Essential U Blog

Business and Family Friendly

t Essential Wholesale, we value our employees. Each one is like a member of our family -- well, each one really is a member of our family. To celebrate the contribution our employees make to our success, we provide a complete and generous compensation package. Like any good relatives, we are always on the lookout for new ideas and innovative ways to take care of our family members.

Our current program includes a variety of standard benefits along with some untraditional ones. Some of our more traditional benefits include:

• 401 (k) Savings Plan with Company Match
• Bereavement Leave
• Maternity & Paternity Leave
• Educational Financial Assistance
• Medical, Dental, Vision, Alternative Care Insurance
• PTO (Paid Time Off) (2 - 5 weeks per year)
• Paid Holidays
• Cafeteria Plan (Think AFLAC)
• Employee Discounts on most EW Products

Some of more progressive benefits we offer include:

• Tri-Met Bus Passes
• Certified Childcare Reimbursement
• Bike Riding Reimbursement
• Various Business Training Courses
• Company Savings Plan
• Pizza Parties and Company Lunches
• Massage Therapy (related to approved overtime)
• Quarterly Family Fun Events (Examples: Portland to Coast Relay Race, Bowling Party, Christmas Party, etc.)
• Sabbatical (a 3-week paid sabbatical for every 7 years of full-time employment to include a $3,000 credit toward any expenses planned during the sabbatical)
• Company Gym
• Break Room with cable TV, Wii Fit, X-Box 360 & PS3
• Summer Every Friday Company Bar-B-Q
• Spur of the moment company wide Cin-a-meeting (translation: occasional two hour break for company sponsored trip to the movies)
• NEW! Employee of the Month with a special parking space, public praise, lunch with the owners and a cash bonus.

We are always looking for new and innovative ideas. Do you have any ideas you can share with us?

Hard to Find Good Help, Huh?

Who Needs Good Help When You Can Have An Awesome Team?!!

e were so surprised yesterday when we were handed these flowers and a Thank You card from all of our employees. I’ve said it before and I have to say it again -- Essential Wholesale has the best employees in the world. Our employees show that they care about our customers, our company, each other and Dennis and I everyday in a dozen ways. They say, “it is hard to find good help these days,” but we have more than good help. At Essential Wholesale, we have an awesome team. And that beats good help anytime!!

         

Prior to starting my own business, in all my years of being employed by someone else, I never thought to thank my employers. It is a joy to come to work beside people who honestly care about what they do and how they do it. We constantly get compliments from our customers about how wonderful our front line people are. We get emails and calls all the time praising Laura, Brooksie, Jasmine, Mel, Maria, Lisa and Alex because they all deal with customers. Behind the scenes, we are blessed with people who give their all to serve you.

Employment Opportunities at Essential Wholesale

simply love my employees. They are the electricity that keeps the Essential Wholesale machine running. I still have several amazing employees left to spotlight and share with you in the coming months. We also have many opening at Essential Wholesale for new employees. I look forward to highlighting them as well.

      

In the meantime I thought I would use this incredible network of people in my world to spread the word that we are hiring. Our open positions include: Associate R&D Formulator (with previous cosmetic experience), two Compounders (we will train) and an Operations Manager.

If you or someone you know wants to be a part of a growing cosmetic company send your resume in to us using the contact page at our website. Our growth and expansion requires some more employee power added to Essential Wholesale.

Successful Teamwork on Portland to Coast Relay

hey say that teamwork makes the dream work. I agree. When we set out to walk the Portland to Coast Relay Race, we had simple goals. We wanted to successfully finish the race without anyone getting sick or hurt along the way and to have fun together while raising money for the American Cancer Society. We accomplished those goals and so much more. My hidden agenda was to get people really excited about exercising.

We haven’t even been back a week yet and our company exercise room in getting better use and everyone is excited to get ready for next year. Several teammates have found new races for us to take part in over the next year. And people who did not race this year have signed up for next year. The fitness bug has caught on and we are passing it around. The Portland to Coast & Hood to Coast event raised over $290,000 for the American Cancer Society.

I asked my teammates to share their thoughts about the Portland to Coast. Enjoy their comments along with photos from race day.

Preparing For the Portland to Coast Relay

he time has come for the Certified OrgaNUTs to hit the road. This Friday morning at 4:00AM, the first leg of the Essential Wholesale Portland to Coast Relay team will gather and head toward the starting line to begin our journey on foot as a team to Seaside, Oregon. We are excited for the adventure ahead and our sole goal is to successfully finish the race as a team.

        

Our original team of eight grew and morphed into a team of twelve in the last few months. We have left a lot of sweat along the roads around Essential Wholesale in our effort to prepare our team. For the past few weeks we have gathered on Thursdays to walk 5 miles together along a hilly path. We've so enjoyed our Thursday walks that we are considering keeping them up even after the race and inviting anyone who wants to join along. 

Someone is Expecting at Essential Wholesale

t Essential Wholesale we are a family. We are proud to announce the pending expansion of our family in December when Alex and Laura have their first child. We are so excited that our offices will be filled with the sweet sounds of a new baby. Last week we learned that they are expecting a baby boy and they will name him Cooper Craig Badcock. As you can imagine with that last name they had to think long and hard to find the appropriate name.

                   

Laura and Alex are amazing people and we look forward to witnessing their transformation from a young married couple to dedicated parents. We have had the pleasure of being part of their lives through many phases as they met, fell in love, married and now are becoming parents. As we head into our busiest season of the year I know time will fly so fast and little Cooper will be here before we know it. 

Leave your comments for Laura and Alex below. 

Are You Braver Than a 5th Grader?

Tatiana of Devine Lips Is Setting and Reaching Goals

've personally known Tatiana Wells for several years. She is a bright, precocious and outgoing young lady. She attends the same school as my daughters and I can always count on a big hug from her every morning. Tatiana knows what she wants and she isn’t afraid to go after it.

       

I wasn’t surprised at all when Tat pulled me aside in the school hallway one morning and seriously declared, “Ms. Kayla I have a dream and an idea to share with you!” She went on to tell me about the business she wanted to start.

Interview With the Organic Beauty Expert

I love working with cool, hip beauty people. When I come across one that I think is a standout person that you should know, I just have to tell you about it. Andrea Kane, also known as the Organic Beauty Expert, is a cool, hip beauty chick.  She has a unique perspective on all things beauty. One look at her blog and you'll see why.

Andrea took some time from her busy day chasing two children and reviewing all the beauty products in the universe to tell me a little about herself and her philosophy.

An Interview With The Packaging Diva

At the 2008 National Soap Conference, I had an opportunity to meet so many great people. I sat on an expert panel with JoAnn Hines, the Packaging Diva, and thought that her company was a great resource to my customers. I found her so interesting that I even started following her on Twitter.

It doesn’t matter how great your product is, it won’t sell if you don’t have the right packaging. We found that out the hard way when we had a retail line and spa. The focus of JoAnn’s entire business is on using the right packaging for your product. I needed to share this great treasure of a company that I found with you so I did a quick interview with her.

My Favorite Employee

don't normally play favorites around here. With so many fantastic people to work with, how could I? But in all honesty, I have to make one exception for none other than my husband Dennis. Our ten-year wedding anniversary is this week and I think I must be the happiest woman alive. Here is a picture of me and my man on our wedding day.

       

Without Dennis, I would be still making stuff in my kitchen for friends and family, and I wouldn’t be in business at all. Dennis’ energy, ideas, drive and spirit are contagious and are the fuel of Essential Wholesale.