Country Kudos–just a few stories to share

We’re proud of our team members!

October 2020

KEN KERR, Royal Oak

1. “Please thank Ken for his genuine kindness! He gave a poor baby bird a safe resting place and that kind of generosity and mercy doesn’t go unnoticed by the universe! He took a sad moment and made it into a kind one!”
2. “Most kind, happy, accommodating and welcoming employee! He makes me feel so welcome to shop at Country Grocer!”
3. “So pleasant, kind and happy. Your employer is lucky to have you greeting their customers.”

Congratulations Ken! Well done!

JR WIKKERINK, Royal Oak

• “ What a wonderful young man you have tending your front door. I am a frequent shopper and each time I have come in he is polite, helpful and respectful. He makes me feel so welcome!”
• “Kudos to the best COVID door greeter around! Friendly, you can tell he is smiling even though you can’t see it under his mask.”
• “So cheerful, even in these challenging times. Thanks for making my day!”

Congratulations JR! Well done!

TOM GRAUWILER, Royal Oak

1. “This fellow can’t be mistaken, if he isn’t stock shelves at lightning speed, he’s answering questions about where/what on products, running around the store with amazing efficiency-he deserves recognition for a job VERY well done!”
2. “Tom makes a huge effort to keep our store clean and tidy. He is always cleaning the trash left behind in the parking lot and does so with a huge smile. You’re awesome Tom!”
3. “Tom is so helpful and kind. This man truly cares about his job. You’re lucky to have him!”

Congratulations Tom! Well done!

TERRY YAXLEY, Royal Oak

1. “When Terry serves you in the deli you know your questions matter and you know they will be answered with her incredible knowledge. She is neat and very efficient. She deserves recognition for a job beautifully done!!”
2. “Always friendly and helpful! Helped me find something that I had search all over the store for!”
3. “She is nice and always ready to smile and laugh, we need more people like her!”

Congratulations Terry! Well done!

TINA LIFE, Royal Oak

1. “Pleasant, fun and helpful. She is great at service and an excellent grocery packer!”
2. “There are so many reasons, I cannot give one! Her personality is perfect for what she does.”
3. “This lady performs any task she is assigned with lightning speed! She is organized and has great skill and is very dedicated to her job!”

Congratulations Tina! Well done!

LEAH DENNING, Royal Oak

1. “Leah always remembers my wife and I. She is never in a bad mood, even during these stressful times.”
2. “Leah has gone above and beyond for her Team Members. She works hard to make her team happy and it is obvious that she cares about them like they are family.”
3. “This girl Leah knows her stuff! She is efficient and pleasant all at the same time. She made a regular trip to the grocery store a great one! Thanks for being there for us during these COVID times.”

Congratulations Leah! Well done!

June 2020

Walter Franzoi, Cobble Hill

A customer from Arbutus Ridge called to inform us about an experience she had with Walter in Grocery. Her credit card was not working when she went through the till to pay for her order. Walter offered and paid for her groceries. The order totaled over $100 and Walter paid from his own pocket. Although the customer has since come in to pay him back, this just shows his fantastic character and commitment to quality service that you do not see very often.

Congratulations Walter! Well done!

January 2020

Trinity McCollough, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. Every once in a while an employee stands out. Trinity at the express counter is one of them. Trinity has run produce over the scanner several times and each time she has been upbeat and super friendly to say the least.
2. Thank you so much for taking the time to talk to me! It made me feel appreciated and it was good to talk. Thanks again!
3. I was Shift Supervisor for December 24/19 closing . I had a no show and they were my closing lotto. It was a zoo in here. Trinity came in to pick up Fred and had to wait an hour for him so she saved the day by helping on lotto for 45 minutes white I tried to get the front end organized before closing. Thanks Trinity!

Roxanne Dailly, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different team members and customers)  

1. For taking additional shifts outside normal availability when already getting many, if not more, hours then wanted.
2. She was the sweetest, most helpful and knowledgeable person in customer service I have ever met!
3. There were no grocery staff available to help a blind customer do his shopping. Roxanne jumped for it and was more than happy to help him out. She’s so great!

December 2019

Tomiko Bourgeois, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers) 

1. We seldom take time to write a word of thanks for the excellent service received during our day to day shopping experience.
   However, I definitely believe a compliment and special mention is due a member of your Royal Oak front end cashier staff.   According to my cash register receipt her name is Tamiko B.
   As I am regular shopper at your Royal Oak store I have been served by a variety of cashiers.  Tamiko is exemplary.  She is always cheerful, helpful, conscientious  and most importantly accurate.  She is a credit to your store.  If you have a recognition award program I hope that she is a recipient.
   Please convey my compliments and thanks  to Tamiko.
2. Tamiko went out of her way to help us and find the answer to our question. You are lucky to have her!
3. She’s always friendly and efficient and it’s always such a pleasure to see her smiling face at the cash register. She goes above and beyond to do her job well.

Pat Walker, Esquimalt (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. I just wanted to let you know what an amazing employee you have. She is always courteous, charming and wonderful personality.
2. I cracked my tooth on a Snickers bar and had refused the receipt, as usual. Pat painstakingly called me that evening, went through all that Saturday’s receipts to find mine and printed it out for me to send to Mars Canada for my claim for damages. I was very impressed & grateful for her helping me in this way.
3. Pat is always so happy and helpful. Busy and still goes to office to get my smokes with a smiles. She is a HUGE asset to CG. Her bubbly, helpful personality should not go unnoticed.

Faith Harrison, Esquimalt (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. Faith @ till #3, June 25 @ 6pm was AMAZING! She was kind, respectful, and made my experience amazing. Please give this women a raise!
2. Faith without hesitation offered to do 2 hours of overtime to help out our Front End team when we had someone call in sick on short notice. It was really busy and it certainly was a huge help.
3. Faith is so kind and helpful.

Amanda Graham, Esquimalt (received three kudo nominations from customers and fellow team members)  

1. Went out of her way to help me – good attitude and nice girl.
2. There was a money gram booboo, but she was an absolute star in resolving.
3. The one day sale was the best run of the front end in years. All managed by Amanda. All tills open, extra help, staff to pack and change off with the cashier, so no one was on till for long periods. What a great job. Best ever in my 21 years of one day sale.

October 2019

Linda Rocha, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. Linda is always so happy and helpful. She seems to really enjoy helping people. She always asks if I found everything okay. She also talks to me like a personal, not just a customer. I always look for her when I’m shopping and will wait in a longer line just to have her ring my order through.
2. A gentleman that comes in our store regularly wanted some help as he came through Linda’s till. Linda escorted him to the bench where he ate his sandwich and drank a drink he had purchased . She checked on him twice when he asked for a straw she went out of her way to find him one. Great job Linda!!
3.  Superstar! You are lucky to have her!! I met Linda in 2011 and there is simply too much to say about her1 We live close by and we shop here at least 3x a week because of her and your positive attitude!

Ryan Dawshka, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. Ryan is courteous, quick and careful, he did a great job for me today, love the Country Grocer team!
2. Ryan was excellent, put up with me changing my mind 7 times in the order & was totally polite, calm about it!
3. Ryan is amazing, fast and most friendly. 10/10

Yukon Deighton, Esquimalt

He has done an amazing, thorough job training our new staff members and it is because of this that our evenings/mornings are going smoother! I think he deserves a Kudo for all the training that he has done for the Bakery Team.

September 2019

Dee Hutcheson, Cobble Hill

Hello, I’d like to offer a shout out to one of your cashier’s, Dee H. Whenever I go through her till lineup she is kind, warm, and always has a smile on her face. When I now shop I choose her lineup even if it’s busier than the other cashier’s. Please pass this along to management and to Dee as well.
(she’ll know who I am when you tell her I’m the customer that lost my passport, but she found it for me!)

August 2019

Tamiko Bourgeois, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. Always friendly and helpful!
2. Very pleasant, helpful and goes the extra mile to help you out. Cheerful – makes my day!
3. “She is consistent with her excellent customer service. I am always treated with a genuine smile and a “how are you today!” I enjoy shopping at your location in part to her excellent customer service!

July 2019

Penelope Griggs, Cobble Hill (received three kudo nominations from different customers)

1. She is so awesome, happy and willing to help customers! What an asset to your store!
2. She has always been so helpful and has sold me many products. I have so been pleased with the service provided.
3. I was in the store on Saturday morning and Penelope took the time to show me where the coconut water was and asked if I would like it cold. When we got to the cooler she took the time to explain the differences between the cans that were available. Much appreciated as I was purchasing it for others, not myself. Thank you very much for the great service!

Mandy Drouin, Royal Oak (received three nominations from team members)

1. “For taking additional shifts outside normal availability when already getting as many, if not more, hours then wanted.”
2. “I can’t explain how much Mandy has gone above and beyond. She is my “temp” on call a lot of days – just coming with 15 minutes notice sometimes. Love her! Such an amazing team member.”
3. “I was short cashiers & Mandy was off at 8:30pm. When she came back from counting her till, I had a huge line and she hopped on till to help out even thought she was not guaranteed pay, and had already worked 8 hours!”

May 2019

Nevada Dorman, Chase River

“I need to send a note to thank Nevada Dorman of the Southgate Nanaimo location today. I was having an anxiety attack and not only did she offer me assistance she offered me comfort. She gave me a hug, walked me to my car and without prying told me I would be okay. I needed that more than she could have known. I can’t thank her enough. She saved me today. Thank you.”

Brigitta Melvin, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)

1. “Just always pleasant  helpful, truly never had an unsmiling face, wonderful”
2. “Always patient, helpful and smiling!”
3. “I shop here regularly. One day I had an envelope in my grocery bag. I took it out to put groceries in and left it an end of the till. When I got home the envelope wasn’t in the bag and I couldn’t remember putting it in the mailbox. I ran back to the store and was told Brigitta had my envelope. With a big smile on her face, she said she had mailed it for me. Please thank her for going an extra step for me! P.S I love shopping here because of all the great staff!”

Lex Miller, Royal Oak (received six kudo nominations from different customers so has received 2 kudos)

1. “When Lex is not dealing with customers, she’s always cleaning up her till or finding something to do to be productive – not just stand there.”
2. “Lex stayed calm and dealt with a customer concern using the “alarm” process effectively that we learned in customer service training. I was very proud of her, she is a quiet personal but she’s slowly interacting with others! Great job Lex!”
3. “Friendly girl and personable. Smiles, is kind and patient with me!”
4. Yet again! This girl continues to amaze me. Taking shifts left and right! Coming in to help when we don’t have any on calls to use. She’s so happy and always willing to help out.
5. Lex is a rock star. This last week with some staffing issues, Lex came to the rescue and took two of the shifts I needed covered. This is a regular deed for her. I love and appreciate everything she does. My hero!”
6. She was very kind and helped me with my bags.

Kathleen Gray, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. “Very helpful and pleasant. Amazing personality and such a great smile!”
2. “ Always so happy doing her job even on a busy Sunday! Love it!”
3. “I love the dynamic duo of Kathleen + Tom. Always very happy workers!

Kris Ellis, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. “Just so great! I love coming to your store just to hear her laugh and see her smile.”
2. “Kris is always friendly and helpful. Special service and help last week.”
3. “Very honest person – great ambassador for the Country Grocer store. Greatly appreciate her pointers on care for one’s plants especially bedding plants – always warns one not to put stuff out to early. All around just a wonderful lady!”

Sebastian Tremblay, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. “I would like to acknowledge just how helpful and kind Sebastian was!”
2. “Today is the third time Sebastian has gone out of his way to help me find products – he is a gem you do not want to lose.”
3. “The last time I was here Sebastian was extremely kind and helpful. Some of the best customer service I have ever experienced. I will always come back to your store. Thank you Sebastian!!”

Tom Grauwiler, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. “Tom is always so happy doing his job on a busy day!”
2. “I really wanted to thank him for being so sweet with my 9 year old son! He was very helpful and kind! Thanks so much.”
3. “Tom + Kathleen always pleasant. I always look for both of them when I come to the store.”

Will Dunn, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

1. “He was so helpful in finding a product and even went the extra mile when he saw me after looking for something asked f if he could help – excellent customer service. “
2. “I work at Thrifty’s but shop here as well because I really love the service. Will went out of his way on a busy Friday to check for a better date on a product for me. He dug way into his back stock to find an even better date than I asked for. Smiling, helpful and appreciated!”
3. “Saturday morning – busy store. Will was apparently trying to count items/do ordering with his clipboard, yet he kept being stopped & asked questions. He cheerfully & patiently answered all the questions. He went out of his way to help me, even offering to go get me a cart when my basket was full. GREAT customer service!!”

March 2019

Tom Grauwiler, Royal Oak (received three kudo nominations from different customers)  

“He greets helpful and cheerful. A fantastic asset to your company!”“I found him very friendly. He offers his assistance all the time. He is just unbelievable. Thank you for hiring him!”“Amazing guy, very helpful and very pleasant individual”

February 2019

Caroline Beauregard, Cobble Hill

“Caroline was short staffed all week due to the weather and she did the job of two people while completing orders and dealing with stock and employees. She literally is a life saver and she deserves some good recognition. She is a model for an outstanding employee and I would love to recognize her for this.”

Carla Williams,  Chase River

A customer was trying to find a product but it wasn’t on the nutrition shelf.  Carla was sure she had received some of the product earlier that day so went into the back room and found it for them.

Amanda Dunn, Chase River

A customer shops in Amanda’s department because she is so friendly and helpful.

Leslie Ross, Chase River

Great customer service in the nutrition department!

Aaron Derksen, Chase River

Gave his cell phone to a customer that needed a tow truck and told them to bring it back to them once they were finished with it.

Angela Little, Chase River

Went above and beyond in the Bakery.