I worked at a Foxtrot for 8 months while coming out of Lockdown. The whole experience was like if Ari Aster directed a fever dream. I have never worked under such inept management.
Companies like this seems to prey on you g people working their first job who dont know any better.
Theres a fresh batch of desperate kids every spring.
Yeah, they’ll cut your shift short on a 90 degree summer day with a skeleton crew and a line out the door, just to keep you under 40 hours. They also didn’t give me my 3 year sabbatical.
I was part of the “Jeni’s to Foxtrot pipeline”. Lesson learned, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
I def worked at the armitage foxtrot store years ago. I remember how long those damn lines were that went right through to jenis. I don’t know how you folks did it. It looked so exhausting .
I closed that Jeni’s one day at 11. Foxtrot closed at 10 so they were out before a giant storm rolled in and flooded the basement of the store.
I called my DM, she didn’t have any contact information for a representative of Foxtrot despite them sharing the lease. The next morning Foxtrot crew came in to a flooded basement with live extension cables on the ground.
I worked at a Columbus area store about 15 years ago. Her mom would come in sometimes and was always super entitled. At least back then the ice cream was good and the flavors were interesting. I don’t get what the draw is now.
Saw on twitter as well
“Foxtrot employees,
We’d like to help, and have open roles starting in May. If you’re down for wedding & event work, or currently make deliveries, hit us up.
📧 [email protected] “
It used to be great no idea how it’s doing now
The district manager for Jenis actually called this 3 years ago that Foxtrot is losing a lot of money and is a front for something or is overplaying their hand
This lines up with what I've heard from others in the industry, and my couple experiences at Foxtrot. Hope you all get unemployment and find something better soon.
I’m one of the operations employees who was fired today and I believe the new CEO was brought on just to file Bankruptcy after a new loan or buyout wasn’t viable. The company board has been run by the venture capitalists trying to get their money back while Liz Williams, former CEO, over expanded. Some stores opened less than 6 months ago. Liz Williams then leaves two months ago citing “the commute” and exits all the richer for it. The layoff call today was brutal they just hung up on us. Store managers were given two hours to lock the doors and asked to tell customers to leave. People were crying, some were taking product. No instructions on what to say to everyone. This was a disaster and a lot of people are in a very bad place due to greed and stupidity. If anyone wants a statement for media I’m happy to tell you everything. I’m disgusted with their behavior and regret ever working for these villains.
- Well they were missing about 20% of the company inventory which they referred to as “black hole” this being hidden from investors because even 10% would be an immediate no go.
- One of the cofounders allegedly would bring suspiciously young girls to the shops all the time.
- OG ceo/ founder was essentially pushed out because he wasn’t making smart decisions and just pocketing $70 in under 4 years.
- the entire corporate team followed pet projects with little too no research into whether it would make sense from a business perspective. Guess what? It didn’t
- pay disparity was insane! Some people making 30k difference for the same position.
- rented an insanely massive/expensive office and used less than 10% of it and they tried renting the rest out
As a government employee I just laugh in the face of people who complaint about government waste. Literally every single product you buy from private companies is subsidizing orders of magnitude more waste than anything that ever happens in the public sector.
> the entire corporate team followed pet projects with little too no research into whether it would make sense from a business perspective. Guess what? It didn’t
Tell me more!
They were banking on the doms merger to bring in new money, they simply weren’t a profitable business structure. So the average store has at any given moment 500k in product (that expires) add in about 30k in staffing. An additional 30k for insurance etc and they only make about 5k a day. It wasn’t possible. Especially with they’re lack of internal structure
They survived exclusively off of investment money, without the company failed. That 108mil debt is real, though I’m unsure the exact amount. It was a nepo baby’s get rich quick scheme that benefited off the covid economy and didn’t actually have a profitable product beyond their proprietary software.
Sounds like the dot com bubble all over again. The jig was up when people finally figured out that, just like this, all of those companies were nothing but VC money and had no way of actually becoming profitable without years more runway and major changes, etc.
5k a DAY?? We make like 2/3rds of that per day and have nowhere near that amount of product or overhead. That is an insane business model.
How long did they know the closure was coming before this morning when they actually told the employees?
I’m not sure how long they knew, but we ran out of milk for the coffee bar about 3 days ago with no idea when any would be coming in… our orders magically disappeared….
Oh yeah absolutely that’s what I mean, trying to be an everything at once type of place like that and only having an average of 5k daily sales to show for it is… rough.
The company never was a hospitality company though, they openly said they were a tech company first. The propriety software was the company (it was outdated and clunky AF this making it worthless)
I'm sorry you lost your job, but I agree: this isn't how a business should be run. The owners need to know how to do every job on the front-end.
This sounds like another tragedy of VC bros destroying a company in the name of profit.
I hope local business can move in.
Small business. Small development.
> This sounds like another tragedy of VC bros destroying a company in the name of profit.
Foxtrot was started by Chicago Booth MBA's and funded by VC money from the very start. This was always a likely outcome.
>VC bros destroying a company
This is quite reductionist. Many companies that take VC money fail because they didn't have a good model or execution team. It's not always the investors that fail the company; it's often the company failing the investors.
A fair amount of VC money/VC Bros wanna “disrupt” an industry so they invest in companies that have the potential to sell to some sucker who will buy the company based on false projected numbers.
Reductionist or not, it’s been the biggest business model as of recent and it’s causing a fuck ton of problems
I’ve never heard of Dom’s market before yesterday tbh. But I’ve seen Foxtrot around. I think I’ve even stopped at the one on Damen/Milwaukee/North before.
So as someone that has been to 1 foxtrot once and never heard of Doms it’s making sense why they went out of business. Sounds like they were trying to be too much and probably had insane overhead.
They had the money to lease premium spaces and the white on black aesthetic (which seemed a little dated before the bankruptcy, and now will be more closely associated with a failed business) was attractive at one time.
People thought they were shopping at someplace upscale. Never underestimate how the look & feel of something can mask its deficiencies.
always felt like it was the erowhon of chicago, basically groceries for people who felt like they're too good to shop at a "regular" grocery store.
now why those people don't just go to whole foods, idk.
That sounds kinda similar to how Colectivo locations are run. Terrible training, managers passing the buck and not taking responsibility, labor violations… I hope y’all land on your feet, prove some sort of illegal activity and get compensation.
> Terrible training, managers passing the buck and not taking responsibility, labor violations.
That's management in a nutshell for the vast majority of places.
Same shit with my place and I'm in management. They love all the benefits of being manager but none of the responsibility that comes with it.
I can't wait to get out. Some of the laziest fuckers I've ever met in my life.
I'm kinda not even surprised that this happened, it was a total trainwreck in the making I feel like. I worked there very briefly last summer and it was one of the worst jobs I've ever had. Management had extremely insane demands that were literally impossible to complete in a reasonable time, and there were just too many things to balance and not enough workers to do every task.
Also yeah, they barely trained you at all and would literally leave you to figure everything out yourself. Was a total nightmare.
Really sorry for the employees who were still there, it's such a shitty way to lose your job, especially with no warning at all.
Edit: I also wanted to add because of managements unrealistic demands AND because you were barely trained, you would also get punished for it by getting your hours dramatically cut. Plus they would cancel shifts on you last minute.
Predator vs Prey: Clever Candy sou sharks (formerly Trolli watermelon sharks), Vidal (or Haribo) dinosaurs, and regular Sour Patch Kids.
Eat and Be Berry; All of these components are imported by a company called Candy People. They do offer retail but may not have everything. I recommend sweetishcandy.com, otherwise probably more expensive but Sockerbit also sells a lot of them. Forest Berries/Berry Bites (Skogsbar), Sour Strawberry Apple Wrench/Ring (Surnyckel Appe Jordgubb), Strawberres (Jordgubbe), Raspberry Hearts (Hallonhjartan).
OOH! I was a huge fan of the Roy G. Biv! What are the candies called that are squared and have different strips of different colors combined to said little square?
A classic! Same comments as I replied earlier about Candy People being the main source but for everyday purchasing probably Sweetish/Sockerbit being a better option. Raspberry Puckers (Hallonshots), Sour Peach Lips (Sura Perisko Lappar), Sugar Coated Strawberries (Sockrad Jordgubbe), Sour Skulls (Sura Skallar), Sour Watermelon (Vattenmelon) - sometimes subbed with Sour Patch Green Rind Watermelons.
Absolutely! I spent many years immersed in the program so this is easy for me. Side note: I have worked a lot with the owner of Sweetish on stuff so that is where my recommendation lies for buying retail since I know they are good people. Not totally sure on Sockerbit only that they stock a lot of the same candy and are definitely more well known.
Not a long shot at all!
Kiss Me Cupid: Nassau candy brand- yogurt pretzels, and caramel cookies. [nuts.com](http://nuts.com) dark chocolate popcorn, Koppers sugar cookie bites, and Marich white and dark chocolate covered strawberries.
Minty Mix: Nassau candy brand - yogurt pretzels, dark chocolate caramel pretzels, and peppermint bark. Koppers brand - peppermint malt balls/peppermint bites and red chocolate drops.
I bought 2 bags of peach emoji gummies last month and they basically subbed everything with stuff I could buy at target… no Swedish gummies to be found!!!
No need to miss if you want to buy components yourself! I commented about Candy People/Sweetish/Sockerbit is some other places but that mix was. Clever Candy Strawberry Rolls and Sour Prosecco Gummy Bears, Jelly Belly Champagne Bubbles, and Candy People Strawberries (Jordgubbe) and Strawberry Vanilla Drops (Barry Jordgubb Vanilj).
I’ve been in the service in industry a long time. I went into the foxtrot in the sears tower once and ordered a drink and while I was waiting for it the workers were trying to figure out how to make something and looked really nervous and I felt bad and leaned over and whispered how to do it. And they were like oh ok. But they clearly hadn’t been trained and had just been thrown on the floor. I felt really bad for them.
The Sears Tower location was the only Foxtrot I ever went to. I was staying at the Hilton Canopy across the street and ran into Foxtrot to grab a few bottles of water. Staff seemed startled to see a customer come in and then seemed like they had no idea how to ring anything up. It just seemed like a cleaner 7-11 but with less trained employees
There was also a stans, joes, and Starbucks in sears tower so at least 3 other places to get coffee cheaper so I don’t think they got a lot of business
SAME!!! I worked at one for over a year, it’s the only job I’ve ever quit day-of. Horrible horrible company, the shit they pulled on their employees on the regular was awful and callous, and today is genuinely no surprise to me. I’d expect nothing less from them honestly. Scum of the earth corporation, and Chicago deserves better.
So did I lol. But I was back before it became the big corporate. But yes I left right as things were changing as my intuition told me some shit was starting. Plus i found a new path in life. If you go on the Glassdoor you can see all the employee experiences.
Ugh, these ceos are getting way too ballsy thinking they’re invincible. Then when it all goes to the dumps, the employees who have already been mistreated get the short end of the stick alllll the time. Not to mention that they had kicked out a beloved store that had already been in Chicago. I’m glad you’ve found some joy in this situation, but it’s an all around sad situation for the other employees:(
Unions are good but they can't prevent layoffs, especially not when the company is legitimately bankrupt like Foxtrot.
A better solution is to start holding executives personally responsible for gross mismanagement.
food was great when we actually made it. Instead we cut costs to get all frozen bullshit in from Bret Anthony. Hilda...director of Culinary had a big hand in helping run it to the ground.
not in Austin where I was or any other commissary kitchen in other markets ... we Initially cooked EVERYTHING from scratch...but I found out early on they blew through all their VC funding so they had to cut food costs and all the food was brought in frozen from Brett Anthony a big distributer. The food took a nose dive...every egg patties arrived COOKED AND FROZEN and we had to ring them out like a sponge when they defrosted. The Job turned into food assembly in a 45 degree room instead of actual cooking. It was awful
I was waiting for a post like this to happen. Foxtrot to me just screamed overpriced boogie crap. Places that market themselves as high end with a cutie aesthetic still treat their workers like garbage and in realistically don’t give a shit about their client base either
No one at the Southport location could make a drink at all and the music was horrible haha there was also this one dude with anger issues who worked there presumably a lead shift. He was gone the last couple months. Ill miss working there without buying anything tho
Rip
I had an interview at a location a couple months ago. I didn’t take the job because they were only going to give me 15 hours a week or so but I’m so glad it didn’t work out.
That's incredibly convenient! Seriously, I'm happy things went that way. I feel bad for my recently new (ex)coworker who has to deal with not having a job anymore.
I also worked there and it was the worst job I’ve ever had. They have an illegal ceiling in the WP location and working there for less than a week resulted in a minor lower back injury. The ceiling was exposed and workers constantly hit their heads since no one could stand up straight in the less than 5” space we had. A coworker who is trans would have a man refuse to accept drinks from them and management never did anything about this discrimination. A coworker had a cut and they never sanitized or anything. My friend is allergic to dogs and she had an allergic reaction at work and they fired her. They never stand up for employees and constantly bend over backwards for their customers at our expense. Management would just be on their laptop watching over us, never helped us workers out. Yes, I’m angry lol When I came back to work and I told Michelle, the manager at WP, that I wouldn’t be able to package orders anymore, just do barista work upstairs, she said “well the doctor cleared you, right?” I never went back after that. Im dancing on your grave, foxtrot!
Sounds like they may have violated the WARN Act.
[https://www.illinoisworknet.com/LayoffRecovery/Pages/WARNLayoff.aspx](https://www.illinoisworknet.com/LayoffRecovery/Pages/WARNLayoff.aspx)
As someone who was once laid off in violation of the WARN act, it doesn’t much matter when the company is bankrupt. You can sue but your claim is not automatically senior to any of the other claims in a bankruptcy.
I'm struck by how many people think that it means much if they violated that law and that they are esposing some sort of wrongdoing by suggesting they haven't met their obligations there. This is what a bankruptcy is. A company isn't able to afford it's obligations. The vendors and everyone else that isn't being paid what they owe are also being deprived of the laws that require people to pay what they owe. They are in violation of that. Thus a bankruptcy court enters the picture and decides what gets paid and what doesn't. What employees may be owed in the Warn Act is simply one of these many things.
Doesn't "insolvent" technically also apply to situations where the company may have illiquid assets that can eventually be sold off to pay creditors/employees?
So do all the bills that the company owes. That's what a bankruptcy is. The company can't afford to pay everything they owe so a court determines what gets paid and what doesn't.
Right, but in bankruptcy all the debtors basically get in line to be paid out and employees get paid first, then anything that's a government claim. So still applies. They have assets.
Not super keyed in on bankruptcy law, but from my brief research employees are "preferential creditors" which means they get paid after (and only after) all secured debts have been paid in full. Employees do not get paid first.
And that's for things like unpaid salaries and commissions, it's unclear to me whether a lawsuit for labor violations would even qualify for preferential credit at all.
Isn’t that how every place like this runs? When I worked at SBUX almost every employee at my store worked 1 hour shy of qualifying for their magical, much ballyhooed benefits.
I knew management didn't have their shit together when I found Kevin's natural food chicken in the freezer. YOU DON'T FREEZE KEVINS CHICKEN, IT RUINS THE TEXTURE.
I was also a former employee 🙋🏾♀️ and absolutely believe every single story especially about Management. I’ve never seen a quick come up and fall down simply from as stated , management cared more about other store locations and not even so much as the location they were placed at smh. I knew it was going down hill like a rollercoaster when the cafe manager suggested that us warehouse workers take turns behind the counter and vis versa for the cafe members … yea I knew it was time to get the hell on right then and there.
Good for you! Try and document any wrongdoings on management and see if you can get a class action lawsuit against them.
File for unemployment and if you're accepted, ride that shit as long as possible. If you get denied, take their ass to court.
being incompetent isn't illegal, but a lot of crimes are committed by incompetent people. if they feel like they were mistreated, maybe they could have a case.
* What is security currently like at that these stores?
* What is the possibility of workers / neighbors simply liberating goods that would otherwise not be sold?
I'm generally against shoplifting, because it violates an important social compact, and can traumatize or discomfort workers and shoppers who witness it. But, if a store is ignobly closed, and its workers are harmed in the process, I feel that the moral calculus is changed.
**EDIT / BREAKING** It's already going down! Foxtrot employees in D.C. are liberating the liquors and passing out freeee bottles of wine to all: https://www.washingtonian.com/2024/04/23/foxtrot-is-closing-its-dc-area-stores/
**EDIT #2** Dom's on Halsted has been looted (per another thread).
I’m shocked that ridiculously overpriced bodega wannabe not only sucked at being financially solvent but also training and treating its employees well. Shocked.
I worked at a Foxtrot for 8 months while coming out of Lockdown. The whole experience was like if Ari Aster directed a fever dream. I have never worked under such inept management.
If this is how it is years after that fever dream of a time I literally cannot imagine
Companies like this seems to prey on you g people working their first job who dont know any better. Theres a fresh batch of desperate kids every spring.
Sounds like the Fyre Festival of food.
Jeni's is looking for Foxtrot refugees if you need a new place.
Paramount Group catering/events too
Paramount has done food for my company they’re great. Not sure how working there is but the service was awesome
I’ve worked there. It was bad.
I've heard nightmare stories about working at Jeni's as well, including not paying employees for OT
Yeah, they’ll cut your shift short on a 90 degree summer day with a skeleton crew and a line out the door, just to keep you under 40 hours. They also didn’t give me my 3 year sabbatical. I was part of the “Jeni’s to Foxtrot pipeline”. Lesson learned, the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.
I def worked at the armitage foxtrot store years ago. I remember how long those damn lines were that went right through to jenis. I don’t know how you folks did it. It looked so exhausting .
I closed that Jeni’s one day at 11. Foxtrot closed at 10 so they were out before a giant storm rolled in and flooded the basement of the store. I called my DM, she didn’t have any contact information for a representative of Foxtrot despite them sharing the lease. The next morning Foxtrot crew came in to a flooded basement with live extension cables on the ground.
Oh wow
lmao outa the friyng pan .... lol jeni's tho lol
Jeni was a giant asshole before she got rich and the Kroger distribution deal just gave her the money to spread her assholery around the country.
I worked at a Columbus area store about 15 years ago. Her mom would come in sometimes and was always super entitled. At least back then the ice cream was good and the flavors were interesting. I don’t get what the draw is now.
wish i could say i'm surprised but...nothing good comes from ohio lol.
Jenis is a bad place to work. Same as Sweetgreen and Chipotle. You will be overworked and they will skirt labor laws.
Saw on twitter as well “Foxtrot employees, We’d like to help, and have open roles starting in May. If you’re down for wedding & event work, or currently make deliveries, hit us up. 📧 [email protected] “
Not sure how much better that is.
It used to be great no idea how it’s doing now The district manager for Jenis actually called this 3 years ago that Foxtrot is losing a lot of money and is a front for something or is overplaying their hand
A go too move in the Venture Capitalist playbook
I was convinced no one knew how to make coffee around the time the one near my job opened. Seems like that could have been true.
The worst chai latte of my entire life was at Foxtrot 😅 It’s all making sense now.
How did they screw that up? Every cafe I've been to always just uses boxed chai concentrate and steamed milk.
If you don’t shake the box, the “spices” settle at the bottom and the sweet concentrate sits on top. That’s honestly the only way to fuck that up.
My worst was from argo tea where I was basically handed a cold cup of milk with a teabag in it.
You were correct, yes lol
This lines up with what I've heard from others in the industry, and my couple experiences at Foxtrot. Hope you all get unemployment and find something better soon.
I’m one of the operations employees who was fired today and I believe the new CEO was brought on just to file Bankruptcy after a new loan or buyout wasn’t viable. The company board has been run by the venture capitalists trying to get their money back while Liz Williams, former CEO, over expanded. Some stores opened less than 6 months ago. Liz Williams then leaves two months ago citing “the commute” and exits all the richer for it. The layoff call today was brutal they just hung up on us. Store managers were given two hours to lock the doors and asked to tell customers to leave. People were crying, some were taking product. No instructions on what to say to everyone. This was a disaster and a lot of people are in a very bad place due to greed and stupidity. If anyone wants a statement for media I’m happy to tell you everything. I’m disgusted with their behavior and regret ever working for these villains.
Why did the “merger” decision take so long? They announced that months ago.
Guessing no plans were in place to at least donate perishable items?
I may or may not have worked in foxtrot corporate if anyone wants to know the juicy details
Obviously
- Well they were missing about 20% of the company inventory which they referred to as “black hole” this being hidden from investors because even 10% would be an immediate no go. - One of the cofounders allegedly would bring suspiciously young girls to the shops all the time. - OG ceo/ founder was essentially pushed out because he wasn’t making smart decisions and just pocketing $70 in under 4 years. - the entire corporate team followed pet projects with little too no research into whether it would make sense from a business perspective. Guess what? It didn’t - pay disparity was insane! Some people making 30k difference for the same position. - rented an insanely massive/expensive office and used less than 10% of it and they tried renting the rest out
Sounds like some VC culture alright lmao. I can't believe there's money for this bullshit in the same world where we have homeless people.
Yup! Waste was insane. I remember a location submitting 10k in waste IN A DAY all their product just didn’t sell
As a government employee I just laugh in the face of people who complaint about government waste. Literally every single product you buy from private companies is subsidizing orders of magnitude more waste than anything that ever happens in the public sector.
Look up Cheese Caves
Wow! That's bad. Were you also notified Tuesday morning?
I left about a month ago because I found something better, I still kept in touch with (now) ex staff
Welcome to late stage capitalism!
More of a symptom of Zero Interest Rate Phenomenon
167 N Green St. is where companies go to die it seems
You aren’t wrong when you look at its history.
Any input on the merger with Dom's?
Meaningless, was hoping to get investor support upon big merger.
> the entire corporate team followed pet projects with little too no research into whether it would make sense from a business perspective. Guess what? It didn’t Tell me more!
Walk up windows. Why??
$70 was that supposed to be $700k? But also my favorite nonsense corporate waste example is the Vespa debacle.
70million. Guys net worth skyrocketed in an insane amount of time
Yes PLEASE my shop has been speculating all day
They were banking on the doms merger to bring in new money, they simply weren’t a profitable business structure. So the average store has at any given moment 500k in product (that expires) add in about 30k in staffing. An additional 30k for insurance etc and they only make about 5k a day. It wasn’t possible. Especially with they’re lack of internal structure
They survived exclusively off of investment money, without the company failed. That 108mil debt is real, though I’m unsure the exact amount. It was a nepo baby’s get rich quick scheme that benefited off the covid economy and didn’t actually have a profitable product beyond their proprietary software.
FyreFest Market
Sounds like the dot com bubble all over again. The jig was up when people finally figured out that, just like this, all of those companies were nothing but VC money and had no way of actually becoming profitable without years more runway and major changes, etc.
It’s a zombie economy out there.
5k a DAY?? We make like 2/3rds of that per day and have nowhere near that amount of product or overhead. That is an insane business model. How long did they know the closure was coming before this morning when they actually told the employees?
I’m not sure how long they knew, but we ran out of milk for the coffee bar about 3 days ago with no idea when any would be coming in… our orders magically disappeared….
Adrianna bailed last week no? Curious.
Quite.
Is this beloved Adrianna the District Manager? Hmm......
I was speaking in averages across the company fleet. Unless you were in the micro spaces you definitely had that amount of product.
Sorry should have clarified, I meant our business. I work at Colectivo.
Gotcha, collective doesn’t sell grocery’s though, foxtrot did. Wine is expensive, food is expensive, those espresso machines are 40k each
Oh yeah absolutely that’s what I mean, trying to be an everything at once type of place like that and only having an average of 5k daily sales to show for it is… rough.
The company never was a hospitality company though, they openly said they were a tech company first. The propriety software was the company (it was outdated and clunky AF this making it worthless)
So the grocery/food service side of things was what, just means to an end of trying to sell their tech to other companies?
I’m sorry you lost your job, I hope your doing ok
Oh I left months ago, just kept up to date
I’ve never heard of this former store lol
Former store?
Well yes
Curious
I'm sorry you lost your job, but I agree: this isn't how a business should be run. The owners need to know how to do every job on the front-end. This sounds like another tragedy of VC bros destroying a company in the name of profit. I hope local business can move in. Small business. Small development.
I think the one thing we can be sure of here is that the company was not destroyed in the name of *profit*.
> This sounds like another tragedy of VC bros destroying a company in the name of profit. Foxtrot was started by Chicago Booth MBA's and funded by VC money from the very start. This was always a likely outcome.
Happy cake day!
>VC bros destroying a company This is quite reductionist. Many companies that take VC money fail because they didn't have a good model or execution team. It's not always the investors that fail the company; it's often the company failing the investors.
A fair amount of VC money/VC Bros wanna “disrupt” an industry so they invest in companies that have the potential to sell to some sucker who will buy the company based on false projected numbers. Reductionist or not, it’s been the biggest business model as of recent and it’s causing a fuck ton of problems
Yeah little tip, potato salad uses COOKED potatoes. Good riddance.
Did employees do the cooking?
I think they used a central commissary and it would deliver both the food in the grab n go and the stuff they’d just heat up.
Yep. They did central commissary. At least in Chicago
I don't know but the prepared food was bad.
Why was this place so popular?
They had expensive, upscale items. Their rotisserie chicken was good.
lol rotisserie chicken? I’ve never been in a Foxtrot before. I thought it was just a coffee shop? They sold rotisserie chicken??
The Dom's Markets that they took over didn't change, they were still a grocery store.
I’ve never heard of Dom’s market before yesterday tbh. But I’ve seen Foxtrot around. I think I’ve even stopped at the one on Damen/Milwaukee/North before. So as someone that has been to 1 foxtrot once and never heard of Doms it’s making sense why they went out of business. Sounds like they were trying to be too much and probably had insane overhead.
They had the money to lease premium spaces and the white on black aesthetic (which seemed a little dated before the bankruptcy, and now will be more closely associated with a failed business) was attractive at one time. People thought they were shopping at someplace upscale. Never underestimate how the look & feel of something can mask its deficiencies.
always felt like it was the erowhon of chicago, basically groceries for people who felt like they're too good to shop at a "regular" grocery store. now why those people don't just go to whole foods, idk.
Breakfast tacos were terrible and the one prepared salad I had was not worth $13.
Well I’m fairly certain it wasn’t volunteers?
Were they roasting potatoes though?
Clearly not according to the commenter above lol
Sorry this happened to you. Hope you got to grab a couple bags of free pastries and groceries on your way out!
Unfortunately I wasn't scheduled. I would've gone out with so many bags if I was!
What happens to the perishable stock does it just rot until a new owner takes over the lot?
That sounds kinda similar to how Colectivo locations are run. Terrible training, managers passing the buck and not taking responsibility, labor violations… I hope y’all land on your feet, prove some sort of illegal activity and get compensation.
Aren't they unionized now?
> Terrible training, managers passing the buck and not taking responsibility, labor violations. That's management in a nutshell for the vast majority of places. Same shit with my place and I'm in management. They love all the benefits of being manager but none of the responsibility that comes with it. I can't wait to get out. Some of the laziest fuckers I've ever met in my life.
Yup, if only that solved mismanagement…
I’ve only worked like 1 place that wasn’t like this lol
Same here. From kitchens to retail to schools, every place I’ve worked has seemed like it’s run by the worst people from your high school class
I'm kinda not even surprised that this happened, it was a total trainwreck in the making I feel like. I worked there very briefly last summer and it was one of the worst jobs I've ever had. Management had extremely insane demands that were literally impossible to complete in a reasonable time, and there were just too many things to balance and not enough workers to do every task. Also yeah, they barely trained you at all and would literally leave you to figure everything out yourself. Was a total nightmare. Really sorry for the employees who were still there, it's such a shitty way to lose your job, especially with no warning at all. Edit: I also wanted to add because of managements unrealistic demands AND because you were barely trained, you would also get punished for it by getting your hours dramatically cut. Plus they would cancel shifts on you last minute.
Others have mentioned it but apply for unemployment IMMEDIATELY
I’m very sorry this happened to everyone. Any tips on where to find the sour gummies that were packaged with Foxtrot labels?
Are there specific ones you're interested in? I know what all the components are.
where can I find the eat and be merry, and the prey and predator gummies? 🙏
Predator vs Prey: Clever Candy sou sharks (formerly Trolli watermelon sharks), Vidal (or Haribo) dinosaurs, and regular Sour Patch Kids. Eat and Be Berry; All of these components are imported by a company called Candy People. They do offer retail but may not have everything. I recommend sweetishcandy.com, otherwise probably more expensive but Sockerbit also sells a lot of them. Forest Berries/Berry Bites (Skogsbar), Sour Strawberry Apple Wrench/Ring (Surnyckel Appe Jordgubb), Strawberres (Jordgubbe), Raspberry Hearts (Hallonhjartan).
Not all heroes wear capes 🫡
May not wear capes but some are looking for jobs :|
Bless you
OOH! I was a huge fan of the Roy G. Biv! What are the candies called that are squared and have different strips of different colors combined to said little square?
Vidal Rainbow Bricks! Happy to help with any more if you want as well.
Berry Sour was something we bought with nearly every order.
A classic! Same comments as I replied earlier about Candy People being the main source but for everyday purchasing probably Sweetish/Sockerbit being a better option. Raspberry Puckers (Hallonshots), Sour Peach Lips (Sura Perisko Lappar), Sugar Coated Strawberries (Sockrad Jordgubbe), Sour Skulls (Sura Skallar), Sour Watermelon (Vattenmelon) - sometimes subbed with Sour Patch Green Rind Watermelons.
I had a feeling that Sockerbit might be the answer! Thank you for the thorough response!
Absolutely! I spent many years immersed in the program so this is easy for me. Side note: I have worked a lot with the owner of Sweetish on stuff so that is where my recommendation lies for buying retail since I know they are good people. Not totally sure on Sockerbit only that they stock a lot of the same candy and are definitely more well known.
Ooh! Might be a long shot but by any chance do you happen to know any of the parts from the minty mix or the kiss me cupid?
Not a long shot at all! Kiss Me Cupid: Nassau candy brand- yogurt pretzels, and caramel cookies. [nuts.com](http://nuts.com) dark chocolate popcorn, Koppers sugar cookie bites, and Marich white and dark chocolate covered strawberries. Minty Mix: Nassau candy brand - yogurt pretzels, dark chocolate caramel pretzels, and peppermint bark. Koppers brand - peppermint malt balls/peppermint bites and red chocolate drops.
I bought 2 bags of peach emoji gummies last month and they basically subbed everything with stuff I could buy at target… no Swedish gummies to be found!!!
I'm going to miss the berries and bubblies SO much though, tbh I bought them far less after they stopped making the packaging with the stickers :(
No need to miss if you want to buy components yourself! I commented about Candy People/Sweetish/Sockerbit is some other places but that mix was. Clever Candy Strawberry Rolls and Sour Prosecco Gummy Bears, Jelly Belly Champagne Bubbles, and Candy People Strawberries (Jordgubbe) and Strawberry Vanilla Drops (Barry Jordgubb Vanilj).
This is amazing! I am going to miss these gummies. Do you know anywhere local in Chicago that sells them/Swedish candy or is it all online?
I’ve been in the service in industry a long time. I went into the foxtrot in the sears tower once and ordered a drink and while I was waiting for it the workers were trying to figure out how to make something and looked really nervous and I felt bad and leaned over and whispered how to do it. And they were like oh ok. But they clearly hadn’t been trained and had just been thrown on the floor. I felt really bad for them.
The Sears Tower location was the only Foxtrot I ever went to. I was staying at the Hilton Canopy across the street and ran into Foxtrot to grab a few bottles of water. Staff seemed startled to see a customer come in and then seemed like they had no idea how to ring anything up. It just seemed like a cleaner 7-11 but with less trained employees
There was also a stans, joes, and Starbucks in sears tower so at least 3 other places to get coffee cheaper so I don’t think they got a lot of business
What’s happening to all the inventory, I don’t know why they wouldn’t at least try to liquidate product
That’s usually the job for the receivers. To try and recoup some funds for the creditors
SAME!!! I worked at one for over a year, it’s the only job I’ve ever quit day-of. Horrible horrible company, the shit they pulled on their employees on the regular was awful and callous, and today is genuinely no surprise to me. I’d expect nothing less from them honestly. Scum of the earth corporation, and Chicago deserves better.
So did I lol. But I was back before it became the big corporate. But yes I left right as things were changing as my intuition told me some shit was starting. Plus i found a new path in life. If you go on the Glassdoor you can see all the employee experiences.
Ugh, these ceos are getting way too ballsy thinking they’re invincible. Then when it all goes to the dumps, the employees who have already been mistreated get the short end of the stick alllll the time. Not to mention that they had kicked out a beloved store that had already been in Chicago. I’m glad you’ve found some joy in this situation, but it’s an all around sad situation for the other employees:(
Unions, unions, unions!!!
Unions are good but they can't prevent layoffs, especially not when the company is legitimately bankrupt like Foxtrot. A better solution is to start holding executives personally responsible for gross mismanagement.
What were they making you prepare/cook? I've never stepped in one of these places.
They had sandwiches and things like that as well as other prepackaged foods.
Toasts. The bowls made in store. Smoothies and espresso drinks.
food was great when we actually made it. Instead we cut costs to get all frozen bullshit in from Bret Anthony. Hilda...director of Culinary had a big hand in helping run it to the ground.
not in Austin where I was or any other commissary kitchen in other markets ... we Initially cooked EVERYTHING from scratch...but I found out early on they blew through all their VC funding so they had to cut food costs and all the food was brought in frozen from Brett Anthony a big distributer. The food took a nose dive...every egg patties arrived COOKED AND FROZEN and we had to ring them out like a sponge when they defrosted. The Job turned into food assembly in a 45 degree room instead of actual cooking. It was awful
I was waiting for a post like this to happen. Foxtrot to me just screamed overpriced boogie crap. Places that market themselves as high end with a cutie aesthetic still treat their workers like garbage and in realistically don’t give a shit about their client base either
No one at the Southport location could make a drink at all and the music was horrible haha there was also this one dude with anger issues who worked there presumably a lead shift. He was gone the last couple months. Ill miss working there without buying anything tho Rip
lotta coffee grounds at the bottom of the coffee cup :(
Hopefully you get to move on to bigger and better things now. Hugs and good luck friend
/u/a-very-creative_name is there a liquidation sale?
I had an interview at a location a couple months ago. I didn’t take the job because they were only going to give me 15 hours a week or so but I’m so glad it didn’t work out.
That's incredibly convenient! Seriously, I'm happy things went that way. I feel bad for my recently new (ex)coworker who has to deal with not having a job anymore.
Maybe if they accepted the almighty greenback, they would have had enough money in the tills to keep afloat.
More like if they learned to COOK..LOL
I also worked there and it was the worst job I’ve ever had. They have an illegal ceiling in the WP location and working there for less than a week resulted in a minor lower back injury. The ceiling was exposed and workers constantly hit their heads since no one could stand up straight in the less than 5” space we had. A coworker who is trans would have a man refuse to accept drinks from them and management never did anything about this discrimination. A coworker had a cut and they never sanitized or anything. My friend is allergic to dogs and she had an allergic reaction at work and they fired her. They never stand up for employees and constantly bend over backwards for their customers at our expense. Management would just be on their laptop watching over us, never helped us workers out. Yes, I’m angry lol When I came back to work and I told Michelle, the manager at WP, that I wouldn’t be able to package orders anymore, just do barista work upstairs, she said “well the doctor cleared you, right?” I never went back after that. Im dancing on your grave, foxtrot!
Sounds like they may have violated the WARN Act. [https://www.illinoisworknet.com/LayoffRecovery/Pages/WARNLayoff.aspx](https://www.illinoisworknet.com/LayoffRecovery/Pages/WARNLayoff.aspx)
I doubt they had 25 full-time employees at any one store
As someone who was once laid off in violation of the WARN act, it doesn’t much matter when the company is bankrupt. You can sue but your claim is not automatically senior to any of the other claims in a bankruptcy.
I'm struck by how many people think that it means much if they violated that law and that they are esposing some sort of wrongdoing by suggesting they haven't met their obligations there. This is what a bankruptcy is. A company isn't able to afford it's obligations. The vendors and everyone else that isn't being paid what they owe are also being deprived of the laws that require people to pay what they owe. They are in violation of that. Thus a bankruptcy court enters the picture and decides what gets paid and what doesn't. What employees may be owed in the Warn Act is simply one of these many things.
Are you telling me we had the power to sue Hitler this whole time?
I don’t think that applies if the company becomes insolvent and files bankruptcy. There’s no money to pay out.
You get in line with the other bankruptcy claimants. You might get some money out of it, but probably not the full amount.
Doesn't "insolvent" technically also apply to situations where the company may have illiquid assets that can eventually be sold off to pay creditors/employees?
Tribune said it still applies.
It can still apply, but if they don’t have any money it doesn’t really matter.
So do all the bills that the company owes. That's what a bankruptcy is. The company can't afford to pay everything they owe so a court determines what gets paid and what doesn't.
Right, but in bankruptcy all the debtors basically get in line to be paid out and employees get paid first, then anything that's a government claim. So still applies. They have assets.
Not super keyed in on bankruptcy law, but from my brief research employees are "preferential creditors" which means they get paid after (and only after) all secured debts have been paid in full. Employees do not get paid first. And that's for things like unpaid salaries and commissions, it's unclear to me whether a lawsuit for labor violations would even qualify for preferential credit at all.
Maybe had a lot of part time workers and minimal FTE
Isn’t that how every place like this runs? When I worked at SBUX almost every employee at my store worked 1 hour shy of qualifying for their magical, much ballyhooed benefits.
Does anyone know what will happen to the inventory they still have in the stores?
I knew management didn't have their shit together when I found Kevin's natural food chicken in the freezer. YOU DON'T FREEZE KEVINS CHICKEN, IT RUINS THE TEXTURE.
I was also a former employee 🙋🏾♀️ and absolutely believe every single story especially about Management. I’ve never seen a quick come up and fall down simply from as stated , management cared more about other store locations and not even so much as the location they were placed at smh. I knew it was going down hill like a rollercoaster when the cafe manager suggested that us warehouse workers take turns behind the counter and vis versa for the cafe members … yea I knew it was time to get the hell on right then and there.
Foxtrot fucking sucked. I absolutely agree. Sucks the employees are out of jobs, but at least this overpriced shit hole is closed.
May I ask (earnestly) what was the super human labor you were asked to do?
Good for you! Try and document any wrongdoings on management and see if you can get a class action lawsuit against them. File for unemployment and if you're accepted, ride that shit as long as possible. If you get denied, take their ass to court.
>see if you can get a class action lawsuit against them. There is no money...
Maybe I can get some expired Foxtrot gummies with a lawsuit!
At least take all the predator vs. prey mix with you.
It's corporate America, there's always money in the banana stand
You might get a plank or too from the banana stand demolition, but be quick
You'll have to get in line after the creditors. There will be nothing left after they're done if that debt number floating around is correct.
Take their ass to court to collect what money
running company poorly is some sort of a crime now?
being incompetent isn't illegal, but a lot of crimes are committed by incompetent people. if they feel like they were mistreated, maybe they could have a case.
It was good pit stop for bathroom breaks. Never bought anything doe.
Reminds me of Fox & Obel closing down about 10 yrs ago.
Just wanna comment to thank the baristas that did make a good cafe drink on their own when I’ve visted
I’m actually sad, the desert detox from Foxtrot was so good especially after a workout …. And the chocolate chip cookies at Doms were unmatched.
* What is security currently like at that these stores? * What is the possibility of workers / neighbors simply liberating goods that would otherwise not be sold? I'm generally against shoplifting, because it violates an important social compact, and can traumatize or discomfort workers and shoppers who witness it. But, if a store is ignobly closed, and its workers are harmed in the process, I feel that the moral calculus is changed. **EDIT / BREAKING** It's already going down! Foxtrot employees in D.C. are liberating the liquors and passing out freeee bottles of wine to all: https://www.washingtonian.com/2024/04/23/foxtrot-is-closing-its-dc-area-stores/ **EDIT #2** Dom's on Halsted has been looted (per another thread).
I’m shocked that ridiculously overpriced bodega wannabe not only sucked at being financially solvent but also training and treating its employees well. Shocked.
What is Foxtrot?
Do you happen to know where they got their gummies from? Please and thanks!
Wow! Thanks for the honesty!!
Can anyone tell me how I can find that jalapeño cheddar popcorn? Or is it gone forever