"I Came Here to Work for a Few Months, and It's Been 23 Years". Interview with Dani Caurel, Logistics Department

Interview with another of the company’s “old gold” employees: stand-up guy Dani Caurel, who you’ll find at the Montana Colors logistics hub. After working for the brand for so many years, his job has gone from filling paint cans by hand to overseeing the logistics of export orders. In this interview, he gives us a few interesting facts and a whole lot more.

How did you start working at Montana Colors? 

I’d been at the university for a few years, having fun, but I didn’t pass many courses. (Hey, it wasn’t my fault, the teachers wanted to give me a hard time!)  And I felt like I should study something else or start working, just to make better use of my time. 

At the time, a friend of mine worked at the Montana warehouse. He used to tell me about young people working there, about it being a good place to work and that they were always hiring, so I figured I might as well spend a few months working...

Montana started off small in 1999. What was it like back then working at such a small company? 

Well, for example, I was interviewed by one of the owners, a guy named Miquel Galea, while he transferred paint from one container into another with a ladle. I think the interview lasted less then 10 minutes. And you’ve got to understand that my other experience was working summers in a bank, where you’re not even sure who your department head is.

So, what my friend said was true. The workplace environment was fun. We laughed and joked a lot, and our bosses were the ones who made that possible. At the same time, you had to work hard to get ahead, which is typical when you start working for most companies.

How has your job changed since then? 

My job has evolved in step with Montana’s evolution, because, to a certain degree, the jobs are the same, but they’re adapted to the company’s growth. Now, everything is more complex and the processes require more resources.

When I started, I was filling paint cans by hand, and now they’re automated processes, for the most part (PAMASOL, COSTER, etc.)

From there, I was transferred to the warehouse, where I prepared orders and put paint in storage. Now, the same process takes place in several buildings and is handled by a huge workforce, because we have a much higher workload, fortunately.

In your opinion, what developments have led to the greatest change in the brand? 

Two developments stand out in my mind:

The fires, because of the months and years of hardship that immediately followed, and changes that we made in the way we work to improve safety. 

And the launching on the market in 1994, because, at the very least, in terms of logistics, that’s when I noticed a big increase in our workload and our brand recognition.

Do you remember any particularly charismatic employees from the past during your career at Montana Colors? 

The oldest ones here remember FLASH. For a number of years, we worked the same shift and shared some laughs in the warehouse. He was a really remarkable dude; fun to be around...

There were others who are still working here at Montana (if I name them, it’s just going to go their heads!)

Tell us a little about the day-to-day routine of your job. 

Mostly, I’m in charge of nearly everything that has to do with export orders, which are prepared at the hub: from allocating stock when an order comes in to making sure it goes out as complete as possible and on the specified dates.

That means ordering paint when we’re running low, overseeing the timing of preparing orders in progress  and setting pick-up dates with transport companies.

Basically, a day’s work for me involves the management of everything I’ve already mentioned, multiplied by all the orders in progress and the problem-solving that I usually have to deal with at some point of the process.

Adding to that, there are another 17,000 small-scale tasks (I don’t like to exaggerate) that we can talk about some other time.

What part of your job do you enjoy the most? And the least? 

I like it when an order has been loaded into a truck or a container, because I see it as the culmination of the process that I mentioned of receiving an order, making sure it’s prepared correctly and on time, and with all the work done by so many people.

Are you involved in any way with the world of graffiti or art? 

What, you think 23 years working for Montana isn’t being involved in graffiti?

Tell us about some important moment during your career at Montana Colors. 

I couldn’t single out any one moment, because it’s always been a process of constant change in which I adapt to the company and the company adapts to me. I’m grateful for that, and I’d like to make that clear here in this interview.

So many years working for the same company. Have you ever thought of changing jobs? 

Plenty of times! Especially when I get to work at 8:00 in the morning and the coffeemaker isn’t working!