A TRIMIT legend bows out

A TRIMIT legend bows out: 20 years of expertise, helpfulness and good humor

After 20 years of answering calls with a smile, teaching customers new tricks, and keeping the mood up around the office, Gitte Klausen has said her goodbyes to TRIMIT. She leaves behind colleagues who already know exactly what they’ll be missing.

On 1 December 2005, Gitte Klausen started at CORNATOR’s Service Desk – known today as TRIMIT. After 20 years at TRIMIT, Gitte has now retired under Denmark’s early-retirement scheme.

With years of experience in the fashion industry, Gitte fit right into the company, which was building up its fashion focus. The company had just under 40 employees, and it quickly became clear that TRIMIT was a great match for her:

“My first impression of TRIMIT was that it was all about teamwork. Everyone helps everyone. When you’re a smaller company, you just have to make things work, and you do that by helping each other across the board,” she says.

Gitte. when she started at TRIMIT in 2006


No two days are alike

With the great sense of teamwork, it’s not hard to see why it felt so natural for Gitte to fit in at TRIMIT. Helpfulness was never just something she practiced once in a while – it’s what colleagues and customers alike would come to know her for.

That same helpful instinct is what carried her – and often the people around her – through the busiest and most unpredictable days: when the phone wouldn’t stop ringing and every case looked nothing like the last, it helped enormously to have someone in the room who never hesitated to jump in, wherever the need happened to be.

And she thrived in this setting. Ask Gitte what she liked most about her job, and she doesn’t point to routine – she points to the lack of it:

“There’s plenty of contact with customers, and I really like that we never know what we’re walking into. You can’t plan your day, because it’s shaped by whatever challenges the customers bring. It’s about being able to juggle a lot of balls in the air, and thriving on the fact that new tasks keep coming in.”

That variety also meant learning to meet customers at their level – from those who know the technical details inside out to those who simply want things explained clearly and practically.

“You quickly have to figure out who you’re dealing with,” she says. “Those different levels are what make it interesting.”

The TRIMIT Spirit

In the end though, it’s the people, more than the job itself, that Gitte will miss most:

“Even though you don’t necessarily talk to every colleague every day, there’s a spirit at TRIMIT that makes you feel at ease. We’re very different as people, but we share the same goal: to help our customers and run a good business. I hope new employees also get to experience that same sense of togetherness, community and helpfulness from their colleagues from day one – and that they’re made to feel just as welcome as I was.”

It’s a feeling her colleagues share right back. Jesper Liver, who has worked alongside Gitte for years, puts it simply:

“Gitte is a highly professional and caring colleague who has always provided excellent support to our customers.
Her motto, ‘We should make each other better,’ truly reflected the way she worked – always helpful and willing to share her knowledge.

Gitte has meant a great deal to both me and TRIMIT and will be greatly missed, both as a colleague and as a person.”

After 20 years at TRIMIT, Gitte is ready for a new chapter.

A New Chapter After 20 Years

Even though she has enjoyed the freedom with responsibility in her working life, she’s looking forward to the new kind of freedom she now has in her life:

“Being on early retirement is a special kind of freedom after being in the workforce for so many years. You think a bit more about yourself, and you also get the chance to help others,” she says.

Her plans for early retirement include more golf, time at the summer house, and a regular spot in the small walking club she’s part of.

“You shouldn’t just sit around twiddling your thumbs,” she says with a smile.

Gitte has a few clear words of advice for those she’s leaving behind at TRIMIT:

“Take really good care of the company. Remember good teamwork, because that’s how you get furthest. And look after each other,” she says.

After 20 years, those words sum up both her time at TRIMIT and the way she has lived her own life. TRIMIT won’t quite be the same without her, but her colleagues take comfort in knowing she’s just a phone call – and perhaps a round of golf – away.

Thank you for your invaluable contribution to TRIMIT, Gitte!

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