Employee Spotlight
Meet the Jared
Jared Geden is our Production Manager here at Loewen Design Studios. Jared handles the logistics of finishing and packing all our tables. He also is in charge of getting our delivery team ready to drive across the USA.
What's your role here at Loewen Design Studios
I work as the production manager. So I handle the management of the production side specifically with tables and the building of some lights boards.
Before working at Loewen design studios, what do you think was the most unusual or interesting job you've ever had?
Probably when I worked for an escape room company. Yeah, it was a fun time. My legal title was game master and I just watched people get mad at puzzles.
So, how did you meet Josh?
I met Josh through school. We both went to the same university and the same program. I don't remember specifically how but I know we met. We became good friends when I was in a show that he was directing. It was called The Inside the Department of the Exterior.
So, what do you like most about your job here?
I would say seeing some of the beautiful tables that come in. We get a lot of similar styles which still tend to amaze me how beautiful they are. Sometimes we get odd requests that I'm not sure how they will turn out. But when I see the finished product they end up being some of my favorites. Maple is usually like that where you can’t see the real beauty till it's finished.
So, tell me about yourself that would surprise us.
Um, I know a little bit of Russian sign language.
Wow! Really - when did you learn that?
All right, I volunteered for a children's theater festival of groups from around the world and my group happened to be some deaf Russian performers, and so I kind of had to learn on the fly.
That's so cool.
Yeah it was a fun time.
So what do you like to do, like, your spare time and you're not here?
Oh, usually just some real nerdy stuff, right? Read, play video games, or I run D&D or board games.
What was the last board game or video game or book?
I'm currently reading Dune. And it's a lot. I'm rereading it for like the third time and it's just still so much. I'm just reading the first book, maybe the series after.
So we're how would you describe a day to day in your life at work here?
We tend to start just by seeing what tables need to be done that day on time for trips. Lately it's been a lot of deliveries, which is great. Means we can operate on more of the kind of set schedule for what we produce. So, most of the day one of us in the back starts sanding the tables down, then another one starts oiling them. This continues on for most of the day. Every now and then we pepper some legs or lights in there as well. Fairly standard stuff.
Do you remember what the first table you ever made was the first table here?
I think it was a 36 x 72. I started with something like a really standard - live edge super classic. But I remember seeing it afterwards and then thinking this thing is just gorgeous. The first one I remember though was this beautiful river table with blue epoxy in the center running through it and it was just gorgeous.
So if you had to describe Loewen Design Studios and three words, which three words would you use?
Oh, this is a tough one.Beautiful Handcrafted Tables.
So what did you want to be when you grew up?
And honestly throughout most of high school, I was fully planning on going into sciences. I originally was going to go to school to become a biomedical engineer. And then I looked at the course load and I'm like, this is too much.
If you could switch jobs with anyone here, which job would you want?
I was gonna say Tristan so then I can do the same thing but not attending meetings
I don’t think that counts
This might be an odd choice but I would say I would say Sharon in customer service. I've had a lot of customer-facing jobs in the past. And honestly, there's a lot of that role that I really enjoyed in those past jobs.
What is your favourite table that we make?
Really recently there was this ash oval that went coconut and it just came out so beautiful. We put it on this really fancy base for a photo. The tree looking base. When I eventually own a home, I wanted a table like this. Super fancy.
You're gonna have a very fancy house then.
Oh no! Just the table. Everything else is just dollar store, but the table is beautiful.
