In June, Mevotech Appointed Matt Weiss as Executive Vice President of Sales for its North American operations. Known for his collaborative approach which has led to successful sales growth across a wide range of businesses, Weiss joins one of the most innovative organizations in the automotive aftermarket. In this exclusive interview, Autosphere delves a little deeper into his background, asking Weiss what he feels are some of the key ingredients to success and what he looks forward to in his new role at Mevotech. 

Autosphere: Can you tell us a little about your background, how did you get started in sales?

Matt Weiss: Growing up as a kid, I worked in retail. Personally, I’ve always enjoyed that interaction with consumers and being able to help out the people that come into the business. I went to school and earned a biology degree, so customer service and retail was not related to my field of study, but it was something of interest to me. I wanted to go into sales, and so, coming out of school, I got into a traditional organization that had a lot of really strong sales training. It was a major courier company and provided a lot of in-depth, hands-on learning opportunities. From there, my goal was to go into the tech industry, and I started building my career in that sector on the sales side. For me, it was about problem solving for consumers and then, as I moved into the business side, helping to build those positive relationships, and really looking at it more from a partnership perspective in how we solve problems and achieve success together and in turn, support our customers’ end users.

AS: Are there any milestones in your career so far, you’d like to share with us?

MW: Having been largely in sales, it’s been a fun journey so far. Prior to joining Mevotech, I served as Chief Consumer Officer at Otterbox, leading the sales as well as product and marketing organizations. It was a fun role; in that it allowed you to bring all three of these groups together and ensure that we were not only developing the right products but ensuring we had the right messaging in getting those products to market and ultimately creating a cohesive sales strategy for the customer. If I were to highlight any aspects of my career, it’s been the opportunities for growth I’ve had and being able to partner with major businesses to help them grow significantly.

AS: Was there anything in particular, that drew you to the position at Mevotech?

MW: If you look historically, much of my sales experience was in the tech space with companies like Toshiba and Best Buy and then Otterbox, which is tech-adjacent. Everything we did was essentially built around technology. Joining Mevotech was an opportunity to learn a new industry but also work with an organization that was doing things differently. When I look at the innovation and technology that Mevotech has brought to the market and how they’ve been able to change opportunities for automotive service providers and technicians, as well as distribution partners by delivering more in the box, it was something that really interested me. It wasn’t just about offering a hard vehicle component, but a completely different way of looking at solving a specific problem. The other aspect was, continued growth and learning and working in a critically important industry that thrives in both good times and bad. The automotive aftermarket is one of those spaces that truly provides opportunity, no matter what’s happening from an economic perspective. 

AS: What do you feel is essential for cultivating strong and long-lasting customer relationships?

MW: First and foremost, listening is critically important. Understanding the challenges that a customer might have, and taking those challenges on is something that’s equally as important to us as cultivating the brand. From that listening and understanding, the next step is finding mutual opportunities for success. No positive partnership or relationship is going to be one sided, and if they are one sided, it becomes a challenge for both parties. I’m always excited about ways to solve problems for service technicians and consumers, and how we can create a win for them and Mevotech as well. When you start from a point of understanding a customer’s business, you start to take on their challenges as your own. So, essentially, you’re not selling a product so much as providing a solution. It’s this type of approach that leads to building solid, long-lasting relationships. Although not every conversation is going to be easy, by establishing mutual respect, and focusing on collaboration and problem solving, it often leads to bigger and better things.

AS: If applicable, what do you think is key to identifying opportunities in order to successfully grow market share both in terms of attracting new customers and strengthening relationships with existent clients, while also providing staff and the organization with the tools and training they need to succeed?

MW: Often, in sales, there is a tendency to focus on getting new customers and while I do believe that is a critical function, it’s also super important to invest in the existing customer base you have and find ways to grow that base. Innovation can be a key driver of that, but so can investing in new products or new market segments. A good example is Mevotech investing in brake components aimed at fleet operators, as well as providing a range of options for our customers. A good example of that, are the Original Grade, Supreme and TTX lines that Mevotech offers, which run the gamut in terms of options, pricing and technology. This enables us to build new opportunities, giving our customers, service technicians and the end user the option to upgrade to different products and provide a different solution to what they may currently have. Additionally, identifying changes happening with the industry, such as the growth in import vehicles on the road, and providing solutions that cater to this change in VIO, also provides good opportunities to address any gaps in the market. An example of this is adding new parts that cater to these vehicles and empowering our customers, so they have everything they need to perform the install and do it right the first time, with the opportunity to exceed the original OEM requirements.

AS: Is there anything else you’d like to mention regarding your new role, Mevotech and the aftermarket auto care sector?

MW: On a personal level, I’ve been very excited about joining a company that’s well established within the automotive aftermarket but continues to bring innovation by providing more components in the box and offering innovative Labor Saver tools to help technicians be more efficient. A key part of this, is making sure we communicate the message clearly. How do we ensure that the technicians know about these parts and tools so they can do the job more efficiently and serve more customers while still delivering a superior product? It’s not just about meeting OE requirements but exceeding them by providing a quality parts that enable the vehicle to stay on the road longer. Having a solid, reliable and reputable product is a great foundation for building a robust sales strategy and I’m fortunate that we have a strong, experienced team to assist on that journey. Ultimately, it’s about how we deliver different value to our partners and ensure that we are really helping to grow both our business and theirs.