1. Robert Dekeyser was born on 7 October 1964 and is a Belgian-German entrepreneur and former footballer who played as a goalkeeper.
17 Facts About Robert Dekeyser
1. 2.
Robert Dekeyser is the founder of DEDON, a Germany-based manufacturer of outdoor furniture with distribution in more than 80 countries.
3.
An outdoor enthusiast, Dekeyser is the founder of DEDON ISLAND, a luxury resort in the Philippines.
4.
Robert Dekeyser was born in Leuven, Belgium, the eldest son of entrepreneurs who divorced when he was young.
5.
At the age of 15, having attended nine different schools, Robert Dekeyser stood up in English class and announced that he was dropping out to become a professional footballer.
6.
In 1980, at the age of 16, Robert Dekeyser joined the Junior A-League team 1.
7.
In 1986, on the recommendation of the FC Bayern Munich goalkeeper Jean-Marie Pfaff, Robert Dekeyser was brought in as a replacement for the team's reserve keeper, who was sidelined with a long-term injury.
8.
Robert Dekeyser describes these as the "best three games of my career".
9.
Robert Dekeyser founded his first company, DEDON, while recovering from a facial injury in hospital.
10.
Robert Dekeyser readily admits that he had no business plan or clear idea of what DEDON would do or sell.
11.
Robert Dekeyser's motivation was "to have fun working with family and friends", which he has since described as a motto of the company.
12.
Soon thereafter Robert Dekeyser moved his family to Cebu where he spent six months developing DEDON's first woven products.
13.
In 2004 Robert Dekeyser moved the company headquarters to the outskirts of Luneburg.
14.
In 2006 Robert Dekeyser sold a 49 percent stake in DEDON to a US-based private equity firm but soon regretted the sale.
15.
Robert Dekeyser sought to revitalize the brand's communication, releasing photography campaigns, short films and a limited-edition book all shot by American fashion photographer Bruce Weber, whom Dekeyser has described as "very much on our wavelength".
16.
Robert Dekeyser established relationships with several new designers after the buyback, most notably with Philippe Starck, who launched Play, his first collection for DEDON, at the 2010 Milan Furniture Fair.
17.
The story serves as the prologue of Unverkauflich, Robert Dekeyser's autobiography, published by Ankerherz Verlag in May 2012.