Creativity, Passion, and Innovation Inside fresh&easy

As we continue to launch new products and new programs, to enter more kitchens and fill more lunchboxes, we at fresh&easy know it takes more than recipes and protocol. It takes passion for both our products and the people they feed, innovative ideas to continuously improve our business, and the kind of creativity that can solve problems and set us apart as not just a neighborhood market, but a neighbor in our communities.

“This isn’t like any other place I’ve worked,” says John, a store associate in Los Angeles. I feel like I can be myself and share my ideas. I want to be here, and I never really look at the clock to see when my day is over.”

Becky, another associate from Burbank, CA, recalled a memorable exchange with a customer. “I feel lucky. I get to meet people every day, and sometimes it’s just me helping them find a birthday dessert in the Bakery section, or something gluten-free, and other times we have long conversations like we’re old friends. You have to care here. You can’t help it.”

When we look for new additions to the fresh&easy family, we search for the caring, the imaginative, the daring, the dedicated, and the determined. We want teammates who add flavor, and not just to the food, but to the entire business environment. Throughout July we celebrated those traits and how they take our products and stores to the next level, and how they boost morale on the home front. We want present and future members of our teams to step up and stand out. Offer ideas. Ask well-informed questions. Seek out leaders in your field for inspiration. Highlight unique experiences and accomplishments. Show us your spice.

Mark Lodge, Campus Operations Director in Riverside, CA, is one of many fresh& easy leaders who saw these characteristics and values play out in a particularly emphatic way. With the successful launch of the Kitchen to Go line of nearly 160 products on the tightest of timelines, Mark recognized that the team never could have pulled it off if it hadn’t been for their passion for their work, obsession with perfecting the taste and time-saving elements of each meal, and creative input to make the market’s magic happen in time for the launch.

One employee said in a recent culture survey, “Fresh and Easy has many great teams that work together to accomplish our goals as a company.” Another added, “I’m going on my 6th year here at F&E and every year it gets more interesting and fun! Thank you for allowing me to be a part of this great adventure.”

And it’s because of these traits that the more than 400 employees in Riverside succeeded beyond anyone’s expectations and imagination. And it’s because of these traits and that success that those 400 employees found themselves in the middle of a post-launch party in their honor on July 17.

“Most people have an inner want to do something quite epic, like run a marathon or climb a mountain,” says Mark. “I think this is an opportunity to do that in their professional lives. At work you don’t often get the chance to do something really special, and to feel the elation you get when you’ve scaled that peak or crossed a finish line—But this was one of those chances, and they succeeded. They deserve to be recognized for their spirit and ability to make it all work so beautifully.”

So it seemed only right to devise a creative celebration event to match the creative work environment… Like holding a mock Olympics featuring inflatable sumo wrestling and grown men jousting with rubber clubs. And the crowd went wild.

“I shopped in the store all the time before being awarded with the opportunity to be a part of the team and I still love it just as much. We have an AWESOME store and we have a WONDERFUL team.” one employee exclaimed while enjoying the party. “I look forward to coming to work and seeing all of our customers—getting to know them, our team, the store and what fresh&easy stands for makes me very happy and makes all the hard work worth while. GO FRESH AND EASY!”

Fresh & Easy doesn’t just invite creativity, or hope to hire innovators, or want its team members to merely get through each day. We seek, support, and celebrate the people who want to be both creators and consumers, who believe in us as much as we believe in them. We want those who are hungry for the chance to accomplish something special, and who are ready to roll up their sleeves and make their mark.