KANSAS CITY, MO — Summer and apple pie; warm weather and outdoor escapades; a balmy breeze and the hope of vacations soon to come. While these combinations are a hallmark of summer, the season also promises to bring an uptick in business for retail bakers.
The annual business boom is one to plan for months ahead of time. With products flying off the shelf, bakeries need the staff to support the increased demand and higher output. When hiring seasonal employees, preparations should begin three to four months in advance.
This rings true for Blue Loon Bakery, an artisan bakery located in the heart of New London, NH. The quaint town’s population rests at 4,500 during sleepy winters, but come summer, residents nearly triple to more than 13,000. As the bakery gears up for summer, the Blue Loon staff nearly doubles in size accordingly.
“In January, we’re usually at about 15 full- and part-time employees,” said Laurie Schive, co-owner of Blue Loon Bakery, “but in the summer, we get to about 27 or 28.”
The search commences
Finding those additional hands — whether it be at the bench or behind the counter — is a process that spans local advertising, professional networking platforms, social media and sometimes just word of mouth.
See and Be Kitchen in Cairo, NY, starts this search in February.
“That gives us time for people to onboard, go through all the training and get up to speed because we want them to be ready to rock and roll by April,” said Chrissy Traore, co-founder and CEO of See and Be Kitchen. “Around that time, we’ll consistently get a 30 percent increase in business.”
As soon as the weather emerges from its chilly hibernation, so do Cairo’s residents. The bakery experiences an annual surge in sales when the season changes.
Travel West of Chrissy’s bakery, and April marks the start of hiring season for Rebel Bread. The Denver bakery hosts a week-long hiring push dubbed a ‘summer camp’ where a steady stream of young professionals apply and meet the bakery staff.
“We’ll choose 15 of those applicants to hire,” said Zach Martinucci, founder and CEO of Rebel Bread. “We try to have a big staff so at least five people can be available on any given weekend.”
What to do if advertisements or social media posts aren’t getting any traction for the bakery? Laurie’s team solved this problem with a bit of creative thinking.
“We got a blow-up doll, dressed him in our uniform, and taped a note to him that said, ‘Hi, I’m Steve. Please come in and fill out an application, or I’m going to be the only one working the counter,’” Laurie explained. “We got a lot of visibility from that, which led to a lot of applications. Sometimes it’s just about getting people’s attention.”
Labor of love
With a solid group of permanent staff, Blue Loon seeks additional help for its part-time staff to fill in front-of-house spots. However, that’s not to say that Laurie doesn’t occasionally search for behind-the-bake support. For either position, she ensures candidates understand what they’re signing on for.
“It’s challenging, especially since I can always hire for behavior and fit and not necessarily for skills,” she explained. “I always say, ‘I can teach people how to bake. I can’t teach them how to be a good human.’ I’d much rather have somebody who’s eager and actually wants to work.”
Zach noted he also tends to hire based on the cultural fit and applicants’ cohesiveness with the bakery’s core values.
“It’s important that in addition to making great pastries or loaves of bread, we also want you to be a delight in the kitchen and contribute to our positive culture as a whole,” he said. “If someone is enthusiastic and willing to learn, they’ll positively influence the rest of the team.”
Meet the team
Rebel Bread’s staff consists of roughly 20 full-time and 10 part-time employees, and Zach specifically hires another group of 10 or so to help with the bakery’s farmers market business.
“The farmers market season starts at the beginning of May and goes through November,” he said. “That team is entirely part-time and seasonal. We often don’t get a lot of high school or college applicants because we expect a full season of commitment.”
See and Be Kitchen hires also don’t typically consist of high school students, but the staff ranges from all walks of life and backgrounds.
“We have some who just graduated high school and are looking to start a career path with us, but we also have a large group of second-chance hires,” Chrissy said. “These employees are either looking for a career change or have been out of the workforce for a while. It’s a good fit for us.”
Finding the right bakery team member may seem daunting, but starting early, investing in training and providing an atmosphere of support will do wonders for the process.
“You have to make sure you’re giving your employees the tools, training and support, whether they’re here for a month or five years,” Laurie said. “Every employee counts.”
