François-Xavier DUMIRE

You are Area Export Manager, particulary for the Central European countries, working for Ober since 1992, did you have any previous experience in this industry?

No, when I arrived in this company, the wood sector was completely new to me. I was attracted to this material mainly for its beauty, warmth and green aspects.These first impressions were confirmed throughout these last few years by working on various projects around the world.

Working in an international environment induces a daily adaptability to cultural and commercial differences.

What does your job consist in?

My main mission is to appoint, train and follow up distributors, agents and specification representatives. It is necessary for them to have an excellent knowledge for our range of products to recommend and distribute them. This requires regular training.

Are there specifities in the Ober sales process?

The significant specificity to sell these upscale ornamental products is the use of specific channel. In other word, this is not a traditional model of direct sales (seller-buyer). First, you must introduce the range of products to architects and designers who specify those on projects. Then you sell the products to either to distributors or general contractors and woodworkers for those specified projects.

What kind of projects do you have to deal with?

The upscale positioning of Ober allowed me to work on international and prestigious projects (Queen Mary II, Chelsea Football Club, Boutiques Deutsche Telekom…) and to visit places which are not easily accessible. This is naturally rather pleasant.