Kyle Hoff

Kyle is the CEO & Co-Founder at Floyd, a direct-to-consumer furniture brand based in Detroit. To date, Floyd has raised over $10 million in funding from Airbnb’s Joe Gebbia, Brand Foundry Ventures, and 14W.

On the first hour of his day.

My morning starts in my Floyd Bed, the same place my day ends.

In the warm months, I’ll try to get on my bike and do 2 laps around Detroit’s Belle Isle. It’s about 15 miles and helps me collect my thoughts for the day.

In the cold months, I’ll go for a run or stare up at my ceiling for a bit to center my thoughts.

Then, I’m off to a the shower and hit my most meaningful tasks of the day at my kitchen table with coffee. Coffee is key. Finally, off to the office which is a 5 minute bike ride or a 2 minute drive in the Motor City.

On the impact of interior design.

Home is so important. It’s where we start our day, end our day, break bread, seek refuge, share stories: the things we keep there should have meaning and inspire.

That doesn’t mean they need to be extremely expensive, but they should be thoughtful and real. And, ultimately, your space should be about you.

Having good, quality things in the home can create for a better day, thoughts, and an all around more positive lifestyle.

On his life’s motto.

Keep it simple.

Something you’re told as a kid, but becomes exponentially more relevant as you age. Business gets more complicated, life gets more complicated, and simple solutions often take far more thought.

However, taking stock of what is important and focusing on those things does wonders.

On Detroit's influence.

We've been asked a number of times why we’re in Detroit and often are encouraged to move to SF or NYC.

We’re still in Detroit because we believe that an amazing business can be built anywhere if there’s a team passionate enough to build it.

Take Ikea for instance, built in Almhult, Sweden, a city of less than 10,000 people — Ikea’s global stores today see almost 1B annual visits.

While it may not be the hottest startup location, Michigan is often not recognized as the hotbed for great furniture that it is.

From being home to great companies like Herman Miller and Steelcase to some of the most prolific furniture designers of the 20th century including the Eames and Saarinans, the region has had a huge influence on how we’ve grown.

On evolving cultural norms.

Something we learned around 10 people was that culture isn’t a set thing, but it’s that needs to evolve with every person that joins the team.

Often there can be a nostalgia for the scale the company was and an interest in “preserving" the culture. 

However, we really encourage the team to not just look forward at what’s next in the business model, but what’s next for Floyd’s culture.

One ritual that we’ve done every week at 10 am on Monday for the last 4 years is have our all hands Monday morning meeting that first covers the vision, then digs into our performance in different areas of the company.

I think it’s super important for everyone on our team to understand the state of the business and we’ve found that the info is greatly appreciated by the team.

It sets the tone for the week.

On unwinding before bed.

I like to slowly unwind my brain prior to going to bed, but let’s be real, that doesn’t always happen.

In the evenings I typically will cook with my partner Brooke, then maybe a little time playing with my dog Millie on the floor.

After that, there’s a good chance that I might pick my computer up back and catch up on some things.

Finally, a book or podcast sends me off to my zzz’s. I just like to ensure that it’s a topic entirely unrelated to what I’m working on during the day, usually fiction.

I typically like to get at least 6 hours of sleep, but there’s a child in my future, so we’ll see how that holds up.