Auntie Anne’s is North America’s favorite soft pretzel shop, and for good reason! For over thirty years, Auntie Anne’s has served up mouth-watering pretzels, dips, and ice-cold drinks in shopping malls and food courts all over the country. With over 1,500 locations across North America, Auntie Anne’s has become the worldwide leader in soft pretzels.
Founded in 1988 in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Auntie Anne’s has since become a global phenomenon. Although it was originally a market stand outlet at the local Farmer’s Market, Auntie Anne’s quickly grew into a major success with their 100th store opening only four years later in Granite Run Mall in Media, Pennsylvania.
Shortly thereafter, Auntie Anne’s opened located around the world, including Europe and Southeast Asia. In recent years, Auntie Anne’s has enjoyed significantly worldwide publicity, including being featured in an episode of the reality TV show Food Court Wars.
Do you want to get in on the action and join the growing team at Auntie Anne’s? In this article, our experts take a look at the Auntie Anne’s application to provide you in-depth advice to help you land the Pretzel Perfect job.
All About Auntie Anne’s
From humble roots, Aunt Anne’s has made its mark on the food service industry. Beginning in late 1980s, Anne Beiler stated selling soft homemade pretzels locally in her hometown of Pennsylvania. Eventually, she picked up the nickname of “Auntie” Anne and her reputation took off.
With headquarters in Lancaster, Pennsylvania, Auntie Anne’s is now a publicly traded company which was acquired in 2010 by FOCUS Brands. As a division of Roark Capital, the President of Auntie Annie’s is William Dunn, who formerly served as the COO of the company prior to his promotion. This speaks to the sheer size of the Auntie Anne’s corporate environment.
Auntie Anne’s Mission
If you want a career at Auntie Anne’s, you need to know about the inner dynamics and corporate culture of the business. To do this, you should look no further than the official Auntie Anne’s mission statement: “Caring for other people is the purpose of Auntie Anne’s.”
Auntie Anne’s mission to care for their community and give back is reflected by the fact that “Auntie” Anne Beiler herself used her company’s profits to establish a free family counseling center in her hometown. Community-centered efforts such as these indicate that Auntie Anne’s is truly a company with a heart.
Auntie Anne’s Jobs
There are many jobs and careers available at Auntie Anne’s, from the essential customer service-oriented Crew Member jobs to more senior positions in their corporate offices. However, we most commonly find Crew Member jobs posted on their online web portal. For this reason, we will walk through the Auntie Anne’s application for the position of Crew Member.
Auntie Anne’s Crew Member Application
There is no position more essential than the role of Crew Member. This is because Crew Members have a hands-on role in all day to day operations on the floor, including greeting customers and serving food to them. Crew Members also have custodial roles as well as other basic customer service responsibilities.
To begin your journey to find employment at Auntie Anne’s, visit the Auntie Anne’s website and click the “Apply Here’ button under the “Work In Our Stores” heading. This button will take you to the Auntie Anne’s job portal.
The FOCUS Brands Job Portal
Before applying for the role of Crew Member, make sure that you have acquainted yourself with the FOCUS Brands job application portal. When you first apply for Auntie Anne’s jobs, you will need to navigate this portal to find opportunities near you.
Ensure that you enter your location in the drop-down menu, as well as the city nearest you. This will help the website’s algorithm eliminate jobs that are irrelevant or inaccessible to you. Automatically, this will take you to a list of local employment opportunities. Click whichever is most appealing to you.
The Essentials
If you are new to the industry or company, we recommend selecting the position of Crew Member. These are entry level jobs that provide comprehensive training and a full uniform for you upon hiring. Once you have selected the job for you, you will be taken to a web page that lists the following information:
- Company
- Position
- Department
- Req Number
- Date Posted
- Location
- Job Category
The information listed above will be found at the start of any Auntie Anne’s application online. This is essential information that is there to help you understand which job you are applying for, where the job is located, and how long the job has been posted for.
Under the Company tab, it should always read “Focus Brands – Auntie Anne’s” because FOCUS Brands is the parent company of Auntie Anne’s. For the Department tab, you should notice that it says “Restaurant Crew” if you are applying for the position of Crew Member.
The “Req Number” tab will provide a serial number that, in case you lose the ad listing, will help you locate the application. This is especially helpful if you intend to finish the Auntie Anne’s application over the course of several days.
Furthermore, the Date Posted tab will help you gauge how long the position has been open for. We recommend prioritizing applications for job posting that are new (between one and three weeks old). This way, you can be sure that your application will land among the top of the pile and that the position has not yet been filled.
Lastly, you will want to pay close attention to the Job Summary section. This section provides a one-paragraph synopsis of the position and all the attendant responsibilities contained therein. However, this paragraph is usually too brief to be helpful. Once you’ve read the Job Summary section, feel free to move on to the Essential Duties section.
Essential Duties
If you want to become a Crew Member at Auntie Anne’s, you must be prepared to take on several essential duties. This means they are essential. It is imperative, then, that you read each duty carefully and are fully prepared to exercise these duties if you are hired. The total sum of duties listed on the Auntie Anne’s application numbers 16, which include:
- Preparing dough and other foodstuffs for baked products
- Rolling and twisting dough for pretzels
- Shaping, molding, and dipping pretzels
- Drain and file pretzels and place them in roundup
- Prepare iced and chilled drinks and serve them
- Prepare specialty pretzels and custom orders
- Exhibit a friendly and courteous attitude always toward customers
- Operate cash registers and maintain account balances
- Set up supplies and utensils at opening of store
- Clean and put away utensils and tools upon closing
- Comply with all Health and Safety and OSHA standards and policies always
- Perform all above tasks in a safe and effective manner in accordance with Auntie Anne’s policies
- Perform other essential duties as directed by the Shift Manager on site
There are many responsibilities and duties that are placed on the shoulders of a Crew Member at Auntie Anne’s. However, the most critical aspect is to be able to greet and serve customers in a courteous and friendly manner during every customer-crew interaction. It is imperative that every customer walks away having had a good experience.
Aside from providing a top-notch customer experience, you will also need to be able to perform all duties safely and in an orderly manner. Unless you are willing to work in compliance with the law and the local regulations regarding health and safety, then you simply cannot work at an establishment like Auntie Anne’s.
Job Expectations and Qualifications
To work at Auntie Anne’s in a Crew Member capacity, you need to have several critical traits both informal and formal. Regarding the informal traits, you should have a positive attitude, a coachable spirit and a fun and easygoing personality. These are essential for ensuring that customers walk away having had a positive experience.
Secondly, it is expected that all employees at Auntie Anne’s are of the minimum age required by law. This age limit will vary by your state of residency. However, in most cases, 15 years of age is the absolute minimum allowed.
Lastly, Auntie Anne’s application asks that all applicants can test their products by taste, smell, and color. Other physical requirements are that employees must be able to lift to 50 pounds and occasionally work with agility and be able to stand for extended periods of time.
Landing the Job
If you can confidently assert that you are able to exceed the various expectations of a Crew Member, and you can prove that you are well-qualified then you are likely to land the job. We recommend specifically tailoring your cover letter so that it proves that you have what it takes to land this physically and technically demanding job.