If you thought the Golden Globes was the biggest party that happened this month…well, our FORTUNE celebration just might prove you wrong and top it!
To honor our employees – who are the reason we landed in the Sweet #16 spot on FORTUNE’s list of “100 Best Companies to Work For” – we held a big bash at our Home Office and Distribution Center and celebrated at ALL of our stores across the country. The theme of the celebration was “What We Stand For,” which took its cue from our recent campaign that asked our employees to submit a photo of a word that they felt best described “what we stand for,” expressed in a way that reflected their own personality.
The celebration kicked off with fourteen celebratory banners unfurling in our atrium (one for each year we’ve made the “100 Best” list!), confetti, streamers and a fabulous champagne toast led by our Chairman and CEO Kip Tindell, our president Melissa Reiff and our Chairman Emeritus Garrett Boone! Then as a very special surprise, another banner unfurled with a message thanking our leadership for giving US something to stand for, featuring many of the “word” photos submitted by our employees. There were some misty eyes in the house for sure – happy tears – including Kip, Melissa and Garrett!
Then we REALLY got the party started! Each of our 10 game stations was named after a “What We Stand For” word – like “Balance” (our three-legged balloon pop race), “Green” (recycling bin toss), “Fun” (musical dairy crates), and “Matchless” (Memory card game). In addition, we partnered with local Dallas nonprofit organization Dwell with Dignity to complete a “spin art” project in which employees created beautiful, colorful circular art pieces to be placed in the new home of a family struggling with homelessness and poverty. All of our activities were such great ways to connect with each other and celebrate our unique workplace! Of course, there was fabulous food and drink to go with all of the fun!
Here’s what employees had to say about our ranking on the FORTUNE “100 Best” list and celebration:
