For international sales manager Art Lasanta, Ledwell wasn’t his first experience working with trucks.
“I started off in this industry,” he said. “My first job around trucks was in rebuilding transmissions and rear ends. That led to dismantling trucks for the guys who rebuilt them, and then I ran the scrap yard where we dismantled trucks for resale.”
Art Lasanta, top row, third from left
Art’s work at the scrap yard led him to sales.
“Because of my Spanish capabilities, I just started selling stuff,” he said. “Then I moved on to selling garbage trucks for 20 years.”
Here at Ledwell, Art is the sales representative for most international clients. He said large feed companies in Mexico make up the majority of his sales, but he has sold trucks worldwide—the Caribbean, Saudi Arabia, Guatemala, Honduras, Ecuador, and more.
“I travel around a lot of small, unusual places,” he said. “I’m usually in a small agricultural town that’s out in the country. It’s interesting to see Mexico outside of the large cities.”
One unusual place he has sold a Ledwell truck is the Island of Montserrat.
“It’s a British colony in the Caribbean,” he said. “A volcano destroyed half of the island about ten years ago, so now only about 4,000 people are living on the island. I sold their public works department a vacuum truck for the island’s septic system.”
Art said connecting with others is his favorite thing about working for Ledwell.
“I love getting to meet new people and maintaining contacts with employees, being part of the team, and building relationships with the customers,” he said. “Getting to know them and working with them over the years, you form a friendship, a bond. That’s the most enjoyable part of my job, other than the moment you make the sale.”
The best career lesson Art has learned so far: just keep going.
“Keep moving forward,” he said. “You can’t worry about what already happened. You’ve got to pop your head up and move forward; don’t stop.”
Art and his wife live in Lakeland, Florida. They have five adult children and 11 grandkids. In his spare time, Art enjoys being handy around the yard and enjoying outdoor life in Central Florida—kayaking, fishing, and camping. Most of his coworkers don’t know this, but Art is an advanced scuba diver, though he doesn’t have a chance to dive often.
He said his personal motto is simple: be nice to people.
“I enjoy what I do,” Art said. “Interacting with the people and the customers—it’s been a great experience.”