From Apprentice to Fiber Optics Specialist

A lot has happened at LASER COMPONENTS during your time here. Could you give us a brief overview of your career? 

Florian Tächl: Sure. It all started on September 1, 2000. I had just turned 16 and began my apprenticeship as an office clerk at LASER COMPONENTS. Originally, I wanted to become a chef, but my family wasn’t too enthusiastic about that idea—so I became an office clerk instead. 

During my three-year apprenticeship, I had the opportunity to get to know all areas of the company. That gave me an early understanding of how the different departments work together. It still helps me today when I act as a liaison between customers, suppliers, and our production team. After my apprenticeship, I was hired as a sales assistant in the fiber optics department. My department head at the time supported and encouraged me throughout that process.

Your former job title was Product Specialist; today, the position is officially called Sales Account Manager. What does that actually mean? 

Florian Tächl: Back then, the role was often referred to as a “product engineer.” Since I’m not an engineer, I was simply called a “product specialist.” Over the years, I acquired the technical knowledge myself—by working with customers, suppliers, and products every day. I wanted to understand what I was selling, what really mattered to the customer, and how to speak with customers on equal footing without having to look everything up.

That kind of technical expertise is not always common in sales. 

Florian Tächl: At LASER COMPONENTS, it is. The technical side is very much at the heart of what we do. We often deal with applications where off-the-shelf solutions are simply not enough. In those cases, sales also means providing technical advice and helping solve problems. 

Over the years, we have taken on increasingly demanding applications, including in medical technology. In these areas, it is not enough to simply know the product. You also have to understand requirements such as ISO 13485 and the MDR. You grow together with your customers, their applications, and the markets they operate in. 

And, of course, personal relationships are just as important. Many OEM customers I built relationships with between 2006 and 2010 are still placing orders with us today. That is partly due to the quality of our products, but the trust we have built over the years is just as important. When a problem comes up, customers know that someone will take care of it. This combination of technical expertise, reliability, and personal contact is what makes sales at LASER COMPONENTS so special.

How has the company changed over the past 26 years? 

Florian Tächl: When I started, we had around 35 employees, and many processes were still paper-based. Quotes were filled out by hand and sent by fax. As an intern, one of my main tasks was deciphering the illegible handwriting of some of the salespeople. Today, of course, things are completely different. The company is much larger, more professional, and more digital. In the past, many things could be discussed informally in person. Today, different organizational structures are needed. 

At the same time, LASER COMPONENTS has evolved from a distributor into a full-fledged manufacturer. We have expanded our in-house manufacturing capabilities, grown our product portfolio, and customer requirements have become much more demanding. Our traditional distribution business has developed into our own solutions and manufacturing division, offering assemblies, connectors, fibers, and custom components. 

Our fiber optics team has also continued to grow. Today, my primary role is to serve as the liaison between customers, suppliers, and our manufacturing department. This also includes speaking with suppliers in the U.S. or clarifying project details on-site. 

In some places, these changes are very visible. The former conference room, for example, is now my office. That illustrates quite well how much the company has changed.

Do you still remember your very first sales presentation? 

Florian Tächl: (laughs) Very clearly. It was in 2008 in Donauwörth. I was incredibly nervous. I thought I was meeting with one buyer to show him our product. Then, suddenly, the entire development department was sitting in front of me—15 to 20 people. But in the end, my live demonstration convinced them, and they placed an order with us. That was a defining experience for me.

Would you recommend LASER COMPONENTS as an employer? 

Florian Tächl: Absolutely. What shaped me most was the trust shown in me by the Paul family—first by company founder Günther Paul and later by Patrick Paul. They supported me and, when necessary, gave me a little push. 

Of course, it is easier to create a strong sense of unity in a company with 35 employees than in an international group with 280 people. But much of what I learned during that time still shapes our culture today. In many ways, it still feels a bit like family.