Meet Eveline Tsui, Category and Sampling Manager at Tarkett. In this interview, Eveline discusses her career path, insights on sustainability, and offers valuable advice for those beginning their career journey.

Interviewed by Anna Marin

Could you share a bit about your background and describe your journey to becoming the EMEA Category & Sampling Manager Carpet at Tarkett?

After graduating, I did not know what I wanted to do or in what direction I wanted to go. Instead of focusing on university or college, I decided to go abroad for a year. I spent a year in Argentina, studying and living with a host family, which led me to being  immersed in the Spanish language. Upon returning home, I decided to study translation and interpretation in Spanish and English. I did that for four years and had a great time, but as soon as I got into the actual work, I realised that it was not really for me. I had really enjoyed the studies, but the jobs within translation and interpretation did not feel the same. I switched and did a pre-master’s programme in international business and then a master’s programme in international business. This master’s degree helped me make a switch, to a more commercial field.

After my master’s I was accepted in a graduate programme in Barcelona, and that is when I moved there. That was a great opportunity for me to work in an international environment, meeting people from different cultures, but also a great way for me to start a commercial career. I did the graduate programme for one and a half years and then I got offered a business position back in the Netherlands, where I really got into my commercial career and business management.

I worked for about 9 years in the same company but then Covid hit. I did not know what the next steps of my career would be. That is also when a recruiter contacted me about this interesting position at Tarkett and here I am today!

How have your previous roles influenced your current position?

For me, it all adds up. Being in Argentina and learning Spanish, and deciding to continue with that, made me confident enough to move to Spain. In the end, knowing Spanish was not a necessity for the graduate position in Barcelona, but I think it made me more comfortable, to make connections with local people both outside of work but also inside the company. Knowing languages has helped me during my entire career.

Alongside learning languages and working in another country, I also learned a lot from the management position I got after my graduate programme. In that position I had to take care of almost every aspect of managing, and I was thrown into the deep end a little bit, but I did learn how to swim and that got me connected to every aspect of that business. I realised which aspects I do like, and which aspects I do not like as much. Based on that experience, I started to figure out in which direction I wanted my career to go in, which lead me into category management.

Tarkett is committed to overcoming sustainability challenges within a circular economy. How do you contribute to these goals in your role?

Within the Carpet Unit we are extremely passionate about sustainability and the road towards circularity. We have been on this road for about 8-10 years and within that decade we made huge steps to become circular. Today, we can confidently say that we are.

We have our own recycling here on location and collect carpeting tiles from all over the world, and that makes it possible for us to create a circular product here on site. But it is also important to think about the steps in between, to create a product that lasts for a really long time.

And if we only look at what you do at Tarkett, how do you contribute to the sustainability goals?

I am part of the marketing team here, so I am heavily involved when it comes to communicating on sustainability. We need understand what the market wants, what the world needs, and we deliver that knowledge and feedback to the teams that create the product. In that sense, everybody is responsible for how we work towards a more sustainable product and company. It is my job to make sure that everybody is briefed correctly on what is needed to make the correct steps on our sustainability journey.

I also oversee our sampling administration department, where we send numerous samples daily, because without samples, sales are unlikely. I am working on improving the return of samples since many are simply thrown away. My goal is to have as many samples returned as possible for recycling purposes.

Everybody is responsible for how we work towards a more sustainable product and company. It is my job to make sure that everybody is briefed correctly on what is needed to make the correct steps on our sustainability journey.

Looking ahead, what vision do you have for advancing sustainability within Tarkett’s carpet category? What long-term goals are you working towards, and how do you plan to achieve them?

When it comes to sustainability, the journey is never ending. We can always make more progress. That is our goal as a company, and we want to make sure that our carbon footprint impact is as low as it possibly can be. I take this with me in my personal life as well, and I think everybody can really make a difference and contribute. It might feel like small steps reducing your plastic waste or taking your bike instead of your car, but if we don’t start with ourselves no one is ever going to follow through. We are all in this together. 

It might feel like small steps reducing your plastic waste or taking your bike instead of your car, but if we don’t start with ourselves no one is ever going to follow through. We are all in this together.

How has your role at Tarkett affected your personal views on sustainability? Have you learned a lot that you did not know before?

I've always been passionate about sustainability, and when I sought a new career challenge, I was particularly focused on this area. I knew I wanted to work at a company that was contributing to a more sustainable society, one and that put sustainability as a primary goal.  

When I started working at Tarkett, I started to learn more about the technical details, how the production works and all the calculations behind it. This got me more and more interested and did affect some of the decisions in how I live my own life, making sure that I make decisions with sustainability in mind.

Having worked in various locations, including the Netherlands and Spain, how have these diverse cultural and regional experiences shaped your professional approach and outlook?

I think that, for everybody, getting in touch with different norms, standards and culture is enriching within itself. It allows you to view the world in a much broader sense. Up until I was 18 years old, I had only lived in the Netherlands. When I moved to Argentina and became immersed in the culture and that world, I noticed that there was a lot of differences. These differences were not better, they were not worse – they were simply different. Learning this helped me understand myself, where I lived and where I come from.

Seeing how people are living in different areas of the world, and working with people from across the globe, has made me realise that we have an incredible standard of life in Europe and the Netherlands. We have safety and security up to a certain level which is not the norm. I experienced a situation in a country in which you cannot always rely on the police if something happens, which was unusual to me. But understanding that there are differences, that is important.

I think that, for everybody, getting in touch with different norms, standards and culture is enriching within itself. It allows you to view the world in a much broader sense.

How do you manage a demanding career while maintaining personal well-being? How do you achieve this balance, and what practices help you stay grounded?

This was one of the things I struggled with in the beginning, when I moved back to the Netherlands. What helped me at that point was volunteer work: I ended up working for the animal ambulance in Amsterdam. I did that for three years and that gave me this wonderful balance, it helped me focus on something that was so completely different to my day job. It provided me with a lot of positive feelings, contributing to something that was not profit-oriented. When I moved away from Amsterdam, I started to look for something else I could do and that is when I joined the voluntary firefighters. I have been doing that for about 5 years now and it allows me to support society in another form, and I do like the action!

So, in case of a fire would you be one of the firefighters helping out?

In the Netherlands, the only places that have professional firefighters are the cities, but all the villages outside of the cities rely on volunteering firefighters. So yes, I have a pager and if the alarm goes off in case of a fire and I am in the area I would go to my station, get ready and do whatever I needed to do. 

Reflecting on your diverse roles and career journey, what advice would you give to young professionals just starting out? What key lessons have you learned that are crucial for long-term success and fulfilment in any industry?

Make sure to ask dumb questions. If something is unclear, do not be afraid to appear stupid - just ask the question. Otherwise, you are just going to stay dumb. Make sure to ask, make sure to speak up, make sure to lean in. You need to take the learning opportunities even if you feel insecure. Asking a “stupid” question does not matter so long as you learn from the fact that you asked that question.

If something is unclear, do not be afraid to appear stupid - just ask the question.