Manager
Laurens van Kleef has been named the timbers and marine lumber program manager at Nova USA Wood Products, Inc., a leading supplier of high-quality hardwood products and accessories. He is responsible for the development of new products in the Eastern United States as well as supporting the company’s sales activities within the hardwood, softwood, reclaimed, and marine timbers industries.
“van Kleef’s passion for exotic hardwoods and their harvesting, manufacture, and distribution will ensure even greater levels of support and service to our worldwide customers,” said Steve Getsiv, the company’s CEO. “A timber industry specialist, he also has the cross-cultural expertise that will not only help us expand our international presence, but also provide the insights necessary to continually refresh and introduce the premium products that our many partners have come to expect from Nova USA Wood Products.”
His tropical hardwoods background spans more than two decades. He started van Kleef International in the United States nearly eight years ago to facilitate the direct import of timbers from South East Asia, Africa, South America, and Europe as well as the purchase and sale of domestic hardwoods like Eastern cedar and yellow poplar in the United States.
Throughout the years, van Kleef also worked in the Netherlands where he held multiple sales and import/export positions at various companies. This was in addition to living in Papua New Guinea, where he worked as the export manager for PNG Tropical Wood Products, a subsidiary for Oilmin Holdings. Located in Boston, Massachusetts, van Kleef holds a degree from ROC Aventus in Deventer, Netherlands. He also completed a timber industry specialization program at Centrum Hout in the Netherlands, which focused on sales, customer service, forestry management, and timber processing.
