Teamwork, personalities and goals — the driving force
behind the counter at Caribou on 3rd and Indiana Ave,
Bismarck. One of 330 stores, the local Caribou was ranked
#9 nationwide.
During the week of Sept. 3rd-10th, 3rd St. Caribou was
labeled the ninth highest-grossing store in all the corporate
stores in the nation. “Corporate means that we are under an umbrella where all of our pricing and advertising are done,” General Manager Heather Vallie says. Making a high number of sales can not be done without the work of a team, shared goals, and the daily hype of each member. Caribou’s team is made up of individuals with unique qualities that allow them to get along and serve customers. “We can all have different opinions on stuff, different hobbies, different likes, but we all get along and work together,” Assistant General Manager Dacury Kramer said. The many different and unique personalities are only one of the many traits that set this Caribou apart from the others. These various personalities cause the store to have camaraderie.
“We’re just team players,” Vallie said. “I grew up
watching sports, so I’m a big team player. Help everybody
out. It’s not a spectator sport.”
Helping each other out is not a question at Caribou. It’s
the little things, like topping a drink or bagging a sandwich
that can make serving the customers a lot more efficient and
improve the team overall.
“I don’t think you can hit $1,200 an hour unless you’re
working together as a team,” Vallie said. “Communicating
through every stage of everything that’s going on.”¨
Just a quick helping hand can be all the reason a
customer gets their drink faster. Teamwork would not be
strong if it weren’t for the strive for the accomplishment of
the teams.
“I still want to keep tracking up in sales,” Vallie said. “We did number nine that week. We were number 12 the following week. So, I just want to
say my goal overall is to stay within that top 15
in sales, but it’s also just pushing our speed with
services, just trying to make more money for all
of us.”
The more money made means more tips
accumulated by the workers – thus, making an
overall objective to strive for.
“We got an order for 15 drinks, so everyone
just hopped in and started making drinks, filling
the bar with milk, ice, cups and lids,” Kramer
said. Everyday situations can seem like a hard hit,
but teamwork paves the way towards success.
When times get too hard for the team, the
managers and shift leads like to hype up the team
in many different ways.
“I always bring snacks,” Kramer said.
“I’m dancing, I’m singing. I’m
just trying to keep the vibe light,”
Vallie said. Keeping the floor fun and
something to look forward to
keeps the morale of the Caribou
team. Busy times are most likely
the cause of the location. “We’re a good location because
it’s right by the mall and the event
center, and the hotel always has
events too,” Kramer said.
Being the center of busy event-filled sites brings traffic
that Caribou keeps up with – teamwork, personalities, and goals.
The strength of the local Caribou is that it keeps persevering.
“My favorite value of Caribou is be yourself,” Vallie said.