Store Manager Melissa Caldarella, #1219, Lutz, Fla., was born to lead. As soon as she turned 16, she marched through those iconic electric eye doors at the Publix she’d shopped at as a child and asked for a job. She got it, and hasn’t left.

“Since I was a little girl, I knew Publix was special,” said Melissa. “When I shopped with my parents, the store manager would always shake our hands and chat with us. That set the standard for customer service for me.”

As a leader, she focuses on hiring, training, promoting and retaining outstanding Publix associates. When interviewing, she looks for associates who have that extra something that all great Publix associates have — the ability to interact with people and demonstrate a servant’s heart.

“I want anyone I hire to be someone who could be the next Publix leader,” said Melissa. “When I find those people, I do all I can to share the Publix culture with them and let them know about all the opportunities at Publix so they’ll stay with us.”

Melissa’s also a strong believer in cross-training. She feels it keeps associates motivated and interested, and also helps us provide better customer service. Every department in her store has cross-trained associates working in it.

“We try to get as many associates cross-trained as possible so they can jump in and take care of our customers anywhere in the store at any given moment,” said Melissa.
And perhaps that’s the secret to why she’s been so successful, both in running a great store and seeing so many of her associates get promoted.

“When one of my current or former associates is able to grow with Publix, I like to hope I had a little something to do with it,” said Melissa. “I grew up with Publix under leaders who were like Mr. George to me, and I want to be that for my associates, too.”