Q&A WITH ALICIA ANDERER

Q: Tell us a little about how you got started selling Cutco with Vector.

• • • In 2004 I responded to a newspaper ad for the job.

Q: What were some of the early experiences you had selling Cutco and what were some lessons you learned?

• • • I started with Cutco when I was 18 and playing soccer as a goalie.
    • Something that was unique about me was that at this time I had a 1 year old, which was unique.
    • I was working another job, going to school and taking care of my son.

Q: How did you navigate being such a young mom while working and going to school?

• • • It was hard being a teen mom. I always felt like people were looking at me and judging me out in the world, but I never felt that way in Vector.  I always felt very supported by everyone in my office.  They would let me bring my son in during phone time and team meetings, and I never felt like I got “that look” from anyone at Vector.
    • I was accepted for who I was.
    • My mom was also really helpful with my kids.

Q: So you started in 2004 and now flash forward to today, did you ever see yourself here as a career?

• • • I did not think I’d be selling knives 15 years later. When I first stared my goal was to open an office when I hit $150,000 in career sales.  Then I hit it and I thought, “I’ll open an office when I hit $250,000.  And when I hit that I thought, “I kinda like this sales thing.  I think I’ll stick with that.”

Q: And what year was your daughter born?

• • • In 2006, so I was 20.

Q: And something happened when giving birth to your daughter.  Tell us about that.

• • • Because I had an emergency C-section in my first pregnancy the doctors scheduled a C-section for my 2nd. I was feeling a little uneasy the day of my C-section, but I went through with it anyway. During the surgery I almost died due to congestive heart failure because I had received too many fluids.
    • After I was discharged my doctor told me to come back if I ever felt any pressure in my chest because I was at risk for having other heart issues.
    • That caused me to develop panic attacks because I felt like I was always about to experience another attack and I could die at any moment.

Q: So how does that eventually lead to you running an Ultra Marathon?

• • • My good friend, Jon Vroman, was starting the Front Row Foundation and he was looking for more people to run an Ultra Marathon to help raise money for the foundation so I decided to do it.
    • I figured if I could run 50 miles than I was all right and I didn’t need to worry about my health.
    • I didn’t train very well considering my furthest run before the day of the Ultra Marathon was only 9 miles, but I did finish the race and I was able to get rid of my panic attacks.

Q: So what led to you eventually becoming a career Cutco Sales Professional and an Event Coordinator?

• • • What really attracted me was the schedule. Having 2 kids, I wanted to be able to be there for them.
    • And being a coordinator, I originally wanted to be in management running an office so being an Event Coordinator has allowed me to work with reps and train and develop people in a similar way as the office managers.

Q: What does Vector hold for events, for women, for you?

• • • In all my years with Vector I really feel like it’s never been better. The leadership in the company sees what the sales force is doing and they’re pouring time and resources into programs that help us.
    • I’m also really excited about all the friendships and relationships I have in the company. There are people who I know will be my friends for life.
    • And I think taking on the new role of coaching is really exciting as well.