People Still Buy From People

Nearly five decades into a career that has helped define customer relationships in South Texas, Penny Sanders has built her reputation on something refreshingly simple: being herself. As South Texas sales manager for Animal Health International, Sanders doesn’t lean on polish or pretense. Instead, she lives by a philosophy she sums up with a familiar line from a classic cartoon: “I yam what I am.”

“What you see is what you get,” she said. “I am not perfect, I make mistakes, but I try my best to be honest and trustworthy in all I do. I think if you make a mistake then admit it, correct it and move on. Be consistent in all that you do. ‘Thank you’ and ‘I appreciate you’ go a long way. And I truly mean it when I say those things.”
Over 49 years — and counting — Sanders has shown that honesty, integrity and genuine appreciation aren’t just small courtesies, but the foundation of relationships that last.

Rooted in agriculture, built in sales

For Sanders, a career in animal health distribution was a natural extension of a life already rooted in agriculture, livestock and hard work. Long before she ever stepped into a warehouse or picked up a sales order pad, Sanders was immersed in the rhythms of rural life shaped by two grandfathers who worked the land in different ways. One was a farmer and rancher who grew watermelons and raised cattle; the other built stock tanks for farmers. “I loved every bit of it,” Sanders said, recalling an upbringing steeped in animals and agriculture.

That connection only deepened as she grew older. Sanders began rodeoing at age five, raised and trained horses, and showed market barrows through Future Farmers of America. She also quietly made history at her high school, entering FFA during the first year that girls were allowed to participate. Those early experiences instilled not only a comfort with livestock, but also a confidence and work ethic that would later define her professional life. Still, when she first entered animal health distribution, she didn’t imagine it would turn into a nearly 50-year career.

In 1976, Sanders was rodeoing and needed a part-time job to get through the winter. VA Snell’s retail store felt like the obvious choice. She had been shopping there since she was a young girl alongside her father, buying tack, saddles, animal medications and feed supplements. Located in the Stockyards area, VA Snell operated out of what had once been part of the hog division — an old barn with offices built into its center. “I thought no better place to work and applied for the job in the retail store,” she said.

What began as a temporary role quickly turned into an opportunity for growth. Sanders enjoyed working with people and gravitated toward sales. Not long after starting, she was asked to move into a receptionist and office administrator role, then onto the order desk, where she took customer and salesperson orders entirely by phone using three-part paper sales order pads. Computers weren’t part of the equation; everything was handwritten and manual. Those early days required grit — and credibility. Sanders had to prove to some of the men calling in that she knew the products she was selling. “It did not take long,” she said. She earned their trust, built friendships and even formed customer relationships that have lasted to this day.

Her career continued to evolve. Sanders was promoted to buyer, a role she held for eight years, before taking the lead on a new “team selling” approach that paired inside and outside sales teams. Nearly five decades later, she’s still selling and building relationships one conversation at a time.

Despite sweeping technological changes, Sanders believes the core of sales hasn’t shifted. “People buy from people,” she said. Early on, that meant detailing programs and new products by phone or mail, carefully balancing communication when fax machines arrived and customers worried about the cost of fax paper. Today’s digital tools may make the process easier, but the fundamentals — product knowledge, honesty and consistency — remain unchanged.

Change at speed, relationships at the core

From Penny Sanders’ vantage point, the most striking changes in animal health over the last 49 years have less to do with relationships — and everything to do with speed.

Early in her career, orders could take days to process and deliver. Products often arrived via salespeople driving trucks, trailers or vans, making distribution a highly personal but time-intensive process. Today, orders can be placed by phone, email, fax or EDI, supported by real-time inventory systems and same-day or next-day delivery. The digital world, Sanders said, has “sped the whole process up,” fundamentally reshaping expectations across the industry.

The COVID-19 pandemic, while disruptive, also underscored the resilience of animal health distribution. “We learned quickly we could take care of our customers’ needs daily with very few hiccups,” Sanders said. When restrictions lifted, the industry’s appetite for connection was unmistakable. The first in-person tradeshow held in San Antonio after gatherings resumed drew a massive turnout. “People buy from people and they wanted to see each other,” she said.

Structural shifts have also left a mark. Sanders has watched the number of major manufacturers steadily shrink as mergers and acquisitions reshaped the competitive landscape. Regulatory changes, including the implementation of GFI #263, forced widespread adjustments in inventory management and demand planning — changes that took years to fully stabilize.

As veterinary medicine has grown more sophisticated, so too has distribution. Where sales teams once served every customer type, today’s distributors rely on specialized teams calling on specific segments, particularly in more complex markets. Rural areas, Sanders noted, still require a broader approach — but specialization will continue to grow as corporate ownership expands. At the same time, she believes family-owned farms, ranches and stores will remain vital. “We are in the heart of it all,” she said. “We feed people.”

Some challenges feel new; others, familiar. Manufacturer shortages, allocations and backorders aren’t new issues, Sanders said — but they appear more frequently today. Navigating those pressures, while maintaining trust and consistency, remains the distributor’s enduring role in an industry that continues to evolve at a rapid pace.

A career worth choosing

As she reflects on nearly five decades in animal health sales, Sanders’ advice to newcomers is both practical and heartfelt. “Find out what you want to do and be happy doing it,” she said. For Sanders, success has never been a solo pursuit. She encourages those just starting out to learn from everyone around them — coworkers, vendors and even customers. “We all want you to succeed in life,” she said. “Stick with it. You have to start somewhere; this business is the best to be in.” It’s a conviction she speaks with authority, adding simply, “I would not trade it for another career.”

That sense of purpose has been anchored by a clear set of values. Faith, family and work sit at the center of Sanders’ life, supported by friendships that have grown organically through years spent in the field. Along the way, coworkers, vendor representatives and customers have become far more than professional contacts. “I have been so blessed,” she said, describing relationships that now feel more like family than business.

What has kept her energized year after year is no mystery. Sanders genuinely loves what she does — and the people who make up the animal health industry. In a world that has become increasingly digital, she still treasures the human element. “We still can shake hands, and it means something,” she said, a point of pride in an industry built on trust and accountability.

There’s also a competitive spark that continues to drive her forward. Sanders readily admits she enjoys a challenge and isn’t shy about setting high standards for herself. “I never want to be last and sure don’t want to be second,” she said with a laugh.

Image courtesy of Penny Sanders, Animal Health International