Second Career:

Service with a Smile from a Former Lunch Lady
Beverly Zahrndt, café lead
Elizabethtown, Kentucky

In 2006, the booksellers of the Elizabethtown, KY, store voted Beverly Zahrndt their “Most Valuable Bookseller.”  When it was time to vote in 2007, Beverly campaigned against herself so someone else could win.  “That’s the kind of person Beverly is,” says Store Manager Mary Jo Johnson.  “And, that’s why our booksellers and customers love her.”

Beverly wasn’t always a bookseller — in 2003, she left a position as a school “lunch lady” to help take care of a newborn grandchild.  While she found that role rewarding, she wanted to work again.  In 2004, she started her career as a part-time café server.  “Barnes & Noble was the perfect fit for me,” says Beverly, who loves it when customers share events from their personal lives with her — weddings, births, new jobs, etc.  “The fact that they consider me a friend as well as their server is special,” adds Beverly.

Through the years, Beverly has seen a lot of excitement in the café.  From the time the store manager made a shaken tea and the lid came off — splashing tea all over the café, to a spat between a husband and wife, with the wife dumping an entire Venti Frappuccino over her husband’s head and storming out.  “The café is the best place to work because it’s so fast paced,” she says.  “The time flies by.  And, every customer is different, so every drink is different.”

Since Barnes & Noble is a cherished destination for students of all ages, Beverly often sees her former students from when she was the lunch lady.  She enjoys catching up with them and discovering where they have gone to college, and they often tell her, “The food wasn’t as good after you left.”

In 2005, Beverly earned a promotion to café lead.  Beverly credits her success to total backing by her managers, terrific training by the café manager, and absolutely the best co-workers in the company.  She feels our core service principles are important because they provide the foundation to give each person the best customer service possible and to ensure they have a good experience and will return.

“When a customer says to me, ‘Every time I come to the café and see you here, I know I will get a great product and a smile because you really seem to care,’ that means a lot to me,” says Beverly.  “Because I do.”