Do You Eat Lunch Regularly with Team Members?

Yes: 31%

• Lunches at our staff meetings always improve morale and participation. — Robert Feller, Verona Veterinary Medical Service, Verona, WI
• Although I don’t eat lunch that often as I lack the time, I always enjoy the opportunity to spend time with team members eating lunch because it creates great camaraderie between the entire store staff. — Leel Michelle, Bow Wow Beauty Shoppe, San Diego, CA
• It allows for informal and casual conversations, which help solidify the team-building process. — Frank Frattini, The Hungry Puppy, Farmingdale, NJ
• We celebrate five-star reviews with pizza parties! It really keeps the entire team, from management to cleaning crew, invested in our clients’ satisfaction. — Katherine Ostigy, Crossbones, Providence, RI
• It gives us time to refresh and finish the day, I only have done this off site with my managers, but I purchase lunch for my staff on a weekly basis. — Jessica Cooke, Yuppy Puppy, O’Fallon, MO
• I put a new couch in our large grooming room, and everyone congregates there for lunch or short breaks every day. We catch up with each other, talk about the business and laugh about weird clients. — Danielle Wilson, Bath & Biscuits, Granville, OH
• It’s just me and one team member, so we eat together every day. We eat the same food, treats and cookies for dessert. Our dogs are best friends. Effects? We smile a lot. — Nancy Okun, Cats n Dogs, Port Charlotte, FL
• A lot of non-work conversation happens when we eat together. Our team is its own little family, and I am blessed and grateful for the opportunity to work with these great individuals who care so deeply about animals and what we are trying to do at Fetch RI. — Johnna Devereaux, Fetch RI, Richmond, RI
• Everyone likes their voice heard, and sitting with staff at lunch makes me a real part of the hands-on team and keeps the conversation from getting gossipy. Also, it’s good to hear about dogs and clients from the vantage point of the staffers who spend more time with them. It helps me as an owner be able to strike up conversations with clients, as well as get good ideas from my staff about things that are going well and things that are not going well. They still know I’m the boss, but it makes me seem approachable, knowledgeable, and receptive to input from staff. — Angela antalone, Wag Central, Stratford, CT
• Every Wednesday is our truck day and it gets kinda crazy in here. I have started buying my team lunch every week. We hang out talk and it gives us time to connect. Yes, it does cost me, but the payoff is worth it. I highly recommend it! — Anna Woodcock, Brown Dog Bakery, Ankeny, IA

No: 69%

• Who has time for lunch when you own the place? — Tammy Vasquez, Bark Life, Seminole, FL
• I feel like it’s their time to get away from it all and watch videos, relax and do what they want. Several usually sit together in our common kitchen, so I do walk around them quite a lot, interacting in a fun way at that time. — Suzanne Locker, ABC Pet Resport & Spa, Willis, TX
• My husband and I eat out every day for lunch at a local downtown business. It’s our time together and away from the store. It helps us catch up, think clearer, communicate the day/week/etc. It also supports small local businesses like ours. — Jennifer Larsen, Firehouse Pet Shop, Wenatchee, WA