This is Sjoerd, a salesperson within our retail sector and a true Brabander. His career Legro began with an internship as part of his MBO training in horticulture. After that, he stayed on, quite a while even. For years, Sjoerd worked in our production department, where he learned the mixing line from the inside out as a Process Operator. Now he has swapped his work clothes for a commercial role within Sales. The knowledge of our raw materials and products? Of course, he just brought that along with him.

I have worked in production for many years with great pleasure and learned a lot about our raw materials, blends, and the entire process behind them. At some point I was ready for a new challenge and was given the opportunity to move Legro into Sales. That might seem like a completely different world, but my experience from production comes in very handy. When I talk to a customer about a product, I know what is in it, how it is made, and why certain choices are made. I have been on the mixing line myself for many years. That knowledge comes with me every day when I talk to customers.

In Sales, I am responsible for our retail customers and the consumer line. My days therefore look quite different from before. I have a lot of contact with customers, help them think about their needs and work with colleagues to see what we can offer them. In doing so, I still frequently interact with various departments within the company Legro, only now I am on a different side of the process. Where I used to be in charge of ensuring that the right products were made, now I am much more involved in the customer’s needs behind the scenes.

That I not only sell a product, but also really know what I’m talking about. I know a lot about the raw materials and how the production process works. Additionally, I enjoy interacting with people. In my current role, of course, I talk to many more customers and am working on solutions in a different way. At the same time, the lines with my old colleagues are still short. That makes the transition also nice.

When at the end of the day I feel like I really made a difference for a client. That can be a beautiful new request, but also something small that we were able to solve quickly. Perhaps that also makes me look at an order a little differently than someone who started directly in Sales. I know what is needed on the other side to make it happen. If that succeeds and the client is satisfied, my day is a success.