LEAMINGTON, ON - Exiting Women’s National History Month with PMA’s Women’s Fresh Perspectives Conference (WFPC) on the horizon, it’s safe to say that we at ANUK have got the fever for spotlighting the amazing women in our industry. One who came to my mind for me was Tiffany Sabelli, who I had the pleasure of getting to know better during last year’s conference.
Now a strong, confident, knowledgeable Key Account Manager for Pure Flavor®, she joined the sales staff fresh out of university, Business Degree in hand.
“I joined Pure Flavor® upon graduation starting off as a Sales Assistant. Over the course of the last six years, I have been fortunate enough to have been exposed to all aspects of the business, which has led me to my current role,” Tiffany says. “I immediately fell in love with the produce industry from day one—it is the fast-paced environment that I was looking for. I was so fortunate to start my career in produce with a company that has been forever growing, so I was able to learn a lot; from sales to marketing to operations and everything in-between.”
In addition to the “stock market of tomatoes,” Tiffany says she’s enjoyed networking and building relationships with some amazing women across all aspects of the industry, regardless of product or region. One thing we land on are the challenges of this industry, specific and non-specific to women, and how we dig in to find something important about ourselves because of them.
“The biggest challenge has been learning how to pulse the market and trust my instincts,” she shares. “Our landscape is changing; consumers’ habits are always evolving, however everyone needs to eat. Some would say that the products that we grow are core items in everyone’s grocery basket. It is exciting to see our growers bring fantastic product to life week over week and it is even more rewarding to see thousands of cases of vegetables ship from our distribution centers every day—to know that I had an impact on moving those cases to partners throughout North America.”
Tiffany explains that, as a family-owned business, Pure Flavor supports a number of empowering initiatives. Whether it be events like the WFPC, its Adopt-A-School Programs, or the PureKids Triathlon Series, it’s about providing opportunities to connect and share the team’s enthusiasm for promoting healthy lifestyles.
As for WFPC specifically, she says, “I think it’s important to continue to highlight women in this industry, so those who are fresh out of college or university will have female leaders to look up to, whatever position they may be in. Taking part in the WFPC not only allows me to network and meet more fantastic leaders across our industry, it also allows me to listen to the speakers who have incredible life experiences that will empower me to make a difference in everything I do. I look forward to attending WFPC each year!”
And of course, it’s those proud moments we continue to live and strive for.
“We collectively work in one of the most exciting industries there is; relationship-based, we are focused on growing our brand and increasing our sales to partners. We work hard for our customers to ensure we deliver the best quality; we grow so their customers can count on them when they purchase week over week,” Tiffany tells me. “My proudest moment was standing at a retailer’s home office that I have admired my entire childhood.”
I, for one, am excited to see more proud moments for Tiffany and all in our industry that continue to influence positive changes for the business. Keep an eye out for more features from ANUK as we count down to WFPC 2019 in San Antonio, Texas, April 14 to 16.
