Bridging the timezone gap

DeMuro Das is a truly global furniture and interior design company. Its American director, Amy Lee, works out of the New York–based showroom, while co-founders Brian DeMuro and Puru Das hold down the fort in New Delhi, India. Bringing their ideas together while working apart could be tricky, but Dropbox products specialize in solving async collaboration pain points. So the team can collaborate seamlessly no matter the time of day–or size of file.

Unlimited file-sharing for custom work

Amy says its US showroom is where DeMuro Das clients typically start conjuring design ideas, with staffers’ help. (Anywhere from 70% to 80% of the company’s output comes from custom requests.)

 

From there, a whirlwind of file sharing begins. The teams engage in extensive back-and-forth from across two hemispheres before finalizing a custom order. They share drawings, tweak them, and ensure the client is happy. Designers rely upon Dropbox’s user-friendly interface to label and share drawings and files and keep everything up-to-date–and available any time of day or night.

 

Dropbox is an integral resource for DeMuro Das designers. “It’s become a huge repository,” says Amy, “so any time a request comes in, we’ll check Dropbox first to see if we’ve done something similar in the past.” Using Dropbox in this way ensures the team doesn’t waste time dreaming up new pieces from scratch. (Designers track images to coordinate fabulously colorful social media posts, as well.)

Winning the “operational relay race”

How does a company with employees on opposite sides of the globe stay agile? According to Amy, the 10-plus hour time zone difference is actually advantageous, thanks to easily locatable Dropbox files. “At the end of my day, our designers will be picking up my work in a few hours, so it’s kind of like a continuous work day,” she says.

 

Sharing product photography and videos for marketing is surprisingly simple, too. “Using Dropbox Replay, our team in New Delhi can share their video files, and we can edit it together asynchronously,” says Amy. (Pro tip: Editor and filmmaker types love the ability to time-stamp their comments.)

 

E-signatures are crucial to keep things moving smoothly. “Once it comes time to sign off on orders, we need a seamless way to bring the client into the fold,” says Amy. Her team uses Dropbox Sign to bring the client in at exactly the right time.

 

As for the future of DeMuro Das, Amy sees an infinitely expanding horizon. “We’re going to do more outreach in various forms—more press, more trade shows, more marketing, and more products.”

 

Of course, this also means DeMuro Das will need a reliable way to share files and collaborate. Amy’s thrilled to have found Dropbox. “I can’t imagine doing any of this without Dropbox,” she says. “We just wouldn’t be able to stay organized the way we do now—it’s completely integrated into our workflow.”