A love for puzzles and an even deeper love for people are two things that have continued to drive Armando Hernandez throughout his 36-year career in materials handling dealerships, where the sheer variety of customers allows him to embrace a whole host of challenges.

He jokes that he had worked in just about every dealership position available before finding his true calling in sales: “Just like I know at 5’10” I would never do well as a center for the LA Lakers basketball team. I know I have found my perfect fit in the sales department.”

Now a sales manager for ToyotaLift, covering the US and Mexico for several years, Armando has a unique vantage point on the industry. 

He talks to Forkliftaction about working across the two markets, about the biggest perks of the job, his ultimate sales advice and his love for community soccer.

RC: Having received a Masters Sales Society award with Toyota Material Handling several times, you’ve certainly proven you know your stuff. If you had to name one thing that people most often get wrong in sales, what would it be?

A.H: If you don’t build a bond with the customer, they won’t give you a chance even though you might have a better product, or a less expensive price tag. I think good sales is about who the customer trusts and feels comfortable with.

It’s also about little details like knowing when to stop talking, when to ask for certain things such as other contacts who you can also try to make a bond with. The more people involved who feel comfortable with you, the easier the decision to move forward will be. It’s easier for the customer to decide when their colleagues are all in agreement.

RC: Throughout your 36-year materials handling career, you have joked that you have worked in just about every department bar a few before finding the perfect fit in sales. What is it you love most about your current work?  

A.H. Getting to know people is what I love. People joke in our industry that we live in the television show How it’s Made. It truly feels like, that as we have so many customers, working in different fields, who do amazing things that I find interesting. I love seeing the variety of their operations.

Also, I hate to use the term “people person” but I really am. I am the kind of person that could go to the airport and just people watch and make conversations and see what other people do in life.  In sales we do this daily.

RC: Are there lessons from those earlier roles that still stand you in good stead today? 

A.H: Being humble is a strong value of mine. When I first started in the business as a parts runner/helper I remember how it felt to be talked down to and disrespected by those in “higher status” positions.

I make sure I treat everyone like I would like to be treated. From the farm to the city to the wrecking yards to the local schools, we as salespeople need to be humble and be a chameleon, and most importantly we must not think we are above anyone.

RC: Having worked in dealerships for several decades, what do you see as the major challenges for dealers today, and how do the best companies respond to these pressures?

A.H: Seeing as we now live in this age of technology, I feel having the opportunity to meet someone in person is slowly slipping away. Take us for example, and how we are conducting business through emails and not face-to-face.

Some companies are run in a very organised way, but don’t have a good website and don’t do well in advertising. This does impact a company.

I know of a smaller company that does very well because of the advertising they invest in and their professional website. It gives the impression that they are a large and successful company, which in fact they just started a few years ago.

R.C: You cover both the US and the Mexican markets. In your opinion, what are the key differences between the two?

A.H: To me the most important difference can be seen in the level to which safety measures are upheld.  In Mexico, I still see more than half of customers doing things that would never be allowed in the US because of regulations and Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA).

Take the semis, for example. We aren’t allowed to use certain ones here because of smog and air-pollution rules, but they’re still up and running in Mexico, and no wall will ever keep that smoke away. I know Mexico is moving toward better guidelines, but they’re still behind in a lot of materials handling areas.

Another big difference is how hard it is to enter factories. In the States, we can go cold-calling and walk into places easily. In Mexico, it takes a lot just to get a name or even reach the front desk because of company security and all the work permits needed to enter.

R.C: What do you see as the big challenges and opportunities for each of these markets over the next five years?

A.H: Government restrictions are proving to be a challenge.

We all know about President Trump’s tariffs, which created ripple effects across many companies.

In Mexico, recent changes to labour regulations, including tighter rules around overtime, have also added complexity for businesses. To me this is opening it up for employees to work out of clock and get paid under the table.

These are just some of the factors I feel are causing companies to rethink investment in the region.

R.C: Looking back over your career, what have you enjoyed most about working in the materials handling as an industry? And what would you say to young people who are considering whether the industry is a good fit for them? 

A.H: We all grew up playing Tetris or doing crossword puzzles. In this industry, you get to use those problem-solving skills every day, helping customers figure out what is the best fit for their operations. The satisfaction of knowing you helped with the solution for a company’s operation is just flat-out awesome.

What I would tell the new generation is to know that everything we eat, wear or use is handled by materials handling and it’s definitely a good source of income and this field is never boring. But they will have to be ready for challenges, and they must learn to accept hearing a “no” every once in a while.

They need to understand that a “no” answer from a prospective customer is not a no to them personally, it’s just a no to that specific product at that point in time. A no today is not necessarily a no for tomorrow. Be patient and have tough skin.

R.C: Outside of materials handling, community sport and soccer appear to have been a big part of your life. Can you talk a bit about this involvement. What drives your love of community and sport?

I did youth club soccer here in San Diego for 20 years and was lucky enough to coach all my kids. I also coached high school soccer in men’s and women’s divisions for four years.

I liked the competition and teamwork; it takes the whole team to succeed (much like in a forklift dealership).

Seeing the kids navigate wins and losses gave me an opportunity to coach and mentor the kids and share the lesson that in life we don’t get to win every game. In fact, we often learn more from a loss than a win. How we react after a loss is what counts.

I was lucky enough to coach many kids who went on to universities and some that made the professional level.

I still get approached regularly by former players or player’s parents. It brings me happiness knowing they still remember me and they all have some kind of memory of when they were playing soccer and how much fun they had.

Lots of dealer principals, sales reps, factory reps and customers have or have had kids playing soccer and I have been able to have more interactions with them because of it.