I started my career in sales in 1993 when I took over responsibility for field sales at Wetropa. At the beginning I spent several months in production to get to know the machines, materials and their properties in detail. Only then did I start my first customer visits and gradually built up a customer base, mainly through cold calling.

I originally trained as an industrial clerk and worked for years in purchasing at Germany's largest bread factory. At the same time, I completed a part-time degree in advertising and sales promotion at the AfAk in Kassel. Later, I moved to the field service of a standard goods wholesaler. This is where I discovered my love for field service, customer contact and advising them.

I have been looking after some of my customers for over 30 years now, and the trust that comes from that is priceless. To see how satisfied the customers are when they say, "Wow, Mr. Schneider, we buy from you because we don't have to start from scratch. You know what it's about and what we want. You give us the right advice and we trust you." I always have a saying that I have adopted: "It's still not a partnership if the partner is always the one who does the work." That's how I see relationships with customers. My personal goal is to make the customer laugh at least once during every visit.