DIYWEEK.net

Chief commercial officer Melanie Meskers took up her position on the board at Elho this summer, bringing a wealth of experience from numerous roles over two decades with Unilever.

In her new role, Ms Meskers is responsible for the commercial organisation of the Elho group: the sales, marketing, product development, online and category management departments. She joins the rrest of the Elho board: CEO and second-generation family member Olaf Elderenbosch; CFO Marco Wels; and director of operations Bert Bakkeren.

Ms Meskers has an extensive marketing and sales background in fast-moving consumer goods in both food and non-food markets. She started her career as a management trainee at Unilever, where she subsequently worked for 20 years in various local, regional and global roles. Her most recent position at Unilever was global director of family cooking, baking, creams.

Family-run manufacturer Elho has been in business for over 54 years. It now employs 200 colleagues and is a market leader in Europe in the development, production and sale of synthetic (designer) pottery and related products. Elho's products are sold in more than 75 countries in garden centres, hardware shops and through online channels under the Elho name, as well as other group labels, including Ebertsankey, Treenest, Fibrics and Easyday. 

 Ms Mesker is particularly inspired by the company’s ethos of working towards sustainable product development and innovative solutions, saying of her new role at Elho: "In our daily lives, we are becoming increasingly isolated from nature. Technological advances and urbanisation have caused our lives to change at a rapid pace. There is a growing need for more green in our living environment…Together with our retailers, I would like to inspire even more consumers and help them to bring nature into and around their homes in a simple way.
“Elho is a worldwide market leader in its field and stands for more nature and less waste. That's why, in Tilburg, we produce our sustainable collection made from recycled material using 100% wind energy from our own windmill. I am proud to work towards the future of this innovative, ‘green' and successful family business. If you would like to learn more about our mission, visit our website at elho.com.”