The people’s reaction made Gray smile. The excitement on their faces reminded him exactly why he wanted to do things right. He wanted to build something that people could actually feel proud of being part of.
"Alright," After a while, Gray clapped his hands together with a playful grin on his face. "You can enjoy the room later when everything’s set up. For now, let’s keep moving. We still have a few more areas to see."
Everyone quickly straightened up again and became serious.
"Yes, Sir!" they replied in unison before following Gray and the others back into the hallway.
They moved next to the stockroom. It was a large space behind the break area. When they opened the lights, rows of wide shelves and organized crates greeted them. Everything smelled faintly of wood and new packaging materials.
It was the only area in the entire store that was thoroughly cleaned, as it was now used to store food and other items.
"This is the stockroom," Gray muttered to them. "You should know that every delivery that comes in will be placed here first. It’s important to keep everything organized. Always label what comes in and out so nothing gets lost or spoiled."
Mara stepped forward with her clipboard quickly after that.
"We’ll assign a few of you here to help with inventory and checking deliveries. It’s one of the more tiring sections, but also one of the most important. So we’ll need people who are patient and detail-oriented."
A few employees raised their hands immediately, volunteering to be part of it.
"A few of you are volunteering," Mara said with a small approving smile. "We’ll take note of that."
Gray also nodded as he looked over the eager faces gathered around.
"Alright. That’ll be your main assignment for the coming days," he said. "Now that the deliveries have already arrived, this place will be your second home for the next few days. You would have to sort, label, and store everything properly."
He gestured around the stockroom. The side of the stockroom were already lined with boxes of varying sizes. Some were marked with supplier logos while others were still sealed and waiting to be unpacked.
There were still a lot of supply deliveries they’re expecting for the next days, so it’s important that they sort these things out first.
"As I said, that’ll be your main work for the next few days, but for today, we’ll focus on getting the whole place in order."
The people nodded in acknowledgment after.
"Here’s how we’ll divide it," Gray continued. "Some of you will help out in front. You will wipe down shelves, clean the aisles, and make sure the display areas are spotless. A few of you," he said, looking at the earlier volunteers, "will stay here in the stockroom to unpack the boxes, label everything, and group items based on category and expiration date."
"The rest will organize the staff room. That means setting up the lockers, arranging supplies, and making sure the break area is comfortable for everyone. Don’t worry too much about perfection today, we’ll adjust things as we go." Mara added too.
The employees quickly nodded in understanding. They immediately started preparing themselves to work. The employees began grouping themselves by their own as everyone discussed where they wanted to be assigned.
Most of the men volunteered to stay in the stockroom. They knew it would be full heavy work such as lifting boxes, unpacking deliveries, and organizing shelves.
"Let’s handle this part," one of them said confidently, patting a crate near his feet. "We’ll get these sorted out in no time."
"Yeah," another added with a grin, "might as well get the hard work out of the way early."
Mara smiled slightly as she wrote down their names on her clipboard. "That’s the spirit," she said.
Meanwhile, most of the women gathered at the front area, preparing for the cleaning. Some tied their hair up, while others rolled up their sleeves. A few of the older age employees were also assigned here since there’s less hard labor, and they also take a rest in between.
"We have to start with the shelves," one of the older staff members said kindly as she was already a professional when it came to cleaning after years of experience. "Then we’ll move to the counters and floors."
The others immediately agreed to her.
When Mara heard them talking on the side, she smiled and said, "If you need rags or cleaning supplies, they’re already stacked by the entrance."
"Yes, Ma’am!" They quickly move away after that.
Gray watched as the group began moving into motion; their earlier nervousness was now replaced by a sense of teamwork. The sound of chatter and laughter soon filled the air as they worked out who would go where.
At the same time, the rest, who were not assigned to the stock room and cleaning, moved to the staff room. It was a mixed group, a combination of men and women. They knew that they would need both genders because their work would mostly be about setting up furniture and cleaning.
"Let’s move the tables first," one of the men said as they entered the staff room. "It’ll make space for the lockers."
"Yeah, good idea," a woman replied. "We’ll get the cleaning supplies first and follow right after."
Just like that, everyone had their own work.
While they were working, Gray and the others just stayed. They would sometimes go around to look and check on things. Sometimes, maybe offer some help.
"Looks like they’ve got it under control already." Joel approached Gray from the side, crossing his arms with a grin.
Gray chuckled softly. "Yeah," he said. "They’re doing better than I expected."
"The employees are quite nice," Mara added too, "You can tell they’re excited to be here."
Joel, who had been standing beside him with his arms crossed, smiled knowingly. "Well, that’s because the boss set the tone early," he jokingly wiggled his brows.
The three of them laughed because of it.