As Europe's largest dealer of pre-owned processing equipment, Foeth relies on a professional team of technical and sales experts, working cohesively together. But what is it like working here on a day-to-day basis?

Chris van Paassen, Sales Agent in Foeth's headquarters in Barneveld, tells about his experiences working for an internationally oriented company.

Early days

Chris started in August 2018, after responding to a job posting from 2017. Colleague Marijn was moved internally from the workshop to the office, which allowed him to progress. The job posting was for the position of 'Account Manager'. The company has a technical and commercial character and an international flavour. In addition, Foeth is small-scale and based in the Barneveld region. "I like the work ethic that prevails in this environment. It is a perfect balance, situated between the West and the East, where everyone helps each other and we have a hands-on mentality.", Chris says. In the hierarchy when he entered, he was in third place, next to Corné and Marijn. At that time, the branch in Germany had just opened and the total team consisted of about 20 people, including the workshop and logistics.

"During my first period, I looked up every word I didn't know to gain a deeper understanding of the process industry, especially in terms of machining methods." It was essential for Chris to properly understand and translate the customer's request. Back then, requests were still printed out and distributed among colleagues; the Sales team did not have their own e-mail addresses or a general Foeth e-mail address. "Back then, we received an average of 50 inquiries per week, but now there are about 250. Mainly due to more active marketing activities, we have received more inquiries and purchased more nice machines." Chris and the team started to approach customers and prospects more proactively.

Shifting focus

In recent years, the workload has changed. The number of sales agents has increased and the focus region per agent has changed to better focus on market developments. This allows Foeth to respond better to incoming inquiries. Inquiries come from the pharma, chemical, food, and feed industries, and every request is unique. Therefore, sales agents have to delve deeper each time, and sometimes it touches on another issue they have seen before. "The heart of the role is really sales, rather than relationship and network building, our main job as Sales Agent is to offer machines that fit the customer's demand." Chris says. "Because we sell used machines, we never have a machine that is a complete fit, but we look for the best match and also ask for some flexibility from the customer." Foeth sales agents think along with the customer to find the right machine. Chris observes two types of customers: one group knows exactly what they want, who are mainly concerned about price and the match with their existing range. The other group of customers knows very well what kind of product they want to produce, and then we have to think along with them in the right direction.

Whatever transition you aim for, Foeth facilitates!

At Foeth, we are often at the forefront of transitions, such as the protein transition, for example. Right now, if companies want to produce proteins differently, such as from algae, chickpeas, and seaweed, it puts us at the forefront of great new developments with used machines.

"I get energy from increasing circular thinking and therefore I am happy with the way of giving used machines a new life as we do at Foeth." Chris gives an example about how a startup with a used machine from Foeth can take the first steps to further drive the circular society: the Rotterdam-based company that makes leather from waste mangoes. Normally, these mangoes would be rejected or thrown away, but this company turns them into leather. "This example illustrates several aspects that energise me: making leather from waste instead of cow hides, developing a new product, and my contribution to it." Another example Chris gives is the peanut butter story: Michiel Vos developed an alternative way to make peanut butter and bought a used machine from Foeth for this production process.

Small team, big scope

As for the organisation of Foeth, Chris loves having an office position on a 30,000 m² site, in an international setting with a small team. "The atmosphere among with colleagues is good, I can work well with the guys from the workshop and logistics. I am a buddy with Technical Sales Agent Jeroen." As buddies, you spar about the content of the machines and customer questions. For example, if a customer wants tomato powder, we speak with each other about the technical aspects and what to look out for in order to make an appropriate offer. Chris: "We also sell 'no' because that makes us stronger and more convincing in the market as a supplier. In fact, 'no' is also a good answer because at the end of the day, you have a used range and therefore cannot always supply the appropriate fit."

Before his current role, Chris had some experience on the sales side, with a technical background. He worked in engineering and then moved into the commercial side. "I have pleasant contact with people, speak several languages, and have a commercial streak and affinity with (process) engineering. In addition, I am always curious about developments." Chris gives the example about the protein transition again: "We get a lot of inquiries regarding the protein transition, e.g. growing proteins in alternative ways, drying proteins, sieving maggots, and so on."

What makes success at Foeth?

As a Sales Agent, when does Chris consider himself succesful, both personally and from Foeth's perspective? "I am results-oriented, so a day when I can close a deal is a good day for me. Foeth is always striving for more, so that requires a high bar, even for myself. For Foeth, it is nice when we can sell a machine that has been with us for some time and you can make a good match between a machine and the customer demand."