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An interview with Lionnel Faber

1/ Lionnel, what different advancements in the trade would you have liked to witness in the last ten years ?

At Frayssinet’s, we have been putting forward all the standards and quality of products as well as precautions that go beyond the legal requirements , so I would really have appreciated our unions taking a more radical position in order to get rid of all the hazardous products. On the contrary for a few years, we’ve had a standard which acknowledges the very products that have been denounced by every sensible person.

2/ You sell organic fertilizers so, in the wake of the Grenelle de l’Environnement (French protocol on climate change ) and the environmental awareness people have developed so far, business is doing well, isn’t it ?

This short-lined argument can be heard occasionally, but reality is quite different. We benefit from a strong brand image in terms of environment, in the trade and even beyond. We have always offered our clients safe and efficient products. So it could be easy, but we’ve been imposed rises upstream that we can’t pass at a hundred percent onto the market. So I will answer we’re proud to sell products that are respectful for the environment and despite the turbulences on the market, our customers have been loyal to us for over 20 years on an average. For a market leader, it’s quite normal but it means you’re a manager every instant, on a permanent basis.

3/What best features your position within Groupe Frayssinet ?

Beyond what is generally expected from the sales manager about hitting his targets. On the efficient coaching of a 14 regional sales executives, on the impulse you’ve got to give, on the endless vigil, to make a long story short, on your professional file, you’ve got the spirit. In a company like ours, the sales manager is not the executives’ “boss” but the whole staff’s “master of ceremonies” to get everyone together around the management’s objectives in content and form.

4/ How do you foresee your business-to-customer relationship in the five years to come ?

We have just implemented an AUTHENTIS environmental approach with some ten of our biggest users. This contract binds us with the client on the use of our products and their added-value on the end product. I believe that this commitment is the landmark of our technical sales approach for tomorrow. What we will have to develop actually is consulting and getting more involved with the end-user.
On the export market, the Groupe’s activity is being developed through two specific products VEGETHUMUS and ORGA3 together with our range of Foliar products and OSIRYL. What our new customers from faraway countries are looking after is the effectiveness of our product, but what they seek even more so, is to trust in a partner of their agricultural network. As far as interpersonal relationship is concerned, the world of agriculture remains cordial and friendly, which is important in your relationship with the customer.