Cayla Wilborn... where do we begin... Cayla is the bright and smiling face that you see performing the Baggage Experience and 60 Showdown throughout the week. Her involvement here at UBC is supernatural and more involved than most people know, so... we wanted to share a little bit about her with you fine folks.
UBC: So how long have you been with us now?
CW: I’ve been here 5 and ½ years.
UBC: What were your thoughts when you decided to come work with us?
CW: I needed a job! My husband, Jake, and I had just gotten married and I knew I needed to work! I was a cashier for about a year, and then I moved to the jewelry department for around eight months, then that’s when Mike (UBC president) came on board and created a position called ‘Guest Experience Coordinator’ and I just KNEW that’s what I wanted to do, so I applied and got the job!
UBC: What is the ‘Guest Experience Coordinator’?
CW: I would do individual training with every associate on the sales floor for guest experiences, using what we call the “10-foot rule”, ensuring that we talk to every guest within 10 feet.
UBC: How did you transition from that to now, being the Marketing Assistant?
CW: I knew it would take heaven and earth for me to leave Guest Experience Coordinator, it was just me in a job, I loved that position, and when I heard that there was a new position over in marketing, I knew that I would love to go work for our Brand Ambassador, Brenda Cantrell, but I didn’t go to college for marketing so I was clueless! So, I got the description of the job and I thought to myself “well this is a lot”, but I knew I wanted a challenge and I knew I had more to offer, but I didn’t really know what that was. I prayed about it, and I’ll never forget the day that Brenda told me I got the job. She took me over to Cups Café and I just cried because it was such a phenomenal opportunity!
UBC: Now that you’re in this position you go to a lot of places, such as the Women’s Shows and other events around the area. A lot of people know you as the face for these Unclaimed Baggage experiences. They may not know who you are, but they know you because they see you do the 60 Second Showdown, The Baggage Experience, and just being around for every major event we do. So, have you ever had anyone come up to you at an event and say “oh, I’ve seen you here!”?
CW: Yeah, it’s actually funny because it’s not just events, sometimes it’s Walmart! I know that they know me from the store, but I meet these people from the Women’s Shows and they’ll come to the store and ask for me. You make these relationships with people that you meet for only a few minutes, and that’s what it’s all about. It’s a very big responsibility to be the face of something, so I take that very seriously.
UBC: Do you think people see you as somewhat of a role model in the store, and even the local community?
CW: I definitely have to hold myself accountable for my actions as well because I’m a representation of this company and I take what I do very seriously. The brand itself carries with you and it becomes part of who you are, and I love every bit of it.