Martin Potts

· Manage and support artist and educator requirements for three major Percussion brands, Mapex Drums, Paiste Cymbals and Vic Firth Sticks – from August 2024 Vic Firth changed to Vater Drumsticks

· Using relationships and personal influence, promote the brands in the market, and bring artist/influencers to the brands

· Processing artist FOC orders, reporting back to parent brand where necessary, managing credit notes and replacement stock for relevant transactions

· Assessing new endorsement applications and proactively looking for new artists

· Instigating and influencing new product press reviews, working with trade press to promote the percussion brands. In the case of reviewers, supporting them to understand key features and benefits of our products and any special USPs.

· Maintaining contact with hire support centres at John Henrys Ltd, STS Manchester and Big Fish Rentals to make sure any loan requirements are fulfilled and loan gear placed is serviceable and UpToDate

· Arranging loan support for international endorsers touring in the UK, and UK endorsers in foreign territories

· Planning of artist events including budget and travel plans

· Liaising with stores re marketing content and brand representation

· Supporting divisional budget planning where necessary

· Liaising with wider Korg marketing team for relevant content sharing, brand co-op placement

· Marketing percussion brands/artists via social media channels. Maintaining Mapex UK and Vater UK social media channels including content creation and sharing, managing communication with end users, and ensuring the brand is correctly represented according to the brand guidelines

· Liaising with senior teams at all three percussion brands to report back artist activity, plans and gear requirements etc

· Managing relevant loan requirements of stock placement at events

· Prep for display stand/logistical planning/artist activity/stand management at required events

· Attend influential retail and trade shows and utilise the artist roster to best promote the brands

• Responsible for the purchasing of both Mapex drums and Paiste cymbals and all the other logistics process for both products from the purchase stage, through shipping and warehouse liaison, to the booking in and despatching of the stock, and often also the despatch process. This has given me a wider knowledge of warehouse and shipping processes and has led to me looking after the warehouse when existing managers have been off and managing the warehouse staff for this time. I work closely with the Area Sales Managers and internal sales team and managers, raising various reports and preparing monthly stock orders as well as weekly shortfall orders and any Special Order product, and liaising with the suppliers in China and Switzerland, and am responsible for general stock code management and price list maintenance.
• I was heavily involved in the set-up of the warehouse for the arrival of a new stock line (Paiste cymbals) that led to a new member of the drum team starting, who I was responsible for training and now oversee his day to day workings.
• As my level of responsibility increased, I also interviewed 3 candidates for a warehouse position, and most recently have been involved in the interviews of 3 Area Sales Manager candidates, with the current ASM and Sales Manager.

• Main duties were taking the sales calls from trade customers and dealing with End User enquiries, sales order entry, raising credit notes, and dealing with any despatch issues. Working closely with the Area Sales Managers I was also responsible for allocating key stock lines. In the last few months of this period I also became involved in the purchasing process for Mapex drums.

• Day to day running of the sales office, beneath the Commercial Manager, taking incoming calls from trade customers and end users, order processing including raising despatch notes, processing of credit notes and key stock allocation, and working closely with the Directors and Regional Managers, providing them with sales and product information and various reporting. I also supervised an internal sales advisor and was responsible for liaising with the warehouse regarding incoming deliveries, day-to-day despatching and general stock issues.
• Responsible for the returns department, issuing returns authorisations, booking goods in and out, liaising with the technical engineer, and maintaining the returns database. During a company restructure I was also been responsible for training 3 new staff members, including the Commercial Manager.
• Marketing duties involved liaising with the main MI magazines, arranging press releases, news items, advertising and arranging product reviews, and liaising with the design company re advertising and marketing, catalogues and packaging.
• Organised the company's stand for the Music Live show where I was responsible for everything from the design and building of the stand, to arranging stock and the supervision and staffing for the show.

• Managed a telesales area of 130 trade accounts in a pro active sales role, making regular calls on my area selling Zoom Guitar effects, Warwick cases and stands, and an own brand of cables, amps and accessories, achieving around £35k per month. I was responsible for order entry and general product queries and worked directly with the sales manager.

• Senior member of the Sales Office team involving all products and managing 5 top accounts.
• Responsible for key stock allocation, processing orders and credit notes, advising trade customers and end users and working closely with Regional Managers. I also attended a 3-day training course on sales skills and customer service and telephone skills, various product demonstration courses, and several dealer training days visiting trade customers.
• I became the first dedicated percussion contact within the office, increasing business and awareness within the smaller drum dealers, and played an important role in several trade and public music shows, arranging stock and advising customers.

• Main duties were to liase with trade customers, regional managers and end users, processing orders and credit notes, internal account management, and liaising between the warehouse and sales office. I attended several trade and public shows, and was involved in the stocking and manning of the exhibition stands. I became product specialist for Remo percussion, responsible for related matters in the office and servicing end-users, which led me to organise and manage a 3-day clinic tour with a US endorsee. I also established and managed a spare parts department for 2 divisions.
• In July '99 I also took on the telesales role for the Band Instrument Division, performing similar roles, and shortly after became Customer Service Manager for both divisions, dealing with general enquiries, complaints and despatch issues, maintaining a mail database and general trouble shooting, alongside my sales duties.

• My role involved the retail sale of a broad range of Drum and Orchestral instruments and cymbals, in a busy London drum shop, liaising with customers from an amateur to professional level, in person and over the phone, generating quotes, general shop sales including mail order and despatch, and helping with the hire business.