Her Story
About Katherine
I've been in sales for a total of three years now, and before that I spent almost two years at a landscaping company as a receptionist. What really started my journey in sales was watching my mother create her own business growing up and seeing her venture through sales and operations. I initially started in car sales just to test the waters, and it became very successful with me being the top salesperson within the whole six months and selling half the car lot. After that, I worked at a playground company, and within a year I was able to secure a $1 million RFP for a Native American tribe in California. That project took about eight months and required me to learn government documentation with little guidance, create a 45-page document, conduct satellite reviews on 12 locations, and work with the tribe to understand their different laws and protect their land. I then moved over to Z Gallery and Carrot Home, which are luxury furniture brands, where I was one of two national account managers regulating all sales within the U.S. and working alongside Carrot Home as their only inside sales person. Now I'm an Account Executive at Teltonika, where we're the number two manufacturer in the world for routers, switches, and access points that work with engineers and oil and gas companies. I work a hybrid schedule doing cold call outreach, administrative work, tailoring emails, contacting existing customers, pushing out samples, and closing deals through our channel distribution network.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Katherine
01What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I received was from my mother, who always let me know that I was stronger than what I seemed. She told me that words don't mean anything, and that I have a reason for being on this earth, and even if I don't know it now, I'll find it. That advice has really helped me push through challenges and stay focused on my purpose.
02What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
Don't be intimidated. Don't let people's words hurt you, and remember you're more than just your body. There's a lot of older men who think that they can just overpower women in the industry, and that's not the case. Take all the challenges. When women are thinking about jobs and they think business, they often go to HR, but I'm like, no, we have sales, you know? You can do it! Women are natural at this. I personally think that sales is going to be harder for men than it is for women.
03What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
I would have to say that the biggest challenge is how male-dominated the industry is. When I started my current job, there were only two women in the office. Now we've grown to I believe six women, but the majority - I believe we have about 40 or 45 people in office - and they're mostly male. This applies to all the industries I've worked in. The car sales industry was all male, I was the only female. The playground industry had only two saleswomen. Actually, funny enough, the luxury furniture industry was mostly women, which was nice. But definitely the male culture is tough.
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