His passion for meeting a good challenge continues to keep Rupert Hawks on his toes.
By Laura Thill
Rupert Hawks does not need a compass to direct his next steps. As far as the Grove Medical sales rep is concerned, the only direction in which to move is forward. Indeed, what some might view as a hurdle, he regards as a springboard to his future. Consider the launch of his medical products sales career in 1989. “It’s a long story,” he says, recalling a serious injury he suffered that year. At the time, he ran his own landscaping business. “I was 49 years old and realistically wouldn’t be able to return to work for a couple of years. At 51, no one wants to hire you!
“A friend of mine was in the glove and dialysis business,” he continues. “He offered to spot me some gloves to sell. I started out with five cases, upped it to 10 and within months was delivering 35 cases out of my station wagon to one client.” His new career took off, and about 12 years ago, he joined Grove Medical. “It’s been a lot of fun,” he says. “I’ve enjoyed the people and the challenges.”
Yet, the going hasn’t always been smooth. In 1991, he was diagnosed with leukemia. After successful treatment and years of remission, in 2011 he faced a new diagnosis: squamous cell cancer on his upper left temple. “I was in a sales meeting several years ago, when I noticed a lump on my neck,” says Hawks. “It was close to my lymph nodes, but not in them. Today, it has moved to the area around my right ear lobe.”
For Hawks, illness – no matter how serious – is a part of life. “Just because you are going through cancer treatment doesn’t mean you are going to die,” he points out – an attitude that so impressed his doctor, he was asked to reach out to a fellow cancer patient at Ormond Hospital who was feeling hopeless about his situation. “My doctor suggested I talk to this patient about what I’ve been through,” he says. “Two days after we spoke, his wife called to thank me. She told me I changed her husband’s attitude.”
Hawks’ positive outlook was tested once again when, about a year ago, he faced an emergency quadruple bypass. “I was out and feeling tired, and a friend of mine suggested I go home to rest,” Hawks recalls. “My wife, Carol, was concerned, so I went to the doctor the next morning. Although my vitals were fine, the doctor could tell something was wrong.” It wasn’t until he was midway through an angiogram that he realized the seriousness of his condition. “I was like a stick of dynamite with a four-inch fuse,” he says. “I heard the doctor say they needed to get me to Ormond Hospital immediately.”
His heart surgery was successful and he made a relatively fast comeback, thanks to Carol’s assistance chauffeuring him to visit his accounts for the next several weeks. “I graduated from having to sit in the back seat, to the front passenger seat, back to the driver’s seat,” Hawks notes.
It’s in the relationship
After more than a quarter century of selling medical products, Hawks continues to thrive. “I love challenges, and I enjoy challenging myself to always move forward,” he says. “If business slows down in one area, I ask myself what I must do to pick it up.” Indeed, there’s no room for discouragement, he notes, adding that one of the greatest challenges is the need to accept – and adjust to – constant changes in the industry. “Sometimes we need to accept a new direction and a new way of doing things, and then ask ourselves, ‘Now, how do we work to help make this change happen?’
“For instance, I may not be a computer person, but I’ve had to adjust to [the role of computer technology in the industry]. And, I’ve been lucky that Grove Medical has a terrific IT specialist, Michael, who has developed a system for tracking supplies in and out of nursing homes. This has helped customers save money on their inventory.” That said, customers are more likely to stay open to new technology when they trust their sales rep. “This is all about relationships,” says Hawks, adding that he realizes this is not a new concept.
“My biggest customer is one of the largest hospices in the state of Florida,” he says. “I began years ago by selling them one product. Recently we installed an inventory tracking system for them, saving them $16,000 in the first quarter of operation alone. And, we’ve continued to save them serious money ever since. They have said, ‘Every time Rupert comes in the door, he lays something new at our feet.’ But, I love challenges, and I’m thankful that Grove Medical provides the tools [to help make this happen].”
It’s more important than ever for sales reps to provide their accounts with excellent, value-added service. “The industry is much tougher today than it once was,” says Hawks. “If you aren’t coming up with something new for your customers each day, week or month, someone else will, and you will lose that business.” Largely, this is due to the economic constraints facing long-term care facilities, nursing homes and hospices. “In the last eight years, 20 of my customers have had to close their doors,” he says. “Some of them had been in business for 50 years, but competitive bidding and other [industry challenges] were too much for them.”
Since turning 75 this spring, if Hawks has given any thought to retirement, it hasn’t been much. “Given my skin condition (cancer) there is only so much yard work I can do. If I retire, what else is there? Watch TV? No! I’d [rather] keep moving forward.”