Remembering Louis Schoffelmeer

L. Schoffelmeer bij zijn Graaf Folke Bernadotte Groep

Louis Schoffelmeer died on 04-07-2014 at the ripe old age of 90. He was a lighting man through and through – even after he retired. He started his lighting career selling lightbulbs door-to-door in Friesland, in the north of the Netherlands. He worked his whole career at Philips and eventually made his way to the top. He ran the lighting division from 1966 to 1986. So he obviously knew how to get things done. But he was also a very kind and thoughtful man as remembered by ‘Bob’, whose father worked for him before he retired due to ill-health. You can read his memories here, but unfortunately they are only in Dutch. But if you copy and paste to an online translator, you can get a good idea of the meaning.

I had the pleasure of meeting ‘Meneer Schoffelmeer’, in my early days at Philips. I had heard a lot about him from other colleagues and was very nervous about meeting him. But he quickly put me at ease and even helped me with my demonstration. He had the knack of making you feel very important (no matter who you were) and that he appreciated your hard work for the company. Although he was already retired by that time, he still cared deeply for the company and its ‘family’. He was a true gentleman and will be sadly missed.

Written by Julie Allen

15 Aug