It’s been six months and I’m still the new guy… the “tech guy” who still can’t operate our coffee machine or transfer a call without dropping it, and thus, deservedly, the butt of all office jokes here at Newel Props. I have met very few of you in person, although I’ve spent a good part of this first half-year learning about you, the challenges of being a set decorator, stylist, interior designer, photographer or stager.
As CTO, my mission is to ensure that our online brand (and everything connected to it visually & technically) is about YOU. This means making our 65,000 sq ft of inventory easy to search from your phone. It means making sure that both our website and back-end infrastructure evolve with your expectations and needs. One project I was really excited to spearhead early on was the creation of our company blog, which I’d love to see evolve into another real connection and line of communication between you and all of us here. I look forward to what’s in the pipeline in both the short and long-term; Newel Props is here to make renting easy and personal, and it’s going to get a lot more of both!
— Casey Choron, Chief Technology Officer
Get to Know Casey
Q.
What’s the best compliment you’ve ever received?
A.
That I’m a good father.
Q.
What might the design world look like in 10 years?
A.
I imagine that in 10 years, our daily lives are so augmented by visual media, and that we’re so removed from “the moment” that we seek new connections with the physical world that will have been lost gradually over time. In that pursuit, I think we’re going to find that antiques – objects that are familiar, but which are rare and AUTHENTIC will gain a new level of relevancy, and whose appeal will become stronger than that of the sleek minimalism that drives today’s mainstream design world. Antiques will mean something to us as the connection we seek with objects will evolve past simple aesthetics and into something more deeply personal.
Concept: The Design World in 10 Years
(Some items may be much smaller than depicted. The rest are much larger than they appear in the image)
Q.
Best advice you’d give your teenage self?
A.
Work hard at everything you love.
Q.
What is Your Secret Talent?
A.
When I’m not restructuring databases, rebuilding search algorithms, designing UI improvements, working on our SEO & marketing efforts or pushing pixels, I pursue art and music (graphite sketches, digital paintings and blues guitar). But my SECRET talent would have to be the ability to tell when the pasta is done, just by looking at it.
Q.
What’s inspiring you in life (in the industry) right now?
A.
I’m obsessed with some of the luxury home furnishings I see coming out of Portugal. Designers like Marco Costa and Joana Barbosa Santos have a masterful way of drawing inspiration from various periods in times, various places in the world, endless combinations of natural materials into pieces that are sexy, relevant and timeless. To me, these are the antiques of the future.
Q.
Best way to decompress?
A.
High tide — I love the Atlantic this time of year. There’s something both therapeutic and deeply symbolic about letting the waves put you on your @$$, and being forced back to your feet to survive, all the while being reminded of how small you are and how big the world is.
