Concept Manager Washroom aims for improved experience


Albert Mey joined our team on 7 September. The new Concept Manager Washroom starts off with a challenging assignment: finding product and service solutions that will contribute to an improved washroom experience.  
 

Albert Mey's task in his new position is twofold. 'A combination of technology and marketing', he calls it. 'I will be working on the technical definition and elaboration of washroom products. And I will further develop our distribution position, since it needs to be profitable for the entire chain. The rental concept is an example. In this construction, Van Houtum Papier remains the owner of the product and lets it to an intermediary. As such the washroom operator does not have to invest anything – he pays for product use only. The advantage of such intermediary trade is that it yields monthly revenue while requiring no financial investment.
 

'Because we remain the product's owner, it is returned to us for repairs or reuse in the case of defects or after the rental period expires. And that is precisely the central idea behind Cradle to Cradle on which we focus – no waste and no loss of quality. Another advantage is that we – and our intermediaries – are more in touch with our end users. They can teach us how to improve our products and service even further.'
 

Delft University of Technology
Albert Mey studied Industrial Design at Delft University of Technology, majoring in Marketing and Business Management. He then spent sixteen years with Philips, initially as a Product Manager for household equipment. He started up his own business in 2005, accepting 'temporary and consulting assignments in the field of product innovation and business development. After Philips, it was enlightening to work for smaller companies with some 200 employees. You have to do more yourself but the communication lines are shorter, so you see results more quickly.'
 

Early this year, Albert Mey was fascinated by a profile of our company he encountered on the internet. 'Van Houtum Papier was mentioned in the same sentence as corporate social responsibility and Cradle to Cradle. I really liked that. I talked to a friend who works for Van Gansewinkel and he confirmed it. Van Houtum Papier is a great company with a leading position in the field of corporate social responsibility. They monitor the balance between people, the environment and profitability in everything they do.'