Trader Joe’s podcast answers burning questions with CEO Q&A

Are Trader Joe’s employees really told to flirt with shoppers? How is it so fun to work there? Why have the two CEOs stayed with this supermarket so long?

Store employees such as assistant managers — often called mates to go with the company’s nautical theme — asked these questions and more of the top brass at the retailer with some seriously fervent fans.

With marketing team members and podcast co-hosts Tara Miller and Matt Sloan, the Monrovia, Calif.-based retailer gave the public a Q&A with Trader Joe’s CEO Bryan Palbaum and Trader Joe’s President and Vice CEO Jon Basalone during Episode 65 of its podcast.

Palbaum has been with Trader Joe’s for almost 21 years, and for Basalone, it’s 33 years.

Let’s get into it.

Question: So, if you were training a new crew member that just walked in the door, what two things would you tell them they absolutely have to know about Trader Joe's?

Palbaum: Well, I think one of the most important things to know when you start working at Trader Joe's, be genuine and be yourself. And if you're comfortable with that, then just enjoy the ride. You're gonna be working in a store, a lot of like-minded crew members, that want to show you and demonstrate how we like to do things, that want to support you. We hope that you're going into an environment that you're going to feel comfortable everyday walking into and enjoying it and finding people that you enjoy working with and having wonderful interactions with customers.

Basalone: That's exactly what I would say. And I would say, “Now let's go try something.” … Yeah, because we, you know, we get to sell food and we get to have fun doing it. And then you mix in the great crew members that you hire, and you tell them to be genuine, be nice to people, and it all works pretty well.

Palbaum: … The simpler, the better. And it works, you know? Or it has so far. ... And that really is our focus, and I think people feel most comfortable asking questions when they're comfortable in being genuine and being themselves, we're not trying to change anybody … It's exhausting to try and be someone you're not, we don't want to add that burden on anybody.

Basalone: Yeah, the last thing we're going to do is provide scripts for people, “Here, say these things when customers walk up.” It works so much better when you just get to be yourself. Then you have a mix of 60, 70, 100 crew members all being themselves, and it creates a really great environment.

Here's an opportunity to put something to rest because you're saying be genuine and be nice. Can you please tell us once and for all, are our crew members told to flirt with customers?

Palbaum: Definitively, no … I think we just have such a unique environment in our stores that, to go into a Trader Joe's store and feel that everyone is genuinely interested in whether or not you are having a good day, compared to maybe perhaps other retailers, I could see how that might be misinterpreted.

Basalone: Bryan's right. I mean, you go through this world, and you run into so many people that aren't genuine, that aren't kind to you, that when you walk into a place when that's happening, it feels like, whoa, OK, I think they're flirting with me when actually, yeah, that's just what niceness feels like, you know?

I'm just wondering what advice you have or what steps you would recommend taking to start looking towards captainhood. What do you think are five important things that we learn, or what do we put emphasis on that would help propel us to that next level?

Basalone: I'm really happy to know that there are that many mates interested in becoming captains, because we're going to need them as we grow. First things first, do everything you can to be an outstanding mate, put all your effort into that. You will become in the store, somebody that people are drawn to, the crew is who will identify who the future captains are based on who they go to for questions, answers, support, whether it's personal or professional, or just how do you do something in the store? So that you're focused on having everyone else be successful and achieve their goals and by doing that you will achieve yours, which is to become a captain.

Palbaum: There's not a checklist that if you do these certain things, then you will be a captain. It really involves a lot of intangible and it starts with, as Jon said, be the best mate that you can. Be the best supporter of your crew, that'll come through that gets noticed.

Basalone: Nobody’s better at recognizing a future leader than the people that are being led. That's how they're identified.

How do we staff a new store?

Palbaum: When you think about a Trader Joe's store, it's made up of crew mates, captains, and products and the physical space. But what really brings it all together is the "wow" customer experience. We can't bring that in from outside. It just doesn't work. We really need people that have worked in a Trader Joe's that it's become Trader Joe's has become part of their DNA. We really do look to existing stores for leadership and then supplement that with new hires from around whatever that neighborhood might be.

Basalone: We're going to grow, but we're not going to grow faster than our people development can keep up with it. All captains will have been mates in our stores, and 90% of the mates in our stores are former crew members first in the store to absorb the Trader Joe’s culture, not only understand the operations and the way we operate, but why we do things the way we do them.

Palbaum: And I asked crew members, “How'd you end up at Trader Joe's?” And the conversation generally comes back, “I just wish I'd found this place earlier because I love my fellow crew members.” I think that makes all the difference.

When you're visiting stores, what are you doing? Why are you there?

Bryan: I’m visiting stores to understand what's happening in the stores. I can't sit in an office and assume that I know what's actually happening in the stores. And again, I'm going to steal this from Jon, there are two things that we look for when we visit a store. One of the things we want to know is, is this a store if I were a crew member that I would want to work in, are people enjoying themselves? Does it seem like work here is actually something that's fun and engaging? The other question is, is this a store I'd want to shop in? If I were a customer, do I feel good in here? Do I like it? If the crew enjoys working in the store, then the customers are going to enjoy shopping in the store. So that's why we visit the store.

It's not really a tour of stores where we're looking to make sure the cans are located in the right place, because each store, as you've covered in previous podcasts, really knows their customers, knows their neighborhood and sets up the store that makes sense for them. So, we're not really looking to tour and make sure things are necessarily ship shape or something like that.

For me, I want to meet the crew. I want to talk to them. What feedback can they give me so that when we are in the office having to make decisions or make investments on whether it's technology or how product is shipped to stores, what can we do better? That's our job. Our job is to support them. Plus, it's just the most fun I can have in my job is walking into a store, talking to the crew, hearing what they're excited about, hearing what they did last weekend or what have you. It just is so inspiring. And I'm encouraging as we've done for years, our crew members in the office to spend as much time as they can in the stores.

Basalone: Yeah, the best days I have are days spent in stores, spending time to talk to crew members, customers, work. Some, spending an hour, hour and a half in a store goes by so fast. We always leave stores saying, “I wish we could have stayed longer.” A lot of people will ask, crew members will ask, “What do you see? What are you seeing?” A lot of times I'm not even looking, I'm listening. You can tell by listening to what's going on, whether or not this store is operating to its fullest extent for both crew members and customers. Are customers and crew members interacting with each other? Do you hear that kind of activity that comes from a place where people would want to work and shop? Your eyes can fool you, but your ears, that's what really tells you when it's working right.

Palbaum: It also reminds me of how fun it is to work in a store. If a store is really busy and they need someone to bag groceries, we’ll bag groceries. And that's probably to me, one of the most fun things you can do is not necessarily the act of bagging groceries, although if you like Tetris or putting puzzles together, it's kind of fun, but the engagement, the interaction you have with customers during that process is just a lot of fun. And then learning about them, what they're doing, helping them out with their groceries, whatever it might be. It's fun to do.

Basalone: Yeah, and one thing that we're looking forward to is, you know, we've been doing this a long time. Does it still feel the same as it did 20, 30 years ago? And it really does, you know, the basics of it, the, what makes Trader Joe's so unique and so fun, great place to work, a great place to shop is the consistency and the fact that, yeah, the store itself has evolved, the products we carry, but the actual environment still feels as great as it did, you know, 10, 20, 30 years ago.

True or false: Coming soon, self-checkout.

 Palbaum: Oh, that's a false. That's a double false.

Basalone: That’s as false as false can be because we believe in people and we're not trying to get rid of our crew members for efficiency sake or whatever the — I don't know what the reasons are people put self-checkout in.

Palbaum: It's not fun … I was just saying I have fun bagging groceries and working at the register. Self-checkout is work. I don't want that.

Basalone: That's like the time I was in a store, and I couldn't get the thing to scan ... and then the person came over and was trying to explain to me. I'm like, I do this for a living, and I can't get this thing to work.

True or false: Coming soon, drive-thru sample cups of coffee.

Basalone: False … You know, it took me a while to answer that because I was just trying to picture that. Oh my gosh, that would be … Wow.

True or false: Coming soon: In-store restaurants with in-aisle waiting areas.

Palbaum: Also, false.

What are some things that are coming soon? And maybe it's a new flavor of Hold the Cone!

Basalone: Well, that's an interesting question, like saying what's new and then you know, we're going to start selling tires. No, we're not. We're going to keep doing what we're doing, but we're going to grow. And so the newness comes from, yeah, the new customers we're going to be able to reach, the new products that we're going to see on our shelves, the new opportunities for the crew members who get promoted and get to run those stores into the future. You know, that's where the excitement comes from. You know, it's not crazy new ideas like the robot in the aisle that answers questions and helps to clean up spills. It's simpler than that and actually more exciting than that because of that reason.

Palbaum: As Jon is mentioning us, you know, opening more stores, newer location, new geographies, what might feel old to us is brand new to all those new customers, wherever they may be, even in our existing stores. For a new customer walking in, one of the most exciting products I think they could see are Peanut Butter Pretzels. And how long have we had Peanut Butter Pretzels? Thirty, 40 years? Yeah, many decades. But if you've never had Peanut Butter Pretzels, it's unbelievable. It's a whole new experience. It's exciting. And that's new.

What inspired you to stay for 21 years, for however many years to grow together, watch the company grow and change, and your roles to change?

Palbaum: The reason I've stayed is the satisfaction and the enjoyment I get every day working with great people. But if you really want to know whether or not you like a job, I think it always comes down to, do you enjoy the people you're working with? Do you enjoy the mission, if you will, of the company you're working with and its customers? When I get up in the morning, I say, well, I'm glad I'm going to see these people and get to work with them.

Basalone: That's a good question. Since Day 1 as a member of a crew in the store, every day's been fun and that's what I was after. I didn't have to change who I was or anything to be successful. It's the interactions you have with people that don't work for Trader Joe's. When they find out you work for Trader Joe's, "Oh, I love Trader Joe's," when I forget that I still have my name tag on.

Palbaum: It is fun when people out in public recognize and they are generally excited. I think to myself, wow, we got to keep delivering on this because it's really fun.

Basalone: Yeah, and the fun part about it is when they say that to you, “Oh, I love Trader Joe's,” it's easy for me to think, well, thank you, you know? But then I realized, you know what, that's because of the experience they have in their store that they're shopping in. And so, I get to bask in the glory of, of the work that's been done by all the stores out there and, all the captains, mates, crew members. And hopefully that's how everyone who works at Trader Joe's feels. Yeah, you represent Trader Joe's in that moment, but they're referencing something even bigger, which is pretty cool.

Palbaum: What I really love about all of our crew members is we know our job is to sell groceries in a great environment in a store.

Basalone: So, the trick in the future is getting the robots to behave that way too.