MEET COMSTAR’S CANDES SPENCER

Candes Spencer joined Comstar earlier this year as an Outside Sales Manager to help grow our business in the Southeast. For those of you who haven’t had the pleasure of meeting or talking with Candes, we sat down with Candes for a quick Q&A.

Q: How did you get into telecom or outside plant distribution?

A: My husband worked at Prysmian Group (formerly Alcatel) and I worked at Frye Hospital. He said come to work with me in the Fiber plant on your days off. So, I started working at Alcatel in the fiber plant running. I was splicing fiber daily. Then eventually I found a passion for fiber optics and I went on to an Inside Sales position and eventually Outside Sales.

Q: How and when did you join Comstar?  

A: I joined Comstar January 1, 2020. Yes, I said it 2020. And what a year it has been! Comstar and their love for family gave me the chance to move back to North Carolina to be closer to family.

Q: In your opinion, what’s the best thing about working at Comstar?

A: By far the people! Chad Punchard and his mentality that we are one big family, has rubbed off on every single individual here. When you are in the trenches, there is nobody I would rather be there with than this Comstar family. We look out for each other and listen to each other’s voices. I have learned that every person here has a unique story. And our uniqueness is what brings us together. And at the heart of the company is a passion for goodness that I have never witnessed before.

Q: What would you say about your customers?

A: I have some of the best and brightest customers in the industry! They work hard both at work, and home to take care of their families.  My customers enjoy working with people they feel are going to take care of them when they need it.  They advocate for their companies and their customers. They want the best possible experience they can have to be able to get services rendered for their company. They are efficient and savvy to the processes that make this happen.

Q: What would your customers say about you?

A: She values honesty and Integrity. Her family is very important to her. And she may not always know the answer but is willing to go the extra mile, to use internal or external resources to get an answer and keep them happy.

Q: You’re very involved within the industry. If I were building out your business card it would include things like panel moderator, virtual trade show participant, podcast guest, tradeshow panelist – and I haven’t even mentioned sales yet! How did you become so involved in the industry?

A: I have always been truly passionate in advocating broadband to every community!  But even more as I watched my son grow older and I saw many of his friends graduating college and moving off because they could go to bigger cities which had greater advancements in broadband and getting higher-paying wages. I feel that in today’s society, broadband is essential to all people in their everyday walk of life! And sadly, most people don’t even fully understand the actual definition of broadband. 

I have always felt the more I can educate people on broadband's benefits to their community the more likely they are to vote and push lawmakers to help fund new initiatives. In my heart, I believe that unless some of the rural areas get access to the Internet in their communities they will never grow. Also, I started at a time in the industry when there weren’t very many women advocates for broadband and so I think it is important to use my platform any way I can to further the fiber-optic broadband story.

 

Q: I know one of your passions is being an active parent and role model for your daughter and son. I hear your son was a pretty impressive baseball player. And your daughter is a pretty impressive Volleyball player. Care to mom-brag and give me a baseball and volleyball story?

A: My son is now 27 and a graduate from Appalachian State University. He was recently married to his long-time girlfriend. But my favorite thing of being his mom was watching his love for the sport of baseball - and now he is coaching at our local High School. His love for the game is contagious.  My daughter on the other hand is my mini me. She is the Libro on her team and she says her favorite thing in volleyball is when the hitter goes up to hit a hard spike at her.  She said she watches which way they are going to move their shoulders, and then gages where the ball is going. Her favorite comment is, “the harder they hit the more fun it is to see their face when I dig it up.”

Q: I also know you recently moved from Tennessee back to your original hometown in North Carolina. So, do you bleed Carolina blue or Tennessee orange?

A: I have and will always bleed Carolina Tarheel Blue inside and out when it comes to college basketball. But after living in the land of SEC college football it was definitely an experience I grew to love. So, Good Old Rocky Top Orange has become ingrained in my heart. I pull for them in everything including Basketball, as long as they aren’t playing Carolina!