No one in the great state of Alabama knows more about Dyson Vacuum Cleaners than David Lord, president of A & A Vacuum Mart with locations in Mobile and Fairhope Alabama. Lord and his entrepreneurial family are perhaps the largest private retailer of Dyson Vacuum cleaners in all of Alabama and some say the South Eastern United States. With two showrooms that showcase the entire line of what Dyson has to offer, and with A & A Vacuum Mart’s authorized Dyson service center status, Lord and his family are beating big box retailers at their own game of selling Dyson products for the lowest prices. And, they’ll guarantee their pricing against any other vacuum store, discount store or big box outlet.
With all of David Lords abundant experience with the Dyson lineup of vacuum cleaners, from the sales end to the repair part of the industry, here are seven interesting facts about Dyson that most consumers are unaware of:
1. Dyson Had More than 5,000 Failed Prototypes Before Finding Success
Long before Dyson’s DC-07 vacuum cleaner appeared on the U.S. market in 2002, Dyson said he went through 5,127 failed prototypes before he got the bagless, cyclonic system to work properly.
“You learn from failures. You don’t learn from successes,” Dyson said. “You’ve got to go through that failure to learn how to succeed. So although I had 5,126 failures, I don’t regret any of them because I learned so much from them and it got me to the final solution.”
Today, Dyson’s empire is worth an estimated $4 billion, ranking him among the 300 richest people in the world.
2. It Took Years to Develop the First Dyson Vacuum, and Its Technology Yielded New Inventions
The motor in the Dyson vacuum cleaner is very fast, generating more than 100,000 G’s of force — three times the force of a bullet after being shot from a gun.
But it took years to get there. Dyson said he poured his own money into his first several prototypes.
“It was really worrying; it was something that I had to solve,” Dyson said. “It was mooring away at me and I really wanted to get it right. I believed I could get it right and make it work, but I didn’t know how to.”
After tinkering with his vacuum design for years, the inventor worked with a team of engineers to help him develop his company’s vacuum cleaner. Dyson said their work even led to new products.
“Our motors took us 15 years to develop, and it was 10 years before there was one on the market,” Dyson said. “We’ve been developing robotics, but we haven’t launched one yet.”
3. Dyson’s Daughter, Son-in-Law Help Create His Looks
Aside from being an inventor, artist, designer, engineer and pitchman, Dyson was also his own guinea pig, and tested his prototypes on the kitchen floor at his family’s home in England.
Dyson credits his wife for giving him support while he searched for a better vacuum solution.
“I was going out into a shed every day on my own doing it, working on it,” Dyson said. “It’s very important to have someone who can listen to you and give encouragement and bounce ideas off.”
His daughter and son-in-law are both fashion designers and help him craft his outfits.
“I went to art and design school, and so I dress and behave as I did as I was in art and design school with all the artists and designers around me,” Dyson said. “My daughter is a fashion designer. My son-in-law is a fashion designer, I’m wearing his clothes. … I don’t have to dress down and wear boring colored clothes and make boring vacuum cleaners because I’m an engineer, because I am part designer, as well, so that’s me.”
4. Dyson Frequently Wears a Belt in French Royal Red
Over the years, Dyson has often been seen in public and in interviews — including our “Nightline” interview — sporting a red leather belt.
Turns out, Dyson has been wearing that specific color of red belt for the last 10 years and it has a special meaning.
“It’s a particular red, and in France, only royalty were allowed to wear this sort of red,” he said. “I’m not pretending I’m royalty. I’m just saying it is a very unusual and particular red, which had a tremendous meaning in France in the 18th century.”
So if not for historical royal reasons, then why the red belt?
“I just liked the color,” Dyson said.
5. Dyson Was Knighted in 2006
Although he is known as the King of Suction, Dyson has actually been knighted by British royalty.
In 2006, Dyson, shown here with his wife, went to Buckingham Palace, where he was knighted by Prince Charles. Dyson admitted that he was nervous about the ceremony.
“I was pretty worried actually because this sharp blade comes down and it’s pretty close to you,” he said. “The sword goes down on both shoulders and then they leave it on your shoulder while they talk to you. And, by the way, it’s very heavy.”
“You have to kneel down, very low on the floor, ‘Hello, Prince Charles,’ and then you have to get up afterwards, which was quite a struggle,” Dyson added. “He was very nice afterwards. We had quite a chat. It was great.”
6. Rod Stewart Was at Buckingham Palace the Same Day Dyson Was Knighted
On the same day Dyson was knighted, another famous Brit was also receiving an award at Buckingham Palace.
Singer Rod Stewart, who has not been knighted, was awarded the CBE — which stands for Commander of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire — for his services to music.
But Dyson said that doesn’t trump receiving the honor of knighthood.
“In the pecking order, his award was below [mine], I’m afraid,” he said.
7. Dyson Thinks His Vacuum Makes a Great Gift for Men and Women
At the time the Dyson vacuum hit the American market, the average vacuum cleaner cost around $100. But Dyson’s angle was to convince the American public that they wanted and needed his model, which cost three times the price.
So instead of using a housewife to market his vacuum cleaner, Dyson put himself in the commercials.
“I thought that was a good thing to do,” he said. “We were a name that no one had ever heard of. So it had a lot to do with giving the company’s character.”
Dyson said “the world has changed,” meaning that housework is no longer just for women but now a shared responsibility for the men, too. Even during the recession, the vacuum industry thrived because, he said, people started to focus more on improving their home with what they had instead of on more exotic things.
“People give vacuum cleaners as presents now, and Mother’s Day and Father’s Day are big vacuum cleaner giving days,” he said. “That certainly didn’t happen 10 years ago. Quite a new phenomenon.”
And here’s one more fact about Dyson that you should know if you’re considering purchasing a new vacuum cleaner anywhere in Alabama. A &A Vacuum Mart has the best selection of Dyson Vacuums in the entire state, at the best prices. Guaranteed! And, if you’re not sure which Dyson vacuum is right for you, you can try out all of the Dyson models before your purchase when you shop with A & A Vacuum Mart of Mobile and Fairhope Alabama.
Thanks to ABC news and author Lauren Effron http://abcnews.go.com/author/lauren_effron
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