The role of a purchaser at POP Solutions: manufacturing your POS displays in Belgium or abroad

Key takeaways

• Phil Logist oversees the production of POP Solutions’ permanent POS displays, from the start of manufacturing through to delivery.
• POP Solutions manufactures displays at its own factories in Belgium or works with partners abroad.
• Clients choose where their displays are manufactured, with POP Solutions advising them on quality, lead times and budget.
• Phil meets every new partner in person, particularly to check compliance with EcoVadis requirements.

Manufacturing in Belgium or abroad: each option has its advantages and limitations. Phil Logist, purchaser at POP Solutions, negotiates with production partners and oversees every project through to delivery. The client always chooses where production takes place.

Who is Phil Logist?

Phil Logist is a purchaser at POP Solutions. After around 15 years in international civil aviation, he joined a company specialising in cardboard POS materials. He subsequently moved into the production and management of permanent POS displays. He sums up his role as follows: “Making sure our clients receive their displays on time and exactly as agreed, without having to worry about a thing.”

What does a purchaser do at POP Solutions?

Phil Logist has three main responsibilities:

• Negotiating prices with POP Solutions’ international partners.
• Overseeing each production run, from start to delivery.
• Managing after-sales service.

On a typical day, he monitors ongoing production, prepares upcoming deliveries, and requests and compares quotations. He gets involved as soon as a brief comes in, assessing the client’s requirements against the practical realities of the project and the materials involved. He works primarily with project managers, in-house production teams and design teams, including the industrial designer.

Manufacturing in Belgium or abroad: who decides?

The client. POP Solutions provides guidance based on quality, lead times and budget, then manufactures the displays wherever the client chooses.

In Belgium, production takes place at the group’s own factories, which specialise in metal, plastic, cardboard and digital printing. Lead times are shorter, and all our cardboard displays are manufactured here. Belgian production also accounts for 80% of the turnover generated by our permanent POS displays.

Abroad, POP Solutions works with partners in Poland, Czechia, Slovakia, Italy, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Turkey and China. These partnerships expand our manufacturing capabilities beyond what the group can produce in-house, although lead times are longer. Outsourced production accounts for 20% of the turnover generated by our permanent POS displays.

How do we ensure the quality of production abroad?

By choosing the right partners and maintaining direct personal contact.

• Our partners’ activities complement POP Solutions’ core expertise.
• Phil meets every new partner in person. His first priority is clear, honest communication. He also assesses workshop cleanliness, safety procedures, organisation and communication arrangements, including whether there is a common language.
• He checks that each partner meets our corporate social responsibility (CSR) requirements, covering the environment, labour and human rights, ethics and sustainable procurement.

If a problem arises during production, Phil works with the manufacturer to find a solution. After all, clients expect displays of impeccable quality.

Our partnerships are a bit like a relationship: they need clear agreements, good communication and trust. Personal contact opens doors that an email never could.

What difference does his role make to you?

Phil oversees the production of your POS displays from start to delivery, involving you as little as possible. Together with the project managers and in-house teams, he takes responsibility for the final result. It is a role that suits him well: what he enjoys most about his job is dealing with the unexpected and taking on new challenges.

From order to delivery, we do everything we can to give our clients the best possible support.

Looking for a reliable partner to manufacture your POS displays?

Contact our POS display experts to discuss your project. To find out more about how we manage your project day to day, discover the role of an account manager.