Checking Out: Florin Gale

What are your roots?

I was born in Romania and went to a math and physics high school there.

What brought you to the U.S.?

My father was a mechanical engineer who was hired by General Motors, so we all moved to the Detroit area.

Does that immigrant experience give you a different, better perspective on the American consumer?

I think so. In one sense, this is still the melting pot. There’s always a new immigrant population coming to the United States from somewhere, so I understand how people can be confused and overwhelmed in a store here. Plus, of course, Microsoft can be overwhelming to someone who’s not conversant in our “language.”

How did you get from math and physics to visual and design?

I’d always been interested in the visual arts. And in high school in Detroit, I had a teacher who exposed me to digital arts. I attended a local art college on weekends and worked on one of the early desktop publishing programs. In fact, my college degree was in fine arts with a specialty in computer animation and interactive design from the College for Creative Studies in Detroit.

And now you’re working at Microsoft. Is it exciting?

It’s like being in a big laboratory with an ultimate set of tools. Very innovative, with great opportunities.

Great challenges, as well.

Absolutely. Right now, my challenge is trying to put these tools together into a retail experience. Product-wise, Microsoft is doing fine, but retail-wise, we’re just getting started.

What do you think the mission is?

There’s never been as direct a retail interaction before between Microsoft and its customer as we’re planning. Consumers have great respect and appreciation for the Microsoft brand. That will bring them through the door, but then we have to turn that respect into a retail experience.

You mentioned all the tools you have to play with. Talk about one.

We have a groundbreaking approach to video walls in each of our 40 stores. They wrap around the entire store in a dynamic way, giving us unique delivery mechanisms for our messages. We can combine all the messaging media – print, video, social and web – into one point of contact, communicating with the consumer in a seamless physical experience.

Communications. That’s still retail, after all, isn’t it?

Yes, and I’m fascinated with retail as a science, as a delivery mechanism for connections, as an area of research figuring out how to connect with people, measuring the effectiveness of our products, changing perceptions. It intrigues me.

Then you love what you’re doing?

I do. I’m fascinated with the opportunities of big digital media in retail; it keeps me coming to work every day. And when I don’t get excited by this anymore, I can look in another part of the Microsoft lab. There are researchers doing amazing and intriguing things in every corner.

Sunless in Seattle
Born in Romania, raised in Detroit, Florin Gale is used to extreme climates with plenty of white Christmases. How do he and his family like the Seattle weather?

I love the variety. I love to see the layers of fog. We call it “mountain weather.” I love the four seasons – hot, cold, sunny, cloudy and everything in between. The summers are paradise. The only people who don’t like Seattle weather are from Los Angeles. They’re obsessed with sun 24/7.