13.08.2026
“You simply have to live it.”
Mänu Steiner was the first field sales representative of Oel-Brack, hired by Peter Müller, who was Sales Manager at the time. In addition to him, there were agents and resellers who sold Oel-Brack AG lubricants on their own account. “Midland didn’t exist yet. Back then, a multi-brand strategy was the order of the day,” explains Mänu Steiner. The company’s own brands included Perfectol and Pentex, while products from the American brands Kendall and Quaker State were also imported and produced.
Mänu helped build up the first customer records. The index cards were still filled out on a typewriter and organised in compartments in card boxes. By the end of the analogue era, his customer records had grown to ten boxes. Mänu’s sales territory initially covered Aargau and the whole of Central Switzerland, and later Aargau as well as surrounding areas in the cantons of Lucerne and Zurich. Over time, more and more colleagues joined him. Today, a dozen Midland Regional Sales Representatives are out on the road across Switzerland.
Mänu Steiner acquired an enormous amount of specialist knowledge on his own initiative. He read books and trade literature, talked to the Bracks and soon knew as much about the family and company history as he did about lubricants. He was the only salesperson on the team to complete the part-time training programme to become a federally certified travelling sales representative (today: Key Account Manager).
His recipe for success over more than 35 years was simple: he kept visiting potential customers, and his arguments always remained the same. He never tried to persuade people or push them into making a purchase. He was simply there for his customers. His motto: “You simply have to live it, in the evenings and at weekends, too. People can sense that.”
Time proved him right. Later, they respectfully called him “the Oel-Brack” because, to them, he embodied the company. His customers trusted him and placed their orders. Over the years, his sales grew and remained consistently high. Whenever someone was unsure which oil to use for a vehicle or machine, they would call “the Oel-Brack”.
In his younger years, Mänu Steiner also competed in motocross. But shortly after he started working at Oel-Brack, he gave it up. Why? “Because the business was my priority,” he explains. What has remained to this day is his passion for hunting. And in recent years, his motorhome – so large that it requires a heavy vehicle driving licence – has become increasingly important to him. “In summer, we head north; in spring and autumn, we go to South Tyrol and the island of Elba,” he says.
Will there still be a need for salespeople like him in the future? After all, everything is done online and supported by AI these days: “No, it is still about personal relationships. People buy from people. A lot may have changed and will continue to change, but the personal touch remains,” he explains.
Mänu helped build up the first customer records. The index cards were still filled out on a typewriter and organised in compartments in card boxes. By the end of the analogue era, his customer records had grown to ten boxes. Mänu’s sales territory initially covered Aargau and the whole of Central Switzerland, and later Aargau as well as surrounding areas in the cantons of Lucerne and Zurich. Over time, more and more colleagues joined him. Today, a dozen Midland Regional Sales Representatives are out on the road across Switzerland.
Mänu Steiner acquired an enormous amount of specialist knowledge on his own initiative. He read books and trade literature, talked to the Bracks and soon knew as much about the family and company history as he did about lubricants. He was the only salesperson on the team to complete the part-time training programme to become a federally certified travelling sales representative (today: Key Account Manager).
His recipe for success over more than 35 years was simple: he kept visiting potential customers, and his arguments always remained the same. He never tried to persuade people or push them into making a purchase. He was simply there for his customers. His motto: “You simply have to live it, in the evenings and at weekends, too. People can sense that.”
Time proved him right. Later, they respectfully called him “the Oel-Brack” because, to them, he embodied the company. His customers trusted him and placed their orders. Over the years, his sales grew and remained consistently high. Whenever someone was unsure which oil to use for a vehicle or machine, they would call “the Oel-Brack”.
In his younger years, Mänu Steiner also competed in motocross. But shortly after he started working at Oel-Brack, he gave it up. Why? “Because the business was my priority,” he explains. What has remained to this day is his passion for hunting. And in recent years, his motorhome – so large that it requires a heavy vehicle driving licence – has become increasingly important to him. “In summer, we head north; in spring and autumn, we go to South Tyrol and the island of Elba,” he says.
Will there still be a need for salespeople like him in the future? After all, everything is done online and supported by AI these days: “No, it is still about personal relationships. People buy from people. A lot may have changed and will continue to change, but the personal touch remains,” he explains.
