Saturday, Aug. 28, 2010

Better times ahead

Following recession-driven layoffs, The Body Shop prepares to hire

Wednesday mornings at work are rarely so relaxing.

At The Body Shop's North American headquarters in Wake Forest last week, mobile Raleigh salon B.Out was onsite for a morning, providing free hair-washing and styling to employees. At her 10:30 a.m. appointment, graphic designer Hilary Stoddard leaned back over the sink, closed her eyes and smiled as the steam began to rise.

"I wish I could do this every day," Stoddard said.

The idea was to provide a morale boost for employees while promoting a new product in-house, the new eco-friendly Rain Forest collection of shampoos and conditioners. The event also came as the location is looking to fill 32 job openings, many of which are frozen positions previously left unfilled when the economy went sour.

But, finally, things are looking up for The Body Shop.

Tough times weren't so long ago. In March 2009, the company laid off 18 workers from its Wake Forest location and shut down its Body Shop At Home division. The move was part of an ongoing reorganization effort by L'Oreal, which owns the maker of natural bath and beauty products.

That was then, this is now. The hair-washing is not a recruiting tool, but the company's sponsorship of the event happening in tandem with new hiring could be read as a good sign, said Richard Degnan, vice president for brand..

"A lot of things like this went by the wayside for the last couple of years," he said.

The emphasis on employees being able to promote products from first-hand experience is part of a company culture that encourages knowledge of and passion for their products, Degnan said.

The event helped spread the word to the community as well. B.Out owner Monica Barrett says she's been using the Rain Forest Collection since its Aug. 9 release. B.Out launched in May, so Barrett is happy with the chance to work closely with a local business that shares her eco-conscious values.

Wednesday morning, retail recruiter Jill Morton and talent acquisition coordinator Rebecca Terry had a full day of job interviews ahead - but there was no way they were going to miss their hair appointment.

"I didn't bother doing my hair this morning, I just tossed it up in a ponytail," Morton said.

So the two women talked shop under the blow-dryer, going over their appointments for the day and discussing recruitment strategy. Morton's hair ended up sleek and shining right on time for her first meeting.

"If they could do this every day," Morton said, "that would be fantastic."