We are just as passionate about people as we are about pets! The hard work, dedication, and passion of our Store Leaders and associates propel PetSmart forward, and we are so lucky to have such incredible folks in our pack. Incredible folks like Amanda—a passionate and dedicated Store Leader in Missouri.
Store Leaders help lead the store and oversee all areas of store operations, and each of the department managers as well as partner with District Leaders, to build and execute new PetSmart initiatives. Amanda is approaching her seventh year of #LifeAtPetSmart and goes above and beyond to not only provide stellar service to customers and their pets but also to provide a great and supportive work environment for her team. We're so proud she is on the PetSmart doing Anything for Pets!
Check out just a few of the ways she brings PetSmart's values to life and smiles all around.
She went the distance to support a former associate at her Grooming Academy graduation at another store! 🥳
Meet Mia! Mia WAS one of my bathers. She worked at my store long enough to learn every single thing she needed to become a great groomer, and she was so excited to become one! We were about to send her to Academy when she had an unexpected issue occur with her housing situation. This caused her to have to move back home, 3.5 hours away from us, so we had to transfer her. 😔 We were all so sad when she had to go because she fit right in at our store! I told her new SL she was Academy ready and to take good care of her for me. He set up her assessment quickly after she transferred, and the day she passed it, some of the first texts she sent were to me and my salon leader because she was so excited. Then it hit me, I have never missed an Academy graduation for any of my bathers. But Mia wasn't technically my associate anymore.. she was actually in an entirely different district now. I took a chance and reached out to the DST for that district and explained the situation, and asked if I could secretly appear on graduation day to surprise her. The DST was phenomenal to work with and was excited to have me attend. She even kept me updated with pictures of dogs Mia was grooming at the Academy.
Today was finally the day! I left my house at 6:30 a.m. and hit the road. I came supplied with gift bags for the whole class, snacks, drinks, and of course, a gift for Mia. Every second of planning the last couple of months was worth it when I saw Mia's jaw drop when I walked in for her graduation. She excitedly exclaimed, "I told you guys the store leader at my last store was amazing!!" and that made me beam. So, even though Mia isn't technically "my associate" anymore... she is in my heart! I am so so proud of her and can't wait to see what she does as a groomer! Congratulations, Mia!
She always strives to keep improving! ✨
Excited to change my district captain role to "Charities/Life Saving Captain" this year! Animal Welfare has always been a huge part of my life, but starting with PetSmart, I realized I can actually make a huge impact in this area from my store alone. That passion took me all the way up to traveling with PetSmart Charities to an Animal Welfare conference held in my state last September, where I learned so much more about why Charities are such an important piece of the PetSmart Puzzle and why this impact shouldn't stop at my store. Now, my goal is to enhance knowledge, provide best practices, and provide overall support to my district for anything that falls under the Charities umbrella while also showing how impactful it is on the rest of the business... and most of all, SAVE LIVES!
An amazing team player = Amanda!
My leadership team is full of strong, independent, and extremely capable women! We run it all daily with no men, handle every issue, lift every bag, and support each other always. I am so proud of this team of ladies and all we have accomplished together, and we will only add more accomplishments to that list in 2023!
Shelby- The world's best Assistant. I couldn't function without her!
Sammi- The most organized, amazing Merchandising Leader I've ever had. She is always ready to help!
Abby- The once-in-a-lifetime Customer Engagement Leader. She loves pets and people and learning everything new that she can. She's ready to jump in wherever needed any time of the day!
Melody- My Salon Leader and the store momma bear. She is the most caring, kind, and hilarious woman in the world! In the past year, our salon went from tier B to tier D, and it's all because of her leadership!
Yesenia- The Associate Lead that is the jack of all trades! She will stock, cashier, work in pet care, help in the salon, and anywhere she's needed.. she tackles it with a smile on her face!
My job would not be as fun without these ladies, I appreciate them every single day!
And she's an All-Star!
Received my AE All-Star box in the mail today! Love it all! ⭐️
She helps to find the best partners for the store to work with so animals find a safe and loving home. ❤️
Did you know this week is Volunteer Appreciation Week?! There are so many volunteers from so many places that I appreciate so much, but these are the rescues I get to work with daily, and I can truly say they have the best staff and volunteers out there! I appreciate them and how much they do for our homeless pet population every single day!
She is always there to make her associates smile! 🌭
Jackson is one of my associates, and he is on the spectrum. He brings us so much joy every time he works, and one of his favorite things in the world is chili dogs. He once told me, "he probably eats about 50 a week." So, my leadership team decided this week we are going to have a chili dog day in honor of him, but we needed to plan ahead so that we had all the right ingredients for him. He didn't know why I asked this question a week ago but was excited to answer nonetheless! Hope you're having fun with your teams this week as well!
Amanda does Anything for Pets!
I am so excited to announce that PetSmart Charities awarded one of my shelter partners, Eden Animal Haven, a grant for $20,000! With this grant, they will be able to plan better for adoption event preparation and find more kitties' homes! I am so excited for them, and there is no one more deserving, as they are truly in it to save lives. Thank you, PetSmart Charities, for your amazing partnership to ensure our partners are well taken care of to make an even bigger difference in our community! #petsmart
So sweet!
These were located in our PetSmart Charities donation collection box, and I think that means some child wanted to help homeless pets so bad they gave up their Chuck E. Cheese tokens, and that's the sweetest thing on the planet. So, I'm needing someone from PetSmart Charities to confirm the value of these? Because I feel the amount does not exist. 😍❤️
Making friends for life at PetSmart. 🥰
When you work a lot, you have to figure out how to make it fun and always challenge yourself. A few years ago, I was in a spot where I was feeling pretty stagnant, so I created a LinkedIn profile to engage more with other people in my company and other companies. One of the first people from my company to reach out to me was Patrick.
We didn't know each other and were from totally different areas so we didn't have a lot to say to each other at first. But then I saw him talk on a call for the company about something I have always been really passionate about, Chance & Friends Donations. This was our connecting link to get us talking. I reached out to him after the call and told him he did an awesome job and our relationship grew from there. Patrick has been amazing to bounce ideas off of over the years, he's always shared best practices with me, given advice, etc. I have truly made a friend with him! BUT, we had never even met in person. He lived states away from me, so it wasn't easy to plan a meet up. Patrick got a very deserved promotion recently and he is on the move to Michigan! What city crossed his path on the way? Springfield, MO! He was able to stop and we had lunch and finally got to meet in person today and enjoy each other for real! If you ever get the pleasure of meeting or working with Patrick, he is a joy to have around, and a plethora of knowledge! Michigan is so lucky to have him! Glad this promotion made it to where our paths could finally cross!
And she's built meaningful connections with her loyal customers. 🥰
I have been at my store for 7 years now, starting as an Assistant Store Leader. Throughout the years, I've seen it all, good, bad, and a lot of 'normal day' stuff. Those days often include my regular customers. Like clockwork, they come in on the same day of the week or come in to get the exact same item. They know me by name, and I also know them by name.
About 6 years ago, one of these regulars, Jodi, started coming in. She's the nicest girl you'll ever meet. She has a HUGE heart for animals and has a bunch of different species of animals at home that she takes care of very well. She has brought in a lot of "firsts" for me. First Tegu? It was Jodi's! First Boa? Also, Jodi's! But Jodi's kindness and eagerness to introduce us to the new isn't where it stops. About 4 years ago, Jodi came in, and we were making random conversation. It was right around Easter. We got on the subject of Peeps. I LOVE Peeps. Jodi hates them. We laughed about it and agreed there is no in-between and this is clearly a controversial subject. 🤣
But then a few days after Easter, Jodi randomly shows up at my store, tells me she has a gift for me and hands me a GIANT bag of Peeps. Multiple packs. We laughed, but I honestly thought that was the sweetest thing ever for her to remember about "Amanda that works at PetSmart..".. fast forward to today when she surprised me with this. Jodi has brought me Peeps-related items every single year right after Easter since that conversation. For 4 years, she has never stopped shopping at my store and has thought about me after Easter. That is really cool to me. So, not only does PetSmart make me feel like I belong, but Jodi does too. Shout out to one of the best customers in all the land! ❤️
My store has partnered with a new Coffee Shop down the road in honor of National Adoption Week. I was able to get to the shop and get my "special cat latte" from them.. and look how CUTE! What a great image of our 2 worlds coming together to help homeless pets! love it!
Thank you for everything you do for pets, people, and everyone around you, Amanda! We are so lucky to have you in #LifeAtPetSmart.
