Story ingredients: Career Opportunity, Belonging, Passion for D&I.

“When I left uni, I wanted to work in a space where I felt I belonged. From the first interview with Fresh Direct, I could feel how open and inclusive the culture was. I’ve been an operations administrator here for two years, focusing on making sure our customers get their food. But I’m changing role soon, to become an HR assistant. I’m a people person and I like being involved in positive change, so it’s definitely the right step.

As D&I ambassador, I create a safe space for people to talk about diversity and inclusivity issues. I make sure everyone feels welcome and that their voice is heard. For example, I ran a successful group discussion about hidden disabilities. That went well. It raised a lot of awareness and got some good conversations going. Inclusion is something I’m passionate about, so getting this role was a big moment for me.

I’ve always found lots of opportunities for growth with Fresh Direct. The management aim to develop people and understand their strengths and ambitions. My career is a good example of this.”

Story ingredients: Career Development, Personal Growth, A Brilliant Team

“I joined as a warehouse operative for two months, to make some money for a holiday. Ten years later, I’m still here! My role has changed a lot over this time. I’ve been a picker, a checker, a team leader and a health and safety coordinator. Now I am a Team Manager for Fresh Direct.

My job is to look after everything and everybody on the shift. I take care of operational things and make sure the team is ok. We look after customers and deliveries too, of course. My team are great. We communicate and smile a lot and help each other out. I want them all to feel good about coming to work. 

When I started, I was quite shy. But being in contact with all the different people and cultures here has made me open up so much. I’ve progressed so much in my role too. If you work hard here, the business will see what you can do and they give you opportunities. They’ll give you the support and training you need.  I’m proud of how much I’ve grown. And I’m not stopping.” 

Story ingredients: Supporting His Team, Great People, Pride.

“I joined Brakes 15 years ago, as a driver. I didn’t have any experience at the time, but Brakes are great at taking on people and training them up. A few years later, I became a Team Support Driver and then moved into the training team. I loved helping to train and assess new drivers.

In my current role, I look after our drivers – sorting out any issues and making sure they’ve got everything they need at the start and end of their route. We know how to support our drivers because 95% of our team have done the job. We understand how they feel and we know how to help. I love that every day is different. I come in at the start of my shift and have no idea what the day’s going to bring.

I’ve been here a long time and it’s the people that keep me here. No matter what the challenge is, we all pull together to sort it out. The thing that makes me most proud is seeing young men or women come in with no experience and becoming really good at what they do.”

Story ingredients: Friendly People, Tasty Benefits, Surprising Herself.

“I’ve been at Brakes almost three years. I’d not done this kind of work before and I wasn’t sure how I’d find working in the cold. But actually, the temperature isn’t bad at all. This job ticks all the boxes for me. It’s perfect.

It’s a friendly environment. Even walking through the car park in the morning, everyone says hello and stops for a chat. We’re all on different teams but we work together really well. It doesn’t matter how old you are or where you’re from – we stick together to get the job done. And if there’s ever someone struggling, people will step in to help.

The training is excellent. I’ve been trained in lots of things I never thought I could do. I can do loads of different jobs in the warehouse now, like driving a forklift.

I have to mention the benefits because they’re really good. I love my colleague discount the most. You can order food in bulk and save so much on your food bills.”

Story ingredients: Professional Development, A Caring Culture, Coffee!

“I’ve always loved driving. When I applied to Brakes, I had only recently got my Class 2 licence so I had no experience. Since joining, I’ve been trained up to Class 1, which is a proud achievement for me. 

When I started, the induction was excellent. I got lots of information and support, and everyone was happy to answer my questions. Brakes are always giving you training, to make sure everything’s going to be ok. My manager’s always saying ‘drive safe, come back safe.’ It’s the most important thing here.

I deliver to other depots and big clients like football stadiums and conference centres. I really enjoy my route. My regular customers like to chat and they offer me a coffee or a sandwich.

There are so many reasons to join us. The pay and holidays are really good and everyone’s friendly and helpful. You get big discounts on food too. I really do have no complaints.”

Story ingredients: Delicious Training, Amazing Teamwork, Real Inclusion.

“When I started, I’d never driven Class 2 lorries before. I was nervous, but they were great. An experienced driver spent plenty of time with me, telling me what to be aware of and how to do things. He was amazing. When I did the run by myself for the first time, I had that confidence.

Once a year, we get trained in things like manoeuvring, manual handling, and health and safety. On top of this, you can always ask for extra training on something you’re not sure about. They’ll always help.

My team are brilliant. We all look after each other and help out whenever we can. The managers give you as much help and support as you need. You can always talk to them. That‘s what the culture’s like here. It’s inclusive. It doesn’t matter what race, gender or sexuality you are – everyone gets treated fairly.

I’ve been here five years now and I still really enjoy my job. I like the people and I enjoy my run. I know my regular customers well, so when you’re on your own in the lorry, it’s nice to have a bit of a laugh with them when you’re doing a drop.”

Story ingredients: Award-Winning Teamwork, Wellbeing, Amazing Colleagues.

“I look after the manufacturing operation at our KFF warehouse, where we make our own sandwich fillings. It’s my job to sort out any problems and keep everything running across the day and night shifts. I lead 74 people across four units and I honestly couldn’t ask for a better team. I’m surrounded by dedicated and experienced people. We’re focused on teamwork and we pull together really well.

My proudest moment came a few months after I started at KFF. We were going through a British Retail Consortium storage and distribution audit. It was two months of hard work but everyone chipped in and we ended up getting an AA rating. That’s the best one! While I won a recognition award for that, I was more proud of the way the team made it happen. it was wonderful to see the happiness on everyone’s faces when our rating was announced.

The culture here is friendly and informal. Wellbeing is supported in lots of ways, from the flexibility we get and the mental health first aiders to the open-door communication and the benefits package. KFF looks after its people.”