too many people who will go to China , take good designs and devalue the industry all the while dumbing down the high end. Hopefully that cycle will change or right itself and the good value of a stable high end product will overtake the dumbed down , third world thinking distributors who are causing this .I tip my hat to a classy guy . Amir !!!!
You are correct?
Who would be dumb enough to spend 3k on a Frigidaire range anyway [wait, don’t answer that]. It sucks to hear about Diva giving Amir the boot. I agree with Appliance Stallion, Amir was the face of Diva for me and many of my colleagues. I can’t honestly say that I will continue to support their brand much longer. It’s not like their products were ever an easy sale but I did consistently promote them because of Amir. Amir, if you’re reading this, don’t forget to send my Gaggenau induction wok ring back to me when you get the chance [jk]. -H-