The culture of Clarks is a mix of tradition, heritage and innovation

posted by Caroline Grant
25 March 2014

I joined Clarks because working with a family owned and highly successful global brand had an appeal I couldn’t ignore. Who could? Although our business is spread out around the world, as we’re a well-organised business, working with colleagues across the globe is so easy.

The culture of Clarks is a mix of tradition, heritage and innovation. There are always a lot of projects in the pipeline to ensure that we maintain our leading role and because the wholesale and retail business is worldwide, there are lots of different job opportunities all over the company, all over the world. I have spoken to a lot of people who have been with Clarks for more than 20 years and most of them have worked in different jobs during their time with the business.

Right now I work with ten other colleagues in the wholesale-team of the DACH area. Our job is quite simple: to sell the right products to the right customers. The idea is to make our customers successful so that we, in turn, will continue to benefit from their success.

My role is to be the ‘captain of the team’ and to ensure that we all play the same game together. It is always the best team work that wins, but to be successful you also need a great product as well as a great sales and aftersales team.

We need to get as close as we can possibly be to our customers so that we can anticipate their requests and needs. With the information they give us, we are able to digest that data in our systems and work closer together with product, purchasing and marketing teams in order to focus on our key customers.

There’s a lot of freedom of action at Clarks. The global guidelines in order to be successful are there, but you also have the chance to implement your own ideas and skills for the success of your hub. Being a part of this process gives you new opportunities.

For example, I had the opportunity to attend the last Sales Conference (AW14) It was a perfect event at which to implement the Clarks DNA within three days - and I met some great colleagues from all over the world to network with.

My leisure time I spend with my wife Annika and my children Ben and Lia. They keep me busy – especially as they now have a grand plan to see the world’s most beautiful beaches. Who knows? In between it all, I may even restart my “running career”.

Luer - Sales Manager - DACH 

Categories: Sales | International | People story |