INDUSTRYNEWS
Women in industry
What is your full name and
current company/position please?
Sarah Jane Hitchings, Sales
& Marketing Director and Co-
Owner at Window Widgets and
The Residence Collection.
What are your main roles/
responsibilities?
Managing customer service,
sales and marketing teams plus
corporate ownership duties of the
wider business.
What is your history in terms of
career/education and how did it
lead to this current role?
I did well at school, then went
to sixth form college in Hereford,
but half way through the first year
I got restless and wanted to earn
more money, so I left and got a
job with a local solicitors firm. I
stayed there for a couple of years
before going on to work at a
local charity for severely disabled
young people, where I did their
fundraising and event planning.
After a couple of years there I
had a moment where I didn’t know
what I wanted to do, so I did a ski
season and worked as a chalet girl,
I was usually on breakfasts and
cleaning, it was the best shift as it
meant you had the rest of the day
to ski (or snowboard in my case!).
As I was getting ready to return
home I asked my dad to post me
the Hereford Times so I could look
for a job, it was there that I saw
Commercial Trainee at REHAU
UK Ltd. I applied, interviewed
and started working there in
summer of 2006. That was where
my journey into the fenestration
industry began.
As a commercial trainee you
work in various departments to
gain experience before applying
for a position within one of the
Business Units, I started in the
Windows Business Unit full-time
as junior product manager from
2008. From there I worked my
up to become Group Product
Manager for the UK, Ireland,
Scandinavia and South Africa,
managing in excess of ten window
and door systems.
I joined Window Widgets
and The Residence Collection in
September 2014, and we have
been through various sales and
acquisitions since 2014. Myself
and three other directors put
together an MBO and completed
on purchasing the business from
Masonite in December 2019.
What do you think are the main
challenges that face modern
professional women in general?
Probably the biggest challenge
is the one we all face as modern
professionals: balancing all
the balls we are juggling, both
professionally and personally.
Although gender is highly
relevant in some instances, most
challenges are by no means
exclusive to women.
Do you think fenestration is a
‘boys club’, please could you
explain why in either case?
I think historically the
fenestration sector was very
male dominated, however it has
enjoyed a significant rise in the
number of women in influential
positions. When women see
other women’s successes within
fenestration and the wider
construction industry it has an
empowering effect, but there
is undoubtedly more room for
improvement.
Have you faced any negative
attitude in your role, as a
woman?
No, I haven’t. There’s been
more scrutiny of my age rather
than my gender, as it can appear
you are less experienced, but I
have overcome that successfully
and now after 14 years within the
fenestration industry it is less of
an issue.
‘I think we all
have strengths
and weaknesses’
Do you think there should be
more women in fenestration?
I believe we should be
encouraging all diversity, whether
that be gender, ability, sexuality,
age or ethnicity.
Have you noticed a difference
in the representation and
treatment towards women
throughout your career?
I have seen some women
that have struggled to re-enter
their positions after embarking
on maternity leave, however
thankfully less so in the past few
years. With flexible working and
employers acknowledging the
struggle and discussing it more
openly, it is certainly improving.
Women’s equality and the genderpay
gap being debated more
prominently has also helped close
the differences considerably.
14 » JUN 2020 » CLEARVIEW-UK.COM