A few weeks ago our staff received the results of a report we commissioned to explore the meaning and role of the “D” brand in our city. The Richards Group, one of the most accomplished advertising and brand agencies in the country, spent two months mining the psyches of D readers, occasional readers, and nonreaders. After distributing thousands of online surveys, interviewing Dallas luminaries, even having dinner parties to unearth honest (and sometimes wine-soaked) opinions, they presented their report.
I was knocked out of my chair when I learned how much influence the red “D” has in North Texas. But what most intrigued me was what I learned about you. I learned that readers of all of our D brand magazines are frankly a cut above. Yes, as a group, you generally are of higher means than your peers in the city. But you are also more engaged, intellectually invested, and curious about Dallas. You are people I would love to know. And for D Home devotees in particular, I can extrapolate that you recognize the repository of designers, builders, architects, and planners who are now taking the visual landscape of the city to new and aesthetically important heights. At D Home, we not only write about these people, we believe in them. We believe they are at the core of Dallas’ best self.
Thus, “best” is not a word we use lightly. It is a centerpiece of our brand’s ability to curate what we deem to be exceptional in Dallas. I must inject here: the study showed that a handful of readers—was that you?—are under the impression that our “bests” are paid for by advertisers. Allow me to set the record straight. The people and places listed in this issue’s “Best of Everything” on page 71 were all nominated and argued by our staff of editors and designers. Emphasis on the word “argued.” We love our advertisers, and they are a dear part of our magazine family—but our editorial is not for sale. This is also why our company will celebrate its 35th anniversary this year. And why to this day, we have the very “best” readers in the city. Enjoy this issue, and let me hear from you.
Christine Allison
[email protected]
