First up in our Meet The Team series is David, our Marketing Manager here at APECS. Take a read of his interview to see what he enjoys most about working at APECS and what projects he has been most proud of.
Hi David, how are you today?
I’m good thank you, it’s another busy week here at the APECS office, but we’re getting close to Christmas now, so that’s always fun!
How long have you been working at APECS?
I joined in November last year, so I’ve just reached my one-year anniversary with the company. A lot has changed in that time, but I’m really happy and proud of how far we’ve come in the last year.
What were you doing before joining APECS?
I used to be a professional musician for a number of years and alongside that I did sports journalism. Once I’d finished with the band, I started working in the music industry doing digital marketing.
Is this your first role in the lock and door hardware industry?
Yes, this is my first role in the hardware industry and although it does represent a big shift from my previous roles, it is one that I’m really enjoying. A lot of the principles of marketing are very transferable whether you’re selling tickets and records or selling cylinders and handles. I think it is often useful to have a fresh perspective on things from someone who has not worked in the industry before as well.
What do you do in the marketing team at APECS?
I’m in charge of all of our online and offline marketing channels. This can range from social media, email marketing, magazine features, writing articles, designing exhibition stands and plenty more. I also oversee all of our packaging and website design as well as manage our team of designers.
How much has changed in the year you’ve been at APECS?
APECS already had a pretty solid foundation in place when I joined last November, but I like to think that we have grown massively in the past year. When I joined we had a complete overhaul of the team in the UK office, so we brought in Natasha as a Senior Business Development Manager and also hired new office managers, assistants and designers and I think it has helped take the company to another level.
Is there anything that you’re particularly proud of from your time with APECS?
There’s a few major things that I’m proud of from the last year.
Firstly, I oversaw the complete rebuild and design of a brand new website. I’m not sure how many people will have seen our previous website, but to say it looked dated is an understatement. Now we’ve got a slick new website with all of the trimmings. The feedback we’ve had on it has been great and I’m really pleased with the way it has turned out.
Another thing that I’m proud of is our APECS Key Secure system. This system adds an extra layer of protection to keys for our KM3* Sold Secure Diamond Grade AP Cylinder. With this system, a customer registers their key online and they setup a security code. Once this is all setup, every time they want to get new keys cut, they must provide their security code. This system means that no unauthorised persons can make copies of your keys and adds an extra layer of protection. Alongside Nik, our Managing Director, I oversaw the ideation and implementation of this system and it is nice to bring something into the market that actually helps people and is involved in their day to day life. That isn’t something I’ve really experienced in any of my previous roles.
One more recent thing that we’re working on that I’m particularly proud of is our move towards using 100% recycled plastics and also lowering our carbon footprint. The APECS War on Plastic will see us move all of our packaging over to 100% recycled sources by the end of 2020 as well as decrease the amount of plastic being used by up to 70%. Alongside this, we have also redesigned all of our cylinder packaging to create smaller, more compact boxes which allow us to increase the amount of cylinders we can ship.
What do you like most about working at APECS?
As I mentioned, I find it really rewarding to be working on projects that actually have an impact on people’s everyday lives. In my previous roles in the entertainment industry, you’re selling something that people may love and enjoy, but it’s not something that they need or something that is physical. This has probably been the biggest thing that I’ve enjoyed here.
What do you have planned in 2020 with APECS?
I can’t go into too much detail, of course, but we’ve got lots of really big projects on the horizon. We’ll also be exhibiting at the FIT SHOW in May 2020 and that will be a big one for us to showcase some of the new projects that we have been working on.
That’s all from David for today, but keep your eyes on our blog to learn more about our team here at APECS UK.
