In the limelight: our Precious

When did you start at innocent??

June, 2019.?

What was your first role here??

A Logistics Planner within the Central Supply Chain Team.?

If you had to explain what you do to a 10-year old, what would you say? Asking for a friend.?

Ha ha, I regularly say to friends that I move juice around as a job.?

What roles or experience have you done since and what is your current role??

I started off partnering with our internal customer teams to make sure we have drinks on shelves but also support with more fun stuff like when we run the Big Knit campaign. I’d also work to make sure we found a good home for whatever excess we had at the warehouse, which became even more rewarding in 2020 when we could use this to offer so much support, in our own little way.??

There’s some cash behind those bottles, and it was part of my role to make sure that all our operational and inventory numbers make sense from a finance perspective, even helping design our shiny new finance systems operate.?

I’ve condensed all of my experience into my current role as innocent's Ireland Operations Manager.?I took all the customer, operations and finance experience to advise on projects around exploring new markets for innocent, and managed the project team that came together to make sure that innocent could continue to operate in a post-Brexit environment.?

When you were little, what did you want to be when you grow up??

Well for the longest time, I thought it’d be really cool to be Eliza Thornberry. I’m not sure what job role you’d call that though.??

What’s been your innocent career highlight??

At innocent, we have many different ways of celebrating people and achievements, one of which is by presenting them with a golden smoothie bottle. In 2022, I won the UK+ award and was presented with a golden bottle of my own. Two years on, I can comfortably say that this was a career highlight, and I’m so grateful to my colleagues for nominating me.?

What’s the best thing you’ve learnt whilst working here??

Go for it!!! Everyone is so supportive here, and it’s a great place for establishing that psychological safety that allows you to stretch yourself. So, try that thing that looks scary, raise your hand up when you don’t know, and ask for help. You’ll be blown away by how people are more than happy to lend their time to help you out.?

Thinking about your career with innocent, what’s something you’re most proud of??

So my current role is the Ireland Supply and Operations Manager, and part of this role was setting up a route to market (figuring out how we get our products to customers) specific to innocent Ireland, where one didn’t exist before. It’s definitely an area of pride creating something that will now become part of the innocent legacy, and we’ve done so much since we set up shop. For instance, in February, we went live with the bottle deposit return scheme in Ireland. A new initiative in Ireland to help us reduce waste.?

What’s your favourite thing about working here??

We talk about being natural as one of our values and behaviours, it’s even on a giant strawberry hanging on the office wall. So back in 2019, my interview invite said to “come as you are”, and at the time I wasn’t sure whether to believe it or not, but I remember sitting at reception waiting for my interviewer, and someone walked down in shorts and socks to grab a drink from the fridge, and I instantly knew I was going to be ok. (they were wearing a top as well obviously).?

Are there any affinity groups, clubs, schemes, or any other ongoing activities you’re a part of??

Do you know, my very first lunch on my very first day was at innocent’s monthly cheese club so I guess technically you could say I’m a member. I’ve also joined our badminton club, which is about the only sport I’m over 50% confident I won’t embarrass myself in, and proud member of both our Proud Bunch and Beam affinity groups.?

How did you end up moving to Ireland for the new role??

So a role came up internally for an Ireland Operations Manager. I definitely looked at the requirements to make sure it was the right fit for me, but, I think I saw that it was based in Dublin, and I definitely thought about that meme from The Hobbit where Bilbo runs out the door with a backpack screaming “I’m going on an adventure”. I’d never been to Ireland before, and it sounded exciting.?

Hats off Precious, we'd love to see Bilbo try his hand in supply chain. What was it like moving to Dublin, and what’s the best bit of advice you’d give someone who’s moving for a new job??

Lean on your new team, they'll know the area best and will have tonnes of handy tips on where to find a place. The actual move to Dublin took slightly longer than I anticipated, turns out Dublin is a really popular city and I wasn’t the only one who thought it’d be really cool to move here. With that in mind, my best bit of advice would be to be patient and find somewhere close to the Luas lines because the buses are notoriously temperamental. Though if you’re an avid cyclist (clearly not me) you’ll find you’re in good company too.?

If you were a piece of stationary, what would you be??

I don’t know that I’ve ever thought about this question in my life, but, maybe that cheery?Microsoft paper clip from back in the day.?

Favourite part of Fruit Spire (our Dublin office) and top tip for working there??

It’s corny, but it genuinely is the people, they’re such a great team. I’ll swap top tips for useless trivia. Did you know Dublin is the birthplace of the cheese and onion-flavoured crisp? Exciting I know, now go forth and impress all of your Irish friends, and dinner party guests.?

Might be an idea for a future smoothie. Last question. What's one bit of advice you'd give little Precious??

It’s ok to be a little quirky, you’ll figure it out.?

Ta very much, Precious.

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