The days are getting shorter as each passes, and the holiday season is quickly approaching. What better time to shed some light on a new leader in the Smokehaus community? We’re pleased to formally introduce to you our current mail order director, Michael Roberts. In March of 2022, Michael stepped into the role to fill the shoes of Andy, our previous mail order director, who has made a horizontal move to director of wholesale, and works in close conjunction with Michael.
Michael began working at NWS in September 2018. During their four year tenure, Michael has developed a detailed and growing knowledge of the products we make, from suppliers to processes to the specifics of packaging and shipping, and they’ve done it all while maintaining their characteristic easygoing, laid-back, infectiously positive outlook and wit.
Put simply, Michael is the kind of person you like to be talking to, whether you’re customer or co-worker. Between their work in the deli, at catering events, and pop-ups, many of you are likely to have had such encounters. In addition to the forward-facing work, Michael has also paid their dues packaging hundreds (perhaps thousands?!) of boxes as a holiday season mail order elf, dug in the trenches alongside our prep department, and the occasional shift in the dish pit.
When they’re not at work, Michael likes to hang with their kid and go on hikes together, spend quality time with their dog and cats, jam to music (a little bit of everything, but especially bands like the Strokes, Karen O and the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, and Chicano Batman), make memes, and attend/scheme-to-attend various music festivals—their favorite of which is Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, TN because of its deep-rooted sense of community during the festival and throughout the year. Michael lives life fully, hoping to have a good time as much of the time as possible.
At work, they were inspired early on by words from “a more tenured coworker, who was giving a speech about why every sandwich we make matters. That people stop by Duluth on vacation just to try our food. To see passion about detail, made it feel like an inspiring experience working at Northern Waters,” and find inspiration daily amongst their “very talented and unique” fellow Smokehausers, from Eric, because of “his leadership style and the passion he has for the work and product,” to the others scattered throughout DeWitt-Seitz Marketplace, “who all have their own little side hustles, from music to mobile saunas” and beyond.
Their favorite official and unofficial NWS offerings are the catering menu’s All-Season (Smoked Fish) Platter because “it looks incredible and never lets you down. Always a satisfying experience, and a beautiful centerpiece,” and a variation on the Banh Faux Mi “without the country pâté, sub turkey toasted with a hoisin-and-sriracha rub, and one line of wasabi mayo.”
Through their position as mail order director, Michael looks forward to guiding literal tons of Smokehaus products across the nation, to using their own creative spark and vision “to help the business grow and express itself”, and also to utilizing the Smokehaus’ platform to grow other local businesses, like Underwood Coffee in the “Everything But The Eggs Brunch Box”, Naturalight candles in this year’s upcoming version of the “Hygge Box”, and Native Wise wild rice in the “Big Lake and the Good Seed” gift box. “We’re in a position to help others grow while growing our own business.”
Michael is especially excited about the two new gift boxes this holiday season, the aforementioned “Big Lake and the Good Seed” gift box in collaboration with Native Wise, as it “gives back to Indigenous community, traditional food providers, and my own cultural upbringing” and “The Flavorhaus Box” a tribute to our deli’s segment on Diners, Drive-ins and Dives. They are also making moves to add another sandwich to our growing list of Sandwich Kits in the not-so-distant future.
While the mail order team is currently just a small handful of folks, and Michael is involved with a majority of the day-to-day labor of the job, they’re excited to jump into the big picture work, from logistics to communicating with customers to shepherding the swelling numbers of mail order elves and keeping morale high during the intense holiday rush. Michael’s here for it. Your mail order experience is in good hands.