David Oreck
| David Irving Oreck (American vacuum cleaner entrepreneur) | |||
|---|---|---|---|
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| Born | September 17, 1923 Duluth, Minnesota | ||
| Died | February 15, 2023 (aged 99) New Orleans, Louisiana Resting place: | ||
| Spouse | Jan Girlinghouse Oreck Three sons: | ||
| Religion | Jewish | ||
| Military Service | |||
| Service/branch | United States Army Air Corps | ||
| Rank | B-29 Navigator | ||
| Battles/wars | World War II | ||
David Irving Oreck (September 17, 1923 – February 15, 2023) was the founder of and spokesman for the vacuum cleaner company, the Oreck Corporation, based in his adopted city of New Orleans, Louisiana.[1]
Background
Oreck was born to Abraham R. and Sheba Polansky Oreck in Duluth, Minnesota, a small red-headed boy who constantly got into fights with older children; this scrappiness was the very trait that allowed him to succeed. He dropped out of his freshman year at the Duluth campus of the University of Minnesota in order to join what was then the Army Air Corps and served in the Pacific Ocean as a B-29 navigator. He had a lifelong love of aviation and collected historically important aircraft. His wartime experience reinforced a deep sense of patriotism shown in part by his emphasis on American-made products.[1]
Career
Oreck's passion was in sales and marketing and understood what captured the attention of customers. After the war, he moved to New York City and learned his industrial skills at Bruno, New York, then the exclusive distributor for RCA television and Whirlpool appliances for New York, New Jersey, and Connecticut. He subsequently was named the chief executive officer of the Louisiana and Mississippi RCA distributorship, in which position, he established several national marketing strategies for RCA.[1]
In 1963, he founded the Oreck Corporation, He was initially the exclusive national distributor for Whirlpool-branded vacuum cleaners. Prior to the rise of Mike Lindell of the My Pillow Company, another Minnesota-based firm, Oreck was the pioneer of direct mail and marketing for vacuum cleaners. The conventional thinking was that vacuums were a product that would only sell off the showroom floor. Yet a smart and compelling marketing story allowed Oreck's direct mail approach to flourish. Just as he defied convention with his direct marketing techniques, he also believed that he could sell a vacuum cleaner that was radically different. At that time consumers had been trained to believe that a suitable vacuum cleaner had to be heavy. But Oreck thought that a great vacuum could be powerful and durable yet also light-weight. He produced not just a revolutionary product but ground-breaking marketing and customer service programs. By the time the company was sold in 2003, the 8-pound Oreck vacuum had become the premier high performance floor care product. [1]
In his later years, he was a lecturer at many leading universities espousing the importance of entrepreneurship and premium branding. He was also dedicated to the education of the younger generation about the U.S. role in World War II and was a benefactor of the National World War II Museum in New Orleans.[1]
Family and death
Oreck was preceded in death by this two brothers, Marshall and Robert Oreck, and by his son, Dr. Steven Oreck. He was survived by his wife, the former Jan Girlinghouse, and two other sons, Thomas Oreck and Bruce J. Oreck (born in New York City in 1953), who was the U.S. Ambassador to Finland in the administration of U.S. President Barack Obama, and seven grandchildren. His services were held on February 23 at Touro Synagogue in New Orleans with Rabbi Katie Bauman officiating. He is interred at Metairie Cemetery in New Orleans.[1]
