MEMBER PERSPECTIVES
CONTINUED
Meanwhile, Gadabout also decided to require all employees
and guests to wear masks, a decision that they
thought “would be fine.” Instead, the transition to digitalonly
gratuities via Zelle has been painless, while masks
have been a significant pain point, particularly with
guests.
“We had a lot of guests who just didn’t want to come
[because of the mask requirement],” Westerbeke says. “But
we had to inform them that the safety of our guests and our
employees is what is most important.” Westerbeke notes,
however, that most guests have been supportive of the
changes and appreciate the steps taken to ensure safety.
Communicating these changes to guests ahead of time has
been a key part of Gadabout’s reopening strategy.
To accommodate guests who refuse to wear a face mask,
Gadabout has looked to the past: obstinate guests are offered
a handheld face shield, the kind that was once
frequently used for protecting a client’s face while applying
hairspray, says Jasper. “The face shield is amazing for when a
mask isn’t feasible…it’s been one of those small things that
had made the conversation with guests a lot easier.”
Since the initial reopening, Gadabout has rolled out several
more changes to its protocols and procedures. Ongoing
evaluation and evolution is essential to a successful reopening
period; maintaining the highest standards of safety—
and, therefore, keeping a customer’s trust—will be
non-negotiable for the near future. Gadabout deliberately
structured certain changes to “phase in” over time in order to
“If you wait until it’s
already in the building,
you’ve got another
problem to deal with.
Check with HR and legal
to see if you’re doing it
right. It’s better to have
all your details laid out
so that your foundation
is strong if and when
there is a disaster.”
— JANA WESTERBEKE, Co-Owner
36 PULSE ■ AUGUST 2020