14 Rob Looye 8 First question: What happens under this roof? “This branch in Helmond, which is also our headquarters, covers 25,000 square meters with everything included and employs about 300 people. Plato Group consists of four branches: the holding company Plato with the staff functions, and the three market-oriented organizations Clipper Interall, IGO Promo, and Compacon, each serving its own market segment independently in various European countries. Clipper Interall is a wholesaler of promotional gifts with its own printing facility in this building, focusing on sustainable products. IGO Promo stands for International Gift Organization and supplies a wide range of items directly to the end customer, partly through a fully automated B2B webshop. Compacon is not based here in Helmond but in Barendrecht, and was acquired seven years ago. With Compacon, we offer a complete package of services, from creative concept to execution, as well as web solutions and storage facilities for major brands.” Can you tell us something about the history? Hoe kwam je in de promotionele branche terecht? ‘“The foundation for what is now Plato Group was laid by Martien Jonkers right after the war. He started by importing pen parts and attaching clips to them, hence the name Clipper. Soon after, he also began printing the pens. It was essentially a wholesale business, but there were no strict rules back then, so he also sold them to end customers. At the beginning of our conversation, CEO Rob Looye points to a photo of 'founding father' Martien Jonkers: “At this moment I am the director of Plato Group, but I did not establish and grow the company, he did. I am just a temporary part of the timeline of this beautiful company.” This humility characterizes Looye's attitude, who does not favor autocratic leadership. During his long career, it became clear that his strength lies in optimizing companies. Rather than setting a directive course, he prefers to engage in dialogue with employees, challenging them to push back to achieve better results. ‘OUT OF THE COMFORT ZONE, BEING OPEN TO THE NEW AND CHERISHING THE OLD’ Later, this changed, and Clipper became a wholesaler only, while IGO became the channel to the end customers. The company grew and moved from the attic of the parental home to various office buildings and also took on warehouse space. Jonkers was one of the first in Europe to start a mail-order company for promotional gifts, IGO-POST, and gained a lot of market share with it. It's funny because when I was still working for Philips, I came into contact with this company as a customer through the catalog. Every Philips customer had a product from that catalog on their desk! I spent about 30 years on the 'customer side' of the promotional industry, and that knowledge is now coming in handy.” Foundation “When Martien Jonkers retired and wanted to pass on the business, he set up a foundation that to this day forms the basis of the company culture. Of course, there is a focus on making a profit to ensure the company's continuity, but most of the proceeds are donated to good causes. That really appealed to me and partly determined my choice to work here. I come from the world of private equity, which was also very educational, but the social aspect with good causes really appeals to me.” 15 2024 - number 4 - promzvak.nl BY LISETTE ERDTSIECK:
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