Store Associate - Local Market & Grocery

Laughing Buddha Nursery is seeking a Store Associate for their local grocery store in Metairie, LA. Responsibilities include managing store operations, receiving deliveries, updating inventory, assisting customers, and maintaining cleanliness. Ideal candidates are self-starters with strong communication skills and attention to detail. The position requires a valid driver's license, proficiency in MS Word and Excel, basic math skills, and the ability to lift up to 50 pounds.
Laughing Buddha Nursery is a farmer-owned local grocery store in the Pontchartrain Shores neighborhood of Metairie. In addition to our brick and mortar location, we offer farm hub pick ups in seven neighborhoods around New Orleans and two on the Northshore.

Our mission is to:
• Help people eat well by sourcing food from local, sustainable farms.
• Supply people with the knowledge and tools to be successful in their gardening pursuits.
We also operate a regenerative farm, Local Cooling Farms, where we rotate laying hens, hogs, cattle and goats on pasture and in the woods to produce pastured eggs, woodland pork and grass-finished beef and goat meat.

Just as much as we believe in a biologically diverse ecosystem, we also believe in a robust economic ecosystem, where small farms can work together to feed the communities in their food shed.

Since our founding in 2003 as an organic gardening store, we've evolved into a market offering products raised on our own farm, alongside as many other locally grown and/or produced items as possible. We source with intention to provide a wide variety of the best local foods for our customers.

Our Values:
• Supporting Fellow Farm Businesses
• Organic & Regenerative Farming Methods
• Transparency & Integrity in Sourcing & Farming Practices
• Minimizing Food Waste
• Low Waste Packing & Recycling

Our business' roots are in organic gardening supplies and today we still carry an array of products for vegetable gardening needs.

Position Description: Our Store Associates run our retail store from start to finish each day – from opening the cash drawer, receiving deliveries from farmers and producers and properly putting away those products in fridges and freezers, adding inventory to our online storefront, packing customer orders, sending invoices, helping and ringing up customers who are shopping or picking up their orders, updating store signage, answering the phone, packing orders for delivery hubs and home deliveries, taking photos for social media posts and our website, completing regular cleaning and organizing and closing the cash drawer for the day.

We are seeking an individual who is genuinely interested in our work and who in many ways is a self starter. We have a small and collaborative team, where we pride ourselves on working together, communicating effectively and having each other’s backs. The owner and manager works closely with and alongside the team.

This is a position for implementers versus visionaries. We are always open to incorporating new ideas and yet, we have a good system currently in place and someone who wants to create and forge new things may not be as fulfilled in the position.

Our Point of Sale and ordering system requires close attention to detail and nuance as we carry upwards of 400 products at a time and there is no bar code scanner, as the vast majority of our products do not have one!

Skill set requirements for position:
• Possess a valid driver’s license and have reliable transportation.
• Proficient in both oral and written communications.
• Proficient in MS Word and MS Excel.
• Proficient in basic math to count a cash drawer and make appropriate change for customers.
• Able to become familiar with Point of Sale software/online ordering platform.
• Ability to lift up to 50 pounds and able to carry 15-20 pounds repeatedly.
• Ability to be on one’s feet most of the day. Staff have reported averaging 6,000-10,000 steps per day.
• Some knowledge or willingness to learn about gardening including plant health, quality issues, disease and pests of vegetables and herbs, in particular.
• Basic knowledge and/or willingness to learn the basics of cooking, particularly with our meat and eggs, in order to make recommendations to customers. **If you are a strict vegan or vegetarian, working at a store that sells a lot of meat is likely not the right fit for you.
• Ability to operate in an environment that can be stressful and fast-paced or slow and also potentially boring, and able to find projects to work on in slow times.
• Able to represent the company in a courteous and professional manner.
• Good organizational skills and ability to multi-task, adapt, be flexible and problem solve.
Duties include (store associate role, current need):
• Showing up on time to open the store and/or meet delivery drivers. As typically there is just one person scheduled for each opening shift, this is critical.
• Managing LBN day-to-day operations during shift, including opening store and cash drawer, answering the phone, and closing cash drawer and store.
• Downloading pre orders for the day from the online software platform, accurately packing orders in an organized manner and ensuring invoices totals are correct.
• Loading cubic foot bags of garden soil into customers’ vehicles.
• Greeting, assisting, checking out customers and even helping bring items to their vehicles.
• Tidying and light cleaning of shelves/sweeping of floor.
• Contributing photos and suggested content for LBN social media accounts and email newsletters.
• Identifying tasks and projects not specifically assigned in down time. This is not a place where we encourage bringing a book and babysitting the store. We pay you to be working and expect you to work during your entire shift.
Duties could include (hub associate – potential to add hub/delivery duties in the future):
• Working in collaboration with other store staff to download hub and home delivery orders and pack them in an organized and accurate manner.
• Plotting home delivery addresses and determining the ideal time to leave the shop for deliveries and hub.
• Making home deliveries to customer’s houses before or after hub (time frame is set depending on time of hub). Dropping off orders and documenting delivery via photos and text messages to customers.
• Driving to delivery hub location, unpacking vehicle, setting up to distribute orders ahead of hub start time.
• Communicating and managing the relationship with hub host location staff.
• Accurately distributing hub orders to customers, taking cash, check or credit card payments or ensuring credit card payments have been made online in advance.
• Answering hub customer questions, making right any mistakes.
• Reaching out to customers to make sure they show up on time to pick up their orders. Troubleshooting issues if a customer cannot make it to pick up.
• Packing up empty coolers and supplies to return to the shop.
• Assisting with direct, personal customer outreach (via text or email) to drum up hub orders.
Shifts/Hours: We are open Tuesday-Saturday, 10 am - 6 pm. Opening shifts begin at 9.

In the short term, we are looking for someone who can work 11-6 on Tuesdays and either open or close on Wednesdays and Thursdays. Filling in on some Friday or Saturday shifts occasionally would be helpful, as well. Long term, an interest in being trained to staff farm hubs and make home deliveries (Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday evenings, plus alternating Friday or Saturday mornings) is also a plus!

To Apply: Complete the application via Google Forms. Then email Kate@LaughingBuddhaNursery.com with a resume and three professional references.