CEVA Progressing Path into US Swine Market
ANALYSIS - CEVA is continuing their path into the US market by building a team that brings swine industry expertise to the business, writes Sarah Mikesell.
8 August 2016
3 minute read
By: "We built a lot of excitement at the AASV Conference in February, introducing CEVA and what our approach to the market is," said Gary Robertson, Director of the US Swine Business with CEVA. "In between now and then, we've managed to meet with a lot of customers, tell them our story, and even more exciting, we've brought on two very experienced people to represent CEVA - Julie Schwalbe and Wes Johnson - both of whom bring a lot of expertise to the business."
In her new role, Schwalbe’s number one priority is the customer – listening and learning about their needs while going above and beyond to provide an unparalleled customer experience. She is also responsible for developing and implementing comprehensive sales strategies, partnering with Ceva Technical Services in supporting customer initiatives, and managing relationships with designated key account partners.
“In today’s swine industry, it’s imperative that we meet the needs of our customers and help them be more productive and profitable,” says Robertson. “Not only are we expanding our portfolio of effective products and solutions available to our customers, we are building a team with the right people who can add value to their businesses. With Julie’s knowledge and ability to solve problems, she can be a trusted partner in their operations.”
Johnson will focus on helping to launch the company’s customized swine vaccines to key customers, as well as growing and managing Ceva’s portfolio of swine products.
“With nearly 30 years of product sales experience, most of it in the swine industry, Wes is the ideal professional to lead our custom vaccine sales efforts and to provide these solutions to swine veterinarians and producers,” said Robertson. “Wes is well known and highly regarded by producers and veterinarians and has a thorough understanding of the production and health challenges currently facing producers. His previous custom vaccine sales experience and knowledge will be especially beneficial to our team and the customers we serve.”
What's Next for CEVA?
"We're patiently waiting for some licenses so that we can go in and try to earn some more business from the customers, and that's what we're doing right now - telling people we want to earn their business," said Robertson.
CEVA intentionally keeps it very low-pressure when meeting with customers, he said.
"Our mantra is: people do business with people that they like personally and professionally, and that's our approach. We feel like our customers are our friends," said Robertson.
