Each week, we want to introduce you to a Harrison's Hardworking Hero. These folks come from all walks of life, and could be anyone. We might feature the people who keep you safe, the people who keep things running, the people with the coolest jobs we've heard of, or just the people who shop in our stores. We might even feature you. We're always taking nominations, and you can get in touch with us by emailing jed@harrisonsworkwear.com. We only ask that you be willing to answer a few questions, and we'll reward you with a gift card.
This week, we're taking a break from profiling some hardworking folks from the community to introduce you to one of our own hardworking heroes.
If you walk in our Mauldin store with a specific question about any of our Carhartt products, you're likely to hear the following advice from one employee to another:
"Ask Janette."
Janette Jacks is one of our longest-tenured employees, and an absolute encyclopedia of the Carhartt items we stock. New, old, discontinued, changed, eliminated colors, she knows it all, knows it quickly, and can help you find exactly what you're looking for or explain why she can't.
"In July this year, it will be 14 years working at Harrison's," she said. "I've worked a little bit in all the departments, but I've focused on Carhartt and Wrangler. I used to check in all the freight and put it out, and show others how to put it out, and when you're checking in freight and reading labels, you learn. It's just reading tags and putting things together."
Over the years, that knowledge and the repetition of it led to a vast amount of product knowledge. She sorts the items, puts them in place in the Carhartt section, displays them in a particular order, and all of that has helped her learn even more.
"When you do that, it helps you to remember everything," she said. "A lot of times, when we get a new Carhartt book I can read through it and see what's discontinued and the things that have changed names. That helps."
Whatever helps her helps the customer. She's often the first step in a search for products.
"It's absolutely wonderful that Janette's here in this store," Mauldin GM Bonnie Blackwell said. "Somebody can walk in the door and ask where they can find a pair of pants - the ones they have on - and she can look at them on the person and know exactly which pair they're talking about and where they are in the store and walk them straight to where the need to go. It's a super-easy process. If anyone has questions about discontinued items, if they want something similar, she knows exactly what to show them. It's just absolutely great customer service to have somebody with that much knowledge here in the store."
It's not just the staff who lean on Janette's product knowledge. Customers notice, too. Some of them come in and ask for her by name, or just ask for "the lady who helped me with Carhartt". That's turned into a matter of pride, and something that makes her feel good.
"It really does," she said. "I've helped families with kids who keep coming in as the kids get older. I might not remember their names, but I remember their faces. And they remember I helped them."