"Els has a very commercial attitude, who tackles things with great enthusiasm."

The Hellyn family needed external CEO

When cardboard company Hellyn from Wielsbeke took over Plastibook in 2013, someone had to take over day-to-day management. However, Mieke, Jan and Koen Hellyn had more than their hands full with the parent company. Els got involved in the first three years. "She gave a boring product – plastic coated paper - substance. What's more, she knows what she's doing and you can trust her 200 percent. That was a great reassurance for us," says Mieke Hellyn.

In 2018, Hellyn cardboard factory merged with Du Caju Printing (Erpe-Mere) and BDMO (Meulebeke) under the umbrella holding Karel Van Mander. The decades before that, however, it was an autonomous family business, which was founded in 1962 by the couple Michiel and Yvonne Hellyn. "The original intention was to take care of family and commercial printing in Ooigem and the surrounding area," says Mieke Hellyn. "However, as a bookbinder my father also had a good grasp of the art of sticking paper onto cardboard, he started to specialise in this field. As a result, our company grew by making ring binders. Over the years, our product portfolio evolved into a very wide range of personalised presentation tools: boxes, box folders, sample cards, small suitcases, displays, POS materials, placards, brochure holders, ... We help our customers to improve their marketing activities by being able to offer their customers a personalised article. Everything is always custom-made for the customer. So, we don't keep any stock. 

A need for guidance

“The paper that is glued on cardboard must first be laminated. For example, we were one of Plastibook's largest customers, which was also operating in our buildings. When the owner wanted to sell it, we were obviously interested, but we didn't have anyone to run it on a daily basis. I had known Els for a long time, knew that she had earned her stripes in the graphics sector and was looking for a new challenge at the time. She led Plastibook for three years and did a great job. I didn't worry, knew it would be handled expertly and the customers would be satisfied.”

Purely commercial

“I would have liked to have kept her, but the company is too small and therefore there were too few commercial opportunities to keep her fully engaged. Els is a purely commercial lady, who tackles things with great enthusiasm and wants to be creative in all areas. Moreover, she is born to be independent and also needs that freedom. In terms of content, office administration is not really her thing. But you can confidently entrust her with anything commercial. For example, she visited all Plastibook customers and created a new corporate identity. She also brilliantly developed documentation materials, making the various coating options literally "tangible". She also held excellent business presentations – in which she delivered her part about Plastibook.”

Great gun factor

“Els is very presentable which inspires enthusiasm and she is well-spoken. Drop her into any network, and she will always have been seen and heard. The feedback we received was always excellent. She is reliable in what she does. Moreover, she does not work for herself. She has a big "gun factor" to other people, and that's something I find very important. And she is goal-oriented: she asks, "what are you going to do and by when?" She pushes all the right buttons. " (laughs) “For me, she was also a sounding board with whom I could test things. Because she is very convincing in her advice, I was able to make final decisions more easily and I could more quickly take action. Sometimes you find yourself running in circles, then she comes in and resolutely tackles the issue. She knows how to handle things. When she left us, she looked for a replacement for herself. He turns out to have the perfect profile and is still working for us. It was entirely down to Els that we have accelerated our decision to acquire Plastibook.” 

Hellyn – Mieke Hellyn