Tweet Pin It

Things have been buzzing over at the Shops at Flint Creek in Barrington where Heinen’s Fine Foods plans to open it’s eighteenth grocery store this August. The 82-year-old, family-owned company has 17 stores in and around Cleveland, but the Barrington location is their first venture outside Northeast Ohio. Construction at the new store is well underway and, for the first time today, Heinen’s is announcing details about their plans to hire up to 110 people locally.

I spoke with Heinen’s HR Director, Judy Galant this afternoon who shared their recruitment timeline. The online application process officially begins next Tuesday, April 10th…

They’ll be reviewing applications received via the company’s website through the end of April and plan to set up interviews in Barrington for the weeks of May 16th and May 23rd. They’d like to have many of the positions filled by July first and start the training process right away so the new employees are in place and prepared for the store’s opening on August 22nd. “The most important thing really to us is to have associates who are passionate about food and are willing to deliver wonderful customer service. We can teach the rest.”

Heinen’s is offering many full and part time job opportunities in Barrington, including support staff and management positions in departments like Produce, Grocery, Bakery, Seafood, Deli, Wine, Dairy and Freezer, for example. But Judy Galant says company interviewers will be paying close attention to people skills when considering who is most qualified. “If candidates have experience from those departments from previous jobs, that’s great. But if they just love to serve customers and have a great attitude, that’s really what we’re looking for.” That philosophy fits with what Jeff Heinen told me when we spoke last fall about the new store in Barrington. Jeff owns and runs the company with his brother, Tom Heinen, and says they see their workers in a different way than many big grocers who look at their employee base as a cost to be minimized.

“You’re only going to deliver the level of service that creates highly satisfied customers if you have highly satisfied employees. That’s the cornerstone of what makes us different.”

The new store will occupy the entire 33,000 square foot building space on the south side of the Shops at Flint Creek at 500 N. Hough Street in Barrington. They’re moving into the space where Staples office supply used to be, but they’re adding an additional 4,000 to 5,000 square feet at the rear of the site to make room for more storage space. The new Heinen’s employees in Barrington will join the company’s workforce of about 2,500 people.

To apply for a job at Heinen’s, applications will be available on the company’s website, starting next Tuesday, at Heinens.com. Please note that the Barrington jobs won’t be posted until next Tuesday.  If you want to check out the site in the meantime, all you have to do is visit Heinens.com and click on the Career Opportunities link which you’ll also find by clicking HERE.  Just follow the directions to complete your application and keep in mind that Judy Galant says you must apply online to be considered for an interview. You’ll also learn more about the company on their Facebook page at Facebook.com/Heinens, you’ll find our September post about Heinen’s move to Barrington by clicking HERE and you’ll see the Heinen brothers share their story in this video outlining a brief history of the family business.