Mayor Elorza, Snapchef Celebrate Continued Downtown Revitalization
On Thursday, noviembre 10, 2022, Mayor Elorza and other community leaders celebrated Snapchef’s newest expansion in downtown Providence in a ribbon cutting ceremony.
The expansion highlights Snapchef’s dedication to Providence’s growth and revitalization of downtown Providence.
“Downtown Providence is a growing and thriving neighborhood with upcoming investments in outdoor spaces, housing and restaurants that our residents and tourists enjoy year-round,” said Mayor Jorge Elorza. “Our diverse restaurant and hospitality scene make our City a great new home for Snapchef, and I congratulate the entire team on their new space and welcome them to downtown.”
“We are seeing record growth. Snapchef Providence has received a record number of shift requests from clients, averaging over 700 shifts per week, or nearly 3,000 shifts a month. We knew we had to open up a second location to support that growth,” said Todd Snopkowski, CEO and Co-Founder of Snapchef. “Weybosset Street is key for recruiting due to its high visibility location, heavy foot traffic, and proximity to culinary students at Johnson & Wales University.”
“More than half of our staff at this location, right now, are high school students and college students,” said Arwen Robitaille, Snapchef Director of Operations. “Working with students is great. They usually have more open availability, but being able to work with the students is also about working with our clients. Most of our clients are happy to be flexible to accommodate a student’s schedule to make sure a shift is filled.”
Video: Ribbon Cutting Event
The space, located at 259 Weybosset Street in the heart of downtown Providence, will serve as the company’s primary management training center for all Snapchef locations in New England as well as a recruiting location for the Providence area.
“In these times when businesses, particularly those in the hospitality industry, are searching for qualified talent to staff their operations, Snapchef plays an invaluable role in connecting hospitality and food service job seekers to local job opportunities,” said Janet Raymond, Senior Vice President of Economic Development for the Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce. “We are proud to have Snapchef as a Chamber member and congratulate their team on their expansion. Their growth highlights Snapchef’s dedication to the continued revitalization efforts for downtown Providence and the future of our capital city.”
Snapchef is the leading culinary training and staffing agency in New England, serving large kitchens in college dining halls, stadiums, hospitals, nursing homes and more. Since the recent opening of the Weybosset Street location, Snapchef Providence has received nearly 3,000 shift requests per month. The number of shifts requested to be filled determines the company’s capacity for hiring. Snapchef Providence has been hiring over 100 employees each month to meet the current demand.
Snapchef provides various Fast Track training programs to prepare employees for work in the culinary and hospitality industry, giving employees the experience needed to thrive in a busy kitchen. Open shift requests are posted on the company’s staffing app, SnapWare, and an employee chooses which shifts they would like to work, creating flexibility. Shifts can be filled by a Snapchef employee on an as needed basis or in a semi-permanent position, depending on the need of each situation and the employee.
Snapchef Providence on Weybosset Street is the only Snapchef location to have a second base of operations. Snapchef is also in Boston, Worcester, and Springfield, Massachusetts.
