Clayton Vinson
Dr. Pederson
7/15/2021 ,
Internship Experience
My internship consisted of shadowing and working for an owner of various successful businesses. My internship employer’s name is Chris Cook. Mr. Cook owns two local brewery- restaurant concepts in Colonial Williamsburg named Precarious Beer Hall and the Amber Ox. In addition, he also owns one Little Caesars pizza restaurant in Gloucester, Virginia, and a new Crumbl Cookie franchise in the Richmond area with currently one store up and running. This internship related to my major as a Sociologist by giving me exposure to different kinds of people in diverse social settings and how they all work together to accomplish a common goal. I was able to experience and work with people of different racial, socioeconomic, and sexual backgrounds. This allowed for diverse mind sets and a fun work environment. From a customer side most of the people who came into the Precarious Beer Hall and Amber Ox were either tourist or upper middle-class local residents. The beers and drinks at these places start at 6 dollars for one and go all the way up to 15 for a mixed drink at Amber Ox. While delivering cookies for Crumbl, I went to a lot of lower income housing in the Mechanicville area. It was interesting to be exposed to such varying levels of housing and socioeconomic status and allowed me to relate this experience to theories learned in my Sociology classes.
At Precarious Beer Hall I switched between working as a DRA (Dining Room Attendant), helping and learning about the brewing process that included feeding the canning machine, and working special events. A DRA’s job is to circulate and clean the tables as customers finish eating. You got to talk to people and make conversation making them feel comfortable. The environment there is very relaxed considering that it is an arcade as well. Families can stop in and the parents can have a beer or two while the kids can get tacos and play on the arcade machines. Whenever we closed at the night, we would have to mop the entire floor, sweep, wipe off all the tables, and empty the trash cans. The special event consisted of a daytime festival that included live music, games, and of course beer and food. I ran the ticket and merchandise table and I was shocked at the level of sales for these items. It was a hugely successful event. This event allowed for community connections as well as a tasting event for new beers.
At the beginning of the internship Mr. Cook sold a real estate location where he had a Little Caesars restaurant. He had to empty the building for the transaction to be complete and we spent the day moving equipment and loading up trucks. It became apparent to me that owning and running a business requires the ability and willingness to do anything required from manual labor, running shifts in the restaurant and making buying-selling decisions.
As the Crumbl Cookie prepared to open, Mr. Cook and traveled to various locations to buy trailers for the stores to store merchandise and boxes. I helped unbox and build shelving for the stores and learned how the corporate system flows and how precise the stores had to be. In addition, I helped configure the monitors to the Crumbl servers and set up the menu boards for the store. After the store was set up and ready to open, corporate sent in two people to help train the employees for the various positions. I filled the role of greeter, delivery driver and helped with the dishes when they were overflowing. They made the system very streamlined and easy to operate. To order a cookie, they have pictures on the kiosk and you just click the picture of the cookies you want and then you can also pay at the kiosk with a debit or credit card. The deliveries were only to be at a maximum of 8 miles or less away because we promise hot and warm cookies.
During my time working with Mr. Cook I learned many skills. At the Crumbl I experienced how to get into a franchise business, what it takes to get the store open and how to find and hire good people you can trust to be your first managers and crew. I’d say that reliability, trustworthiness, and effective communication skills are some of the better qualities to look for in a person when working in a business. I learned how to handle situations with customers that would make the business look disorganized and turn it into better ones. For example, whenever a car was waiting in the curbside pick up area for a long time, or we give them the wrong order, we gave them a coupon for a free cookie and take responsibility so they still might come back at a later date. I learned that most restaurants and businesses should hire a wide range of employee demographics to benefit from diverse experiences and make all customers feel welcome.
One major thing that I learned while working at Precarious Beer Hall was the difference between owning/running a franchise versus private business. The private business allows for more freedom with how the business is operated. The franchise business, however, is a structured situation where you are given the tools to run the operation but with strict guidelines. A franchised business will ensure quality control of the product and consistent training for the employees. Operating through a franchise would be safer financially because of proven systems already in place.
My internship was a unique and interesting experience. I was exposed to a variety of different businesses and was able to see how each was run on a day to day basis. With the Crumbl Cookie franchise I was fortunate to be able to participate in the actual opening of the restaurant. When I reflect on what I learned the most, I believe it is how critical a business’ success is on the people in the business. Hiring trustworthy, hardworking people with great communication skills is a must. Treating people fairly and compensating them well lays the foundation for success. A strength I feel demonstrated was that I made for a well-rounded employee. I was not picky about the tasks asked of me and would gravitate to jobs that others did not want to do. A weakness that I would like to focus on is making sure miscommunication does not happen, especially if multiple people are involved with giving instructions. Whether I am running my own business one day or helping an owner be successful, I want to take my skills with communication, work ethic, and a willingness to jump in where needed to move forward in the business world.