If you’re a regular customer at the Collingwood McDonald’s on First Street, you might recognize Carly Bartoletti’s smiling face.
For this week’s edition of People of Collingwood we spoke with Bartoletti, 27, Collingwood McDonald’s manager.
Q: For how long have you lived in the Collingwood area?
A: I was born at Collingwood General and Marine Hospital. So all 27 of my years.
Q: Where did you go to school growing up?
A: I went to Jean Vanier, but it’s Our Lady of the Bay now.
Q: What is your job, and can you tell me a little bit about it?
A: I’m the people department manager at the Collingwood McDonald’s. I just got promoted to be the people market lead for both Wasaga Beach and Collingwood locations.
I started off as crew and worked my way up. I’ve been with McDonald’s for nine years.
Q: What are some things you really like about your job, and what are some things about your job that are really challenging?
A: A big part of my job is getting training done for new staff, and ongoing training for current staff. I like being the person people can come to. I love my team. We all support each other. I wouldn’t be who I am today without my mentors here. I love coming in to work everyday.
Q: Do you have regular guests?
A: Our regulars are definitely what drives us. We look forward to (seeing them). There are people who come in everyday in the mornings for coffee. My colleague, Carol, knows everybody’s name. Having that connection with them is absolutely amazing.
We’re a spot they look forward to in their day. It’s a routine for some people. Every Friday night, there are some families that come in, and that’s their routine.
Q: McDonald’s has been open throughout the entire pandemic, although with different rules, policies and procedures depending on the current health advice on any given day. What has that experience been like?
A: When we’ve had to open and close the lobby, it’s been hard because we don’t get to see the regulars.
It’s hard for us, and it’s hard for them.
When we re-opened after the first shut down, I decorated the lobby and the tills with “Welcome Back!” signs and put up balloons. For some, it was like coming home again because they saw their friends here all the time.
McDonald’s gives us all the information we need for policies and procedures, so we really just need to relay that information to our crew.
We’ve been really fortunate that we haven’t had any major incidents of people refusing to wear masks or sit down without a vaccine certificate. Our guests are amazing.
It can be hard on the mental health of some of our kids on the crew. They’ve been in and out of school and doing online schooling. It was hard on them. I think we got a lot of support.
The owner gave all the crew and their families free meals on Fridays, to say thank you. That went on for months.
The labour shortage did take a bit of a toll on us. Part of my job is interviewing and hiring.
There was a time when our lobby was closed at 8. It normally closed at 10 p.m.
I hired about 20 new staff, and now we’re good to go.
Q: Outside of work, how else do you like to spend your time?
A: I like hanging out with my family. I have a four-year-old daughter.
I also like crafting. I own a Cricut so I make a lot of vinyl pieces like Christmas ornaments and cards. I love crafting.
For our feature People of Collingwood, we’ll be speaking with interesting people who are either from or are contributing to the Collingwood community in some way, letting them tell their own stories in their own words. This feature will run on CollingwoodToday every weekend. If you’d like to nominate or suggest someone to be featured in People of Collingwood, email [email protected].
