Ludo Gielen is appointed to new top position at Schoeller Allibert
Ludo Gielen, Chief Marketing & Innovation Officer at Schoeller Allibert since 2013 has been appointed to a new top position within the company. As Chief Strategic Growth Officer, the Limburg Entrepreneur is taking on the challenge of preparing the Schoeller Allibert Group for a strong period of growth. Schoeller Allibert is the European market leader in reusable plastic packaging and containers, offering sustainable alternatives to disposable single-use packaging made of cardboard and wood. Last month, the construction of the brand-new Belgian Schoeller Allibert facility in Beringen started: a greenfield that will eventually employ about 70 people and in which Ludo Gielen himself is investing considerably.
The Schoeller Allibert Group is facing a period of strong growth. In order to lift the commercial strategy to a higher level during this growth period, Ludo Gielen, in the role of Chief Strategic Growth Officer, will link the innovation team, the sales department, Global Key Account Management and the marketing department to each other. The commercial strategy under the leadership of Ludo Gielen will mainly focus on the introduction of new products, the ‘routes-to-market’ strategy and the optimisation of the worldwide sales process.
Huge growth potential
“I firmly believe in the future of reusable plastic packaging and containers, as well as in the possible growth of Schoeller Allibert,” says Ludo Gielen. “The market of ‘returnable transport packaging’ or reusable and sustainable packaging barely forms one percent of the worldwide production of all packaging products … which means that the growth potential of Schoeller Allibert is enormous. With our innovation team of 49 employees, we are continuously working on the development of a wide range of new products that are aimed for optimising the workflow of our customers in a sustainable way. But it is not only our job to design and create innovative and sustainable C2C products (cradle to cradle) of the highest quality, we also have to mould them into a model that is financially feasible for the industry and acceptable to the consumer.
Now I will be taking on a key role in that process of persuading the industry and the consumer. From this new position, I can ensure the connection, the coordination and the collaboration of our different departments, so that – together – we can achieve a strong commercial strategy.”
Model factory in Beringen
The fact that Schoeller Allibert is facing strong growth is becoming increasingly clear in Beringen too. There, we have recently started with the construction of a new Belgian facility that will not only offer Belgian employees a new base; it will also be a model factory for the future facilities of the group. We are also investing considerably in the field of technology, more specifically in Big Product Mould Technology. “With this technology, Schoeller Allibert will bring a large amount of innovation and savoir-faire to Limburg,” Ludo Gielen explains. “In the new facility, you’ll find one of the largest machines in the Benelux region, with a shot volume of about 45 kilos. Our production, that will ensure the supply for the Benelux region, northern France, West Germany and the UK, will mainly focus on our larger products, such as the Big Box Maximus® 1212, destined for, amongst others, the fruit industry, or the plastic ClickPall® for the petrochemical industry. The first products will be ready in the summer of 2017. We have a couple of very busy months ahead of us (sic).”
*About Ludo Gielen
In 1996, Ludo Gielen conquered the European market with his own range of plastic pallets. In 2004, his company BiPP was taken over by Schoeller Wavin. A couple of mergers and shifts later, Gielen was appointed Chief Marketing and Innovation Officer of the market leader Schoeller Allibert. Now he has been promoted to Chief Strategic Growth Officer.
