Jürgen Fengels
Executive Chairman
Jürgen arrived in Australia from Hamburg Germany in 1968, where he completed an apprenticeship in Commerce and obtained a certificate as Aussenhandels-Kaufmann (meaning Export and Import Trader) from a Hamburg Technical College.
Jürgen worked for 5 years for a prominent freight forwarding company Schenker & Co, and with this experience and knowledge he opened a new sales and marketing office Australia-wide for another German freight forwarder- Rohde + Liesenfield (now Geodis/Wilson). After 10 very successful years in this industry,
he bought a small import business in 1983 called Sweet Ring Imports, being happy to get back into his profession as an Importer.
Today, 30 years after many highs and lows, Sweet Season/Universal Candy has grown into one of the most diverse and leading confectionery novelty importers in Australia. 18 years ago, Jürgen also bought into one of the largest independent confectionery/beverage/snack-food wholesalers – Accredited Distributors. Jürgen is a Director and now the majority shareholder in Accredited Distributors.
In his current role as Executive Chairman of Sweet Season/Universal Candy, Jürgen is now very happy to guide his son Justin, and his Management Team, into growing the company into an even more dominant force in years to come.
Wayne Henderson
National Sales and Marketing Manager
I started in the confectionery Industry in 1983 with Cadbury Confectionery. I worked in all areas of the business in Route Market sales, then Grocery sales,
New Business Development, Account Management and State Wholesaler Manager.
In 1991, I moved on to a couple of small family run businesses, to gain experience in manufacturing and importing. In 2000, I started a Management & Consulting business, servicing local confectionery manufacturers and importers, presenting their products nationally.
In 2003 I had the opportunity to work for The Distributors nationally (the largest confectionery wholesale group in Australia). My role was to support all members nationally, tender for all new business, manage national accounts and then launched 2 trade publications which were “Retail Edge” and “Price Busters”, which became key communicators to the retail trade for new lines and promotions.
In 2006 I started an import business, sourcing and developing new children’s novelties out of China. I ran this business solo, looking after all aspects of the business including administration and sales.
In 2008, I started with Universal Candy, with responsibility for total route market within Australia & New Zealand. I am also responsible for product sourcing and development within the total business. During my time at Universal Candy I have achieved growth year on year within the wholesale sector,
through persistence & rapport.
We continue to open new accounts nationally in wholesale and we also continue to gain new agencies as we are a very strong dedicated team with a very strong focus on our business for all trading partners concerned.
Tom Salama
National Account Manager
After trying a few different jobs within different industries, I began my career in confectionery in 2006. From previous experience, I knew I enjoyed selling products and had finally found an industry I was excited to be a part of.
That excitement only developed, when in 2013 I joined Universal Candy as National Account Manager. My role is to maintain my relationship with Key Accounts and develop new product lines into store.
Since joining Universal Candy, we now deal with a range of new customers such as Aldi, Costco, Australian Post, McDonalds and 7/11.
My time at Universal Candy has helped me identify what my customers need and offer solutions that fit their businesses. This includes Private label into major retailers and product development to meet specific requirements. These large retailers have benefited from high margin products that increase sales and profitability into their businesses. I genuinely believe Universal Candy has added value to our customers.
I am more passionate than ever about Universal Candy’s products and will endeavour to continue maintaining and growing our business, as I believe we have the best products on the market and a team that shares the same passion for Universal Candy as I do.
Justin Fengels
Managing Director
After returning from studying International Business at Bond University, I worked for a short time as a Sales Representative for Accredited Distributors, the largest independent wholesale company in Australia. In 2001, I began my career with Universal Candy.
I started initially at Universal Candy as an apprentice, working in the warehouse and office, gaining knowledge in all aspects of these areas. From there I moved into sales, where my duties increased slowly as a Wholesale Sales Representative, before moving into the National Wholesale Manager’s role.
In 2006 I became responsible for the retail accounts, and as a company we were successful in establishing Universal Candy as a major confectionery novelty supplier. Soon after, due to changes in the business, and with my father’s support, I stepped into the management role of the entire business.
At that time the business was in a very strong position. There was a total of 6 staff and my focus was to build a team that could continue to grow my father’s business, which he initially started from “scratch”. We have had great success in the past 10 years, more than tripling the turnover of the business, with 16 people now employed and our warehouse has quadrupled in size.
This has been achieved due to our great team of the most experienced, dedicated and loyal employees – and with my Dad’s “ever watchful eye” guiding from “behind the scenes”.
Danny Verdun
National Key Account Manager
I have been in the Confectionery industry since 1983 after starting as a Sales Representative with Cadbury Confectionery in Sydney (NSW).
During my 14 year career at Cadbury, I was fortunate to work in many different roles within the Confectionery Sales Division, including the role of State Manager in South Australia in 1996.
In 1998, I moved to Melbourne to join JNH Confectionery (Funtastic Ltd) and worked with them for 5 years as their National Wholesale Manager, introducing Kids’ Novelty Confectionery to the Route/Impulse channel and also the National Petrol & Convenience sector.
In early February 2003, I started a 10 year journey with Accredited Distributors (Dandenong – VIC) as their Sales Manager. I was very fortunate to be part of many positive outcomes during my stay at Accredited Distributors, seeing it become a leading force in the wholesale trade nationally.
On 4th June 2012, I was employed by Universal Candy, to manage all National Petrol & Convenience Accounts and key Melbourne based Grocery Accounts. In June 2013, I was given the opportunity to work with all major accounts, in both everyday and seasonal components of the business. I have been selling Confectionery for 30 years, and I hope that Universal Candy and I travel a lot further down the road, and continue to strive for better results each and everyday.
Jay Henderson
National Account Manager
I completed my trade in Landscape and design and have always had a passion for the confectionery industry as my father has been in this industry well over 30 years.
I joined Universal Candy in April 2010, as I have been around confectionery all my life. This has given me a lot of knowledge in the industry and resulted in great relationships with all the wholesalers as I have known most since I was a young child.
I manage most of the Wholesale Distributor accounts nationally and work with my father on new product development and sourcing out of China. I visit all accounts on a regular basis and present all new products and continue to maintain my relationships with these accounts and grow the business for both Universal Candy, customers and our brand principles.
I am also responsible for the Metcash national account, looking after all Campbells Cash & Carry and IGA business. I am also involved with some national pharmacy distributors, toy retailers, national leisure segment including AMF Bowl, Dreamworld & Movie World. I am excited to
Mark Gillen
Warehouse Manager
I began a career in warehousing and logistics in the late 1990’s, spending the first years immersed in the medical industry where I learnt solid
fundamentals for effective storage and distribution of fast moving goods.
I joined Universal Candy in 2004 as Warehouse Manager and quickly applied my knowledge to the business, as well as further developing skills and abilities essential to maintaining an efficient operation. The continued growth experienced by the company equated to constant and significant expansion of our warehouse and operations team, this resulted in the creation of a centralised facility consisting of 4 divisional warehouses with more than 4000 pallet capacity.
Under my guidance, our team of dedicated warehouse operators receive more than 600 containers a year, dispatch more than 10000 pallets nationally and utilise more than 12 carriers. We aim to service our customers’ requirements in the most timely and accurate manner possible.