Page 36 - BusinessWest January 20, 2025

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Community
Commitment
Award
Community Bank’s community-development program was nationally recognized with a 2024 ABA Foundation Community Commitment Award from the American Bankers Assoc. Foundation. Community Bank was chosen for its efforts in the volunteerism category. In 2023, the bank broke records for volunteerism and philanthropic investments across its network of more than 200 branches. Pictured: Community Bank Chief Human Resource & Administration Officer Maureen Gillan- Myer accepts the award during ABA’s annual convention on Oct. 29 in New York City.
Haulin’ 4 Hunger
Advantage Truck Group employees recently delivered hundreds of non- perishable meals to seven community food pantries through its Haulin’ 4 Hunger program, including Our Community
Table in Westfield. Since its inception in 2012, the Haulin’ 4 Hunger program has provided more than 80,000 meals and counting to help those in need. Pictured: the Haulin’ 4 Hunger team of Advantage Truck Group employees and business partners, including Cummins, Dennis
K. Burke, G. Lopes Construction, Global Partners, SelecTrucks of New England, UniBank, and Worcester Railers.
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Entrepreneurs
Continued from page 18
Food for Thought
Beyond adding more restaurants — and collect-
ing memorabilia — John and Chris say they’re hard at work building a brand and creating a culture, comple- mentary assignments that have many aspects to them.
As for brand building, billboards — including ‘Bite Me,’ described by at least one friend as “slightly inap- propriate” — are just a small part of the equation, as is a strong social-media presence.
Bigger parts include involvement in the commu- nity while also getting the Hot Table name out there. Examples include everything from a partnership with the Springfield Thunderbirds, which includes an animated panini race between periods, to providing meals to the Franklin High School football team; from support of the Hooplandia 3-on-3 basketball tourna- ment at the Big E to setting aside a portion of sales on given days to support area food pantries.
Such efforts provide exposure and let people know this is a local, family-owned company, said John, add-
ing quickly that many still believe this is a national chain and the brothers are merely franchisees.
As for culture, Hot Table is establishing itself as a good place to work, where young people (and that’s the bulk of the workforce) can find not only a first
job — and many have — but also a real opportunity
to grow and develop leadership skills. Indeed, Chris noted that several men and women have worked their way up from the panini line to management positions, progression that he’s proud of.
“They’ve grown with Hot Table — we’ve given them an opportunity to grow from making paninis to a supervisor to assistant manager to general manager,” he explained. “And we’ve had an opportunity to mold them in a way where they have an influence and help us create a culture of good service.
“Sometimes, you get people who have been in the restaurant business for a long, long time, they become hardened to the industry, and with that sometimes come mistakes,” he went on, adding that the ability
to teach and mentor new talent is valuable. “And they
bring a certain energy level — a newness.”
Jeff Sullivan, president of Springfield-based New
Valley Bank — who, as a lender with the institution known then as United Bank, was among those who turned down the DeVoies as they sought financing for the Breckwood location — said the two have suc- ceeded with their niche in large part because of their ability to listen to various constituencies, especially customers, and respond to what they hear.
“They’re very dedicated to continuously improving their business,” Sullivan said. “They are humble in the way they study their business processes and try to lis- ten to the customer, adapting constantly based on the feedback they get from their customer base.
“I think of them as one of those companies that are setting a high bar for service and teaching very valuable lessons to young people, giving them the skills that they can use their whole lives,” he added.
That’s just one aspect of this intriguing success story, one that certainly builds on the region’s strong tradition of entrepreneurship. BW
36 JANUARY 20, 2025
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