As the
eldest son, my relationship with my father, Chris Roode, was
very special and even from an early age communication had
always been on a very mature level. I remember that I started
accompanying him on sales strips when I was barely three, and
I have a clear recollection of him standing in a corn field, with his
suit and tie on, and a crop sprayer flying a few feet above our
heads. He was not only my mentor, he was also my friend. One of
the things that I will always remember is him saying: "Never
ask me for something when you know the answer is going to be
no". That took some figuring out for a young kid!
My father was a seedsman all his life.
He started his career with a seed company in Cape Town in 1938.
Then, in January
1966, after spending 25 years with his first employer and 2 years with another seed company where,
as he said, he learned
what not to do in the vegetable seed business, he started his
own business, Roode-Lyon Seed Co.
A that time, after spending a year
away from home in the South African Navy, I started a 4-year
course in agriculture economics at the University of Pretoria.
Those were tough years, trying to build a family owned company with little capital. My father was the salesman from
Tuesday to Friday and my mother handled the administration
and finances in the office. I lived in my parents' home while
attending university, and after classes, in the evenings, over weekends and
during holiday breaks, I spent most of my time learning the
business and helping with all aspects of growing a small
business. I must admit there have been days when I thought: "Is
this really what I want to do with my life?" But we all hung in
there and the business slowly started settling down, making
progress and a name for itself in the vegetable seed industry in Southern
Africa.
My father was the charismatic
salesman, well respected and liked in the business. My
mother had a knack with figures and administration, and I was
trying to develop my own style and to learn everything I
could about the business. I guess I never tried to copy my
father's selling style, but I learned very quickly, when I started
selling after two years during university breaks, that you had
to know what you are talking about in order to sell vegetable seeds,
that you have to ask a lot of questions, listen, and give consistent back-up
service to growers. I also knew that, if I wanted to make a
career in the seed business, we had to be different and develop
our own style and culture that would be unique in the marketplace,
and develop a specialized product range, direct sales to growers, and
technical service.
