“I’m a one-man show!”

I originally come from the hospitality sector. I had two restaurants of my own, was responsible for the hospitality of a tennis club and worked in catering.

At some point, my children reached an age where many things were happening at once, and I realized that I wanted to take a step back. So I sold my company. Suddenly the question was: What’s next? Then I joined Rational AG, a German manufacturer of professional kitchen equipment. That’s how I found my way into the catering industry. After three years at a French company, I have been working at B.PRO since 2010.

Certainly this job now. But my time at Rational was also important for me. It was my first international company, a completely new world.

I visited the production, met the people – and knew immediately: this fits me. The fact that I had already worked closely with German colleagues for many years at Rational surely helped. The combination of discipline, clear structure and responsibility simply suits me. And the market already knew me from my time at Rational, which made things easier. New products, but familiar relationships.

What was especially enriching for me was that I could dive into areas at B.PRO that I had hardly known before. Above all, the healthcare sector fascinated me. I was able to take part in major hospital projects in Spain, which inspired me both professionally and personally.

Languages have always been a key for me. I was born in Andalusia and came to Catalonia at the age of seven. There I learned Catalan as well. When I eventually joined B.PRO, I suggested taking over Portugal and all of Latin America as well. For that, I had to learn Portuguese.

Languages give you real access to people. When you speak to customers in their language, a door opens immediately. It’s a matter of respect and creates trust. That is exactly what makes the difference in sales.

Absolutely. But this job gives me exactly the mix of familiarity and new impulses. It’s a great responsibility. I can shape things independently, make decisions and stay close to people. The fact that I can do all this for three different regions makes me proud.

(Laughs) It’s true, I’m a one-man show – and that’s exactly what makes my job so lively. My daily routine is a mix of travelling, visiting dealers and many online conferences, especially for the South American market.

That may sound like a lot. But after sixteen years, I know the industry inside out, and above all I know the people. Many relationships have existed for so long that things run quite naturally. I know who to call, I have a direct line to Germany and get every piece of information I need without much preparation. This fantastic network makes my job very efficient today.

In Spain and Portugal, the markets are developing very similarly to Germany. Topics like automation and digitalization are clearly in focus. In South America, it’s different. There, the market is still a few years behind. Nevertheless, a lot is happening. We even tripled sales on the continent in the past two years, especially in hospital equipment and food distribution. And there is a very good pipeline of new projects.

What remains the same everywhere: customers choose products that are reliable, work well and are sustainable in the long term.

The B.PRO COOK family is an ideal solution for many of my customers – especially everywhere where front cooking should be practiced without disturbing steam. And as a trained cook, it is also my favourite product. I can explain to customers exactly how the COOK units work in everyday use and what difference they make.

The ROIG ARENA is a multidisciplinary arena that opened in September 2025. It is mainly the new home venue of the basketball club Valencia Basket, with space for around 15,600 spectators at games. For concerts with a 360-degree stage, the arena holds up to 20,000 visitors.

We were involved in this project from the very beginning. Early on, we invited the project leaders to Germany so they could get a real impression of our food distribution solutions in the catering area of Wildparkstadion Karlsruhe. This visit was an important moment: they could see live how our systems work and what impact they have in operation.

Today, several of our solutions are in use there – including COOK Classic, COOK I-flex and the B.PROTHERM E. All products that prove to be very reliable in everyday use. Some versions we delivered are only available from us in this form – an advantage that was explicitly appreciated. It is a project I am very proud of.

What drives me is above all my own attitude. Discipline is a core value for me – and that means everything: being on time, being prepared, really knowing the product, answering questions reliably. I take my job very seriously and work professionally.

Many customers tell me they can rely on me. When I promise something, I keep it. This trust is incredibly important to me. I listen, I am approachable, and I want to build relationships that last.

Balance is my favourite word. The job, but also my family, are very important to me, and I do my best to do justice to both. In my free time, I recharge my energy by jogging, reading, hiking and travelling.

I look forward with optimism. Automation will remain a central topic in food distribution, even if South America still needs time. B.PRO is very well positioned for this – technologically leading in Spain. I personally want to continue exactly where I am today: close to customers and active in the market.

Not at all. I have full energy, many ideas and I feel very fit. Learning languages, reading, staying active – that’s part of it for me. The regular retirement age doesn’t interest me. At 67, nothing ends for me. If it’s up to me, I will keep working until at least 70 – happily also as an independent consultant if necessary. I enjoy my job far too much.