Monday, June 23, 2014

Delta Faucet and Brizo Blogger Event

Blown away.

That is pretty much how I would describe myself after making a trip to Indianapolis to visit the Delta Faucet Company at their headquarters.  The entire experience, from beginning to end, was absolutely amazing.

A few weeks ago I received an email from someone at Delta asking if I would like to attend their all-expense-paid annual blogger event in Indy.  My first reaction was that they had to have emailed the wrong person.  Then, once I re-read everything and saw it was, in fact, addressed to me, I began plotting how I could take off work and make this once-in-a-lifetime event a reality for me.

Fast-forward to my arrival at the event...not only was I going to get up close and personal with a fantastic company and their products, I also got to meet a few of my blog friends in real life!!  And bonus...I even made a few new friends. ;)

Delta graciously hosted a fantastic reception the day we arrived and I had a blast chatting, eating and drinking the night away with some very lovely ladies.

L to R - Carrie, Julia, Jennifer, Me and Kristin
The next morning we started at headquarters bright and early...and with a standing ovation!  How’s that for a grand entrance into the building?!  I’m pretty sure I’ll never get one of those again in my lifetime. ;)



After that warm welcome, we took part in a full day of all-things-Brizo-and-Delta.  We had the pleasure of learning all about the company as a whole and then we received in-depth looks into each brand itself.

{For those of you not familiar, Brizo is a fashionable, luxury line that is oh, so gorgeous!!  They even sponsor the crazy talented fashion designer, Jason Wu.  You should see the stunning bath collection he created....wowza!  I was lusting over their entire line for most of the event.}



I’m not going to lie...when I first laid eyes on the agenda, I was excited, but also wondering how entertained we’d be by faucet and showerhead talk for an extended period of time.  Well those thoughts were put to rest the minute the programs began.  The employees were full of passion and information.  I now see why Delta and Brizo are so successful...because there is so much thought and development that goes into each and every one of their products.  Their people see it all as a labor of love.  

One thing that truly stuck with me was Delta’s desire to fulfill “unmet needs” of customers.  Sure, as a consumer we can say we want this, that and the other thing out of a product, but Delta takes a look at how people actually use these products, day-in and day-out.  Seeing people interact with products in their real life setting reveals needs consumers never even knew existed!

Case and point...while conducting this type of ethnographic research {how do you like that for a fancy term...clearly, someone was taking notes during the event!!}, they saw many people in their kitchens cooking dinner, etc., who were going to extreme lengths to turn on their faucets {I’m talking even using their feet} without putting their soiled hands on the handle {think drippy, nasty chicken juice...yuck}.

Now, if this consumer was asked “what do you want from your facuet”, they were not answering to have it turn on and off from just a touch of the back of their hand, but during this special type of research, Delta realized this was a need of the consumer...an unmet one.  And bam, there was the birth of the idea to create Touch2O Technology.



Touch2O Technology is just one of the meaningful innovations that Delta produced.  They strive to make a difference in consumers’ lives with their products, and after watching them in action, I know they do.  They put a tremendous amount of effort into finding out what the consumer wants, what the government will allow them to do and then what they can actually do to make a product work.

Another amazing thing?!  All of this is done in-house.  Yup, from the design conception to the actual engineering...the genius is all done there.  And since Delta has so many patents on their incredible technology, their competitors can’t come close.  For real, if you were ever allowed to demo Delta or Brizo products in a store next to it’s competitors, I’d bet my bank account you wouldn't be leaving with a competitor product.


Now, I’m sure you are sick of hearing me gush about how amazing these brands are, and you're probably convinced I “drank the Koolaid”, and I’m here to tell you...I did.  And you would too if you went to the event.  

 There is seriously so much more I could talk about...I haven’t even touched on the Diamond Seal Technology they created {which we SO need in our master bath...I’d even consider ripping out our tile to install it if money weren't an issue...because turning on our shower every morning could be considered an Olympic event}, the H2OKinetic Shower Technology (see the video above), the MagnaTite Docking or the fact that they are creating products that are super easy to install...hello, EZ Anchor system. 

 And when I say easy, I mean E-Z.  Kristin and I installed a faucet and toilet in less time than it takes to catch up on one of your favorite prime-time dramas.


Obviously I could go on and on about Delta and Brizo, but I'm sure you've had enough of my wordy post...so here are a few more behind-the-scenes pictures from the event.
L to R - Diane, Carrie, Me, Jennifer
L to R - Julia, Kristin, Carrie, Jennifer, Lindsay, Reichel, Linda and Me
L to R - Julia, Diane, Me, Carrie, Jennifer, Judd and Kristin




If you want to know more, click over to Delta's Smart Solutions page to see all of the amazing innovations they've created.  

And thanks again to everyone at Delta and Brizo!!!  I could not have asked for a more amazing and informative trip.  It was an absolute pleasure getting to know such a wonderful company and group of people!
Check out the other Delta Faucet Bloggers:
Julia - Cuckoo4Design

 **Just a friendly reminder that although this post and the all-expense-paid trip was in collaboration with Delta Faucet Company, the thoughts and opinions expressed here are 100% mine.  I'll always keep it real and honest with you guys!!**
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