gone, gunther, gone

Sad news from method's official people against dirty blog!

"With tears in our eyes and many, many pints of Guinness in our system we’re saying goodbye today to Gunther Lie, our truly beloved first employee. It’s impossible to capture on this blog (which, by the way, Gunther created) his incredible contributions to method’s success over these past seven years, but it would be a crime not to try.

A childhood friend of our founders, Gunther (also known as Thunder) was first brought into the method family as a part-time helper, and spent his first months here driving from store to store making sure our products looked perfect on shelf. In the years since, there is virtually no job Gunther hasn’t done, from IT Director to Director of Business Development; from Brand Manager to his current role as Director of Interactive. He’s created products, molded brands, brought us into new markets and, of course, built this beautiful website (if you have any complaints we’ll be sure to keep forwarding them to his personal email address). He’s touched on every part of our business, and has shown incredible MacGyverism in every role.

And as much as he’s been a vital part of our business these past seven years, he’s been even more influential in creating the method culture that we all love. Gunther was the guy who hosted the after-parties in his hotel room after our annual party. He began the highly competitive “Who wore it best?” battles within the office. He sent Drummond, our Canadian Greenskeeper, a mock deportation letter from the US Government. He soaked, folded and froze a coworker's entire wardrobe on a company trip to Lake Tahoe. He was always the first person to invite a new employee to lunch, and one of the last people standing at parties. His smile is infectious and his cheer inspiring, and we've been so blessed to have him here for these seven incredible years.

So we bid a fond farewell to Gunther, and wish him luck in wherever he goes next. His beautiful wife Nancy and their adorable daughter Amstel will surely keep him busy, but hopefully not so busy that he can't pay a visit to the method family every once in a while.

We're forever indebted to you, and will miss you immensely Thunder. And if you can't find any of your clothes tonight, check the freezer..."

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Head on over to read the top 10 things method will miss most about Gunther!