the LBJ School of Public Affairs at
the University of Texas with a master's
degree in public affairs. He originally
hoped to be a diplomat but ended up
working for public-relations firms that
included Ogilvy & Mather, Edelman
and Burson-Marsteller.
While at the latter, Roth worked
on an IKEA store opening in Costa
Mesa, Calif. The Swedish company
eventually offered him a job handling
community relations and public affairs
for all of their new U.S. stores.
"I essentially act as a clearinghouse
until each new store opens and the
store manager is hired and can take
over," he said.
Roth works on up to five new
stores a year, shuttling regularly from
coast to coast. "Traveling as much as
I do just makes me appreciate my bed
all the more when I'm home," he said.
Roth admits that extensive travel
makes it hard to keep up with family
and friends. He strives to be home on
weekends and spent Passover in L.A.
with his family. He attended Hebrew
school as a child, spent time on a kib-
butz in Israel when he was 15 and
was greatly influenced by his uncle, a
professor at Hebrew Union College in
Cincinnati, and his aunt, a rabbi.
"One of the reasons I'm still single
is not only my crazy schedule but
because I really am trying to find the
right person," he said. "I'd like to settle
down someday, and I do want to raise
my kids Jewish."
Ironically, he noted, IKEA prides
itself on helping employees achieve
a good work-life balance, something
Roth hopes to work on himself — as
soon as his schedule slows down.
In the meantime, he and McCaslin
are prepping the 311,000-square-foot
store at Ford and Haggerty roads for
its big day. Painted bright blue and
yellow, the colors of the Swedish flag,
it should stop travelers on nearby I-
275 in their tracks. Inside, thousands
of high-style, low-price items pay
homage to the Scandinavian design
tradition and range from dish drainers
to duvets. Working for IKEA has def-
initely made Roth more design con-
scious. "I didn't really know a lot about
design before I started," he admitted.
"I'm a little more stylish now." Case
in point: His L.A. condo includes an
IKEA home-office suite, dining-room
set and various bookcases.
The best part of the job, he said, is
opening day, when he gets caught up
in the crowds and the excitement.
"We'll be very busy," he said of the
Canton opening. "Typically, we have
several hundred to several thousand in
front of the store that first morning.
Some bring tents; others just come
really early. It's a lot like a baseball
opening day."
But if the store opening is the best
part, then the worst part is saying
goodbye. "It takes two to three years
to see [a new store] from inception to
its actual opening, " he said. "In that
time, you get attached to people and
to places. The worst part is when it's
all over and you have to move on."
That said, he expects the Canton
opening to be a smooth one. "We have
it down to a science," he said. ❑
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Cressbrook exemplifies gracious living at its finest.
IKEA BY THE NUMBERS
First store: Almhult, Sweden, 1958.
Today's stores: More than 200 in 30 countries.
First catalog: 1951.
Today's catalogs: 160 million annual copies in 52 editions and 25 languages.
2005 sales: $18.3 billion.
Excellence is a family tradition
www.robertson-brothers . corn
From the low $900 ,000's
Model open daily, Noon to 6 p .m . Closed Thursdays
(248) 538-0482 Sales Office
—
Typical amount of time spent in a store: two-three hours.
Typical IKEA customer: female in her late 30s with children.
*Prices and availability subject to change without notice.
JNPLATINUM • JUNE 2006 •
31