november2024 - 17

ing decisions. But those decisions are
never, always 100% correct, " Duncan
said. " One of the reasons why I think
we've been able to grow is we're not
afraid to say we're wrong and change
course. The other is when we adapt,
we adapt quickly to the industry
changes, whether it's through
technology or changes in services,
whatever it may be. "
Challenges such as the recent
pandemic have only served to underscore
their core values and how
All Star goes to market. " It made
us realize that our economy is not
invincible. And when that pandemic
hit and our revenue dropped to 30%
of what it was yesterday, that was
scary. But it made us stronger. I'll tell
you why: Because our managers, the
people leading this company never
wavered, " he said.
" We gave our team [the
confidence that] nothing is going to
stop this company from being here
in the future, not even a pandemic.
That helped drive our message of a
positive workforce - a positive work
environment, employee morale and
putting employees first -through
our team. Our team came out
stronger, more cohesive than it ever
was before. "
A STRONG TEAM
DRIVES SUCCESS
Speak to any of the company leaders,
and you will soon see how each is
quick to point out the key role that
their team plays in its success.
" We're currently at 80 employees.
As we've grown, we've added along
the way. We focus on promoting
from within and starting that growth
to leadership the day that someone
walks in the door. We try to identify
future leaders in the interview process,
whether it's through just natural
feeling, or even asking the question.
We put them on a track to help them
A UNION SHOP IN MICHIGAN
Being based in Michigan, a labor union stronghold and the birthplace
of the U.S. automotive industry, means that All Star's labor mix is unlike
other operators.
" A lot of times I'll talk to other operators, and they'll be very shocked
about our union shop, " Holden said. Unionized since the company's
inception as a Coca-Cola franchise, all field personnel at All Star -
service technicians, route drivers, coffee drivers, warehouse staff and
utility staff - are Teamsters.
" We talk about partnerships, and I look at the Teamsters as a partner
of ours just because they control the labor for our team. We negotiate
with them every three years. Because we've built the company we have,
and have the mentality we do, we have a great working relationship
with them, and we don't have many issues, " said Duncan Smith.
Being in Michigan also means that many manufacturing facilities
require their service providers to be unionized. " From a sales
standpoint, a lot of UAW facilities will actually have it written in their
agreements that they have to be serviced by union vendors, where that
opens the door for us, " he added.
" I know all family-owned businesses say this, but we really look at
our entire team - top to bottom - and every employee as part of the
family. Right? We're a company. We're doing cool things together, "
Duncan continued. " And it's never been an 'us vs. them' mentality of
management leadership versus union. It's all been so collaborative. "
" Our team are very well compensated for the work that they're doing
because they're doing awesome work. Being in a heavy union state and
being a union company is something that we're proud of, and something
that we don't shy away from, " he concluded. " And it's just like being a
family business. It has its potential challenges, but it's the way we've
always been. And this is how we operate, and we're proud of it. "
grow to become the next leaders,
next generation of our organization, "
Duncan said.
" Right now, we have a strong
group of operational managers that
all came up through the ranks and
are managing the jobs that they were
hired for originally. It's a real collaborative
effort. It's helped with our
morale and the positive workforce
that we've talked about for years, and
we've focused on, " Duncan said.
" It's our team, our HR manager
and the operations folks, that take
that message from us - from Jon,
from Caroline, from Devin, from
Duncan - that we want to be a positive
work environment, and we want
to have a place where people want
to work.
" They carried it forward, based
on the growth they have and the
knowledge they have of working
with us, and our vision. So, we're
real proud of what they've done and
the work environment we've created, "
he added.
Having such a strong team also
helps insulate All Star from some of
the workforce shortages that have
plagued other operators. " I wouldn't
say lined up at the door, but we
have a lot of employee referrals for
employment here because it's a good
place to work, " Duncan said.
" As you hear of industry struggles
- or other industries struggle
with employment just in general
- we have not had one issue with
employment since the pandemic.
Whenever we have an opening,
we fill it within reason. I firmly
believe that's because of the work
environment we've created here. " ■
November 2024 * VendingMarketWatch.com 17
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