Hello Team! 🍈
While it is February, it won’t be long before Spring is upon us and then SUMMER! ☀️
Leading into our busy season (local growing season! 🌱) People + Culture are focused on TRAINING + DEVELOPMENT in all shapes and sizes.
What that has meant thus far is giving our Managers the tools they need to grow (themselves) and to elevate their teams – YOU! Knowledge is power and we want you to feel strong and confident in your work. 💪
This development has involved both internal and external training – at Store Huddles (Labour Costs, Scheduling, Respectful Workplace, Progressive Discipline, Coaching), 1 on 1 Training, First Aid, Fork Lift, and Occupational Health + Safety Training.
Stay tuned for lots more training opportunities coming your way, at all levels!
Believe me, we are just scratching the surface, and we’re excited! 💚
TEAM MEMBER SPOTLIGHT – DARIN BRISE
In light of celebrating 15 years of working at The Root Cellar, it’s time to shine the spotlight on Darin Brise. 💡
Keep reading to learn about ALL things Darin! 🎉
Professional Background:
Can you briefly introduce yourself and your role within the company?
My Name is Darin Brise, born and raised in beautiful rural northern British Columbia, I grew up on a family farm surrounded by extended family with 3 neighbours being aunts, uncles, and grandparents. 🚜
I have filled many roles within the company including produce and store manager and am now the Manager of Procurement!
How did you get started with the Root Cellar?
My journey at The Root Cellar began a few months after the opening of the business in 2008. In late 2008 the business was growing quickly and I was approached by Adam, Daisy, and Phil and asked if I would be interested in visiting Victoria to explore the possibility of joining the team. After a day of experiencing the buzz and excitement and an exciting evening at the Monkey Tree Pub, I went back to the Okanagan. 🍒
Fast forward a couple of months and I returned for a more formal interview; and a few weeks later I was packing up the uhaul and moving from Penticton to Victoria! 🚚
Could you share some key milestones and achievements in your professional journey?
At the Root Cellar some of the most memorable moments:
- The opening of the Chop Shop
- The Day the wall came down – When the Big Barn was finally gone and the store expanded to what it is now
- The Launch of the bulk foods department
- The Development and opening of the Coffee Project
- The great Break-in + robbery
- The great tent-collapse
- The Opening of the Cook Street Location
What projects are you currently working on that you find particularly exciting.
Currently the most exciting is the launch of a new invoice processing system called Lightyear! 🥳
We are also exploring the opportunity of getting our own importers license to expand our buying options to the pacific northwest.
Personal Background:
Are there any personal values that you feel strongly about and align with the Root Cellar?
Yes for sure! For many of the company values I feel I have a big impact opportunity and responsibility every day of building and maintaining them, local focus, prices that are fair to both our customer and our farmers and producers. 👨🌾👩🌾
Integrity is very important to me as these values spell out the behaviours we aspire to in our everyday experience; there is never nothing to do; do what is right, not what is easy.
Can you share a fun or interesting fact about yourself that your colleagues may not know?
I have competed at 2 Canadian National Dodgeball Championships, as well as 2 Western Canada Dodgeball Championships. 🏃♂️
I grew up in northern BC on a lake that was frozen for 5 months of the year, but still can’t skate worth a damn. ❄️
What is something about you that your coworkers may not know?
I like to brush my teeth in the shower so that it’s easy to rinse the toothpaste out of my beard. 🪥
Reflection on Company Culture:
What aspects of the company culture do you appreciate the most?
The Root Cellar as a team generally takes a lot more pride in their work than I have ever seen in other places. Everything from building a great display to getting an awesome deal, to mopping the floor before open, the team’s pride is evident at all levels.💚
Can you share a memorable team-building experience or event that you’ve participated in?
The Root Cellar Salad Dodgers – We entered a team into the Victoria Sports and Social Club, and went on to win the championship! 🏆
THIS OR THAT WITH DARIN BRISE
A LETTER FROM DAISY
Hey everyone!
Wednesday Feb 28th is PINK SHIRT DAY. And while I love a good holiday (Chocolate! Candy! Presents! Family meals!), I EXTRA LOVE a holiday with purpose. 💕
Pink shirt day exists to promote kindness + inclusion and to eradicate bullying. It exists to protect our children + peers from cruelty and to acknowledge the power of our words and actions. So much of what is wrong in the world is because kindness has been forgotten.
It is fair to sometimes feel powerless to create change, but not on this front. Kindness is FREE. Kindness takes no more effort, no more words, no more resources, and no more time than how we would have otherwise conducted ourselves. It just takes mindfulness of how our words and actions are landing. 🫶
So what if we made a little more eye contact, what if we added a smile, or a warm turn of phrase, or a compliment, or an invitation or curiosity… Just because something is easy doesn’t mean it isn’t powerful. 🤍
We invite you to wear pink on Feb 28th, and to SLING KINDNESS like you never have before, let’s lead by example, let’s make it a daily practice.
We will proudly be making a $500 donation on your behalf to Pink Shirt Day to support anti bullying initiatives in BC. 🎀
Warmly,
Daisy
CONTEST TIME!
Yup – it’s contest time again! Participate in The Root Cellar This Or That Survey for a chance to win one of two prizes – a Hamilton Beach Deep Fryer or an Emile Henry Pizza set! 🍕 Simply click on the image below to get started!
Having a hard time accessing the survey? Click here to get started! ⭐
TEAM EVENTS
Let’s face it – football can be hard to understand… but the Super Bowl Halftime show is always entertaining! It’s almost as exciting as Swifties spotting T Swift on game day! 🏈
Oh, and let’s not forget about the food! 🍔
Team members working at both locations on Super Bowl Sunday enjoyed homemade regular & vegan chili, and both were gluten free! Yum! 🍽️
SPREAD A LITTLE LOVE
Be sure to take advantage of your 20% staff discount this Valentine’s Day, whether you’re buying a bouquet for yourself or a loved one! 💌
SPREAD A LITTLE SUNSHINE
Doing good feels good! ✨
Did you know…throughout the year the Root Cellar provides support in the form of cash donations or goods to many local organizations. This month we have donated $500 each to two important groups, both of whom are working hard to protect farmland in BC; The Sierra Club of BC National Farmers Union’s BC Farmland Committee and the locally based Farmer to Farmer Conference, a week-long annual conference held for farmers on Vancouver Island.
We’re so grateful to be able to spread a little sunshine! ☀️
Until next time! 🍈
