Be Better, Be Different: Meet All Star Services

“Be different than what everybody else is doing, and be better than you were yesterday.”

Those words, though spoken by the company’s vice president of sales and marketing, encapsulate the approach that the entire team at All Star Services has embraced to forge a winning path. This third-generation vending, office coffee service and micro markets operator flourishes in Michigan thanks to its familial bonds and collaborative partnerships.

All Star Services is born

All Star got its start in 1963 as the vending division of Coca-Cola Bottling of Port Huron, led by William "Bill" Kreger. The business was successful, but a significant change was coming.

Suzanne, Bill Kreger's daughter, had married an up-and-coming executive with Coca-Cola, whose advancements in the company warranted frequent moves across the country. Their first son Duncan was born in Pittsburgh, and their son Devin was born in Utah. Yet what Suzanne Smith wanted most was to be closer to family and to return to her Michigan roots.

That was made possible when Bill Kreger sold the Coca-Cola bottling rights and invited his son-in-law, Jeff Smith, to run the newly independent vending operation, All Star Services. In 1987, just before Jeff and Suzanne's daughter Caroline was born, the young family returned to Michigan and began to grow All Star Services.

“It was a very small operation, and through a lot of crazy, fun stories, relentless cold calling and some great acquisitions, Jeff was instrumental — with some great team members along the way —in growing All Star,” said Jon Holden, All Star’s vice president of sales and marketing.

Today, although Suzanne Smith, All Star's owner, and Jeff Smith, All Star's CEO, come into the office most days, the third generation is at the helm of day-to-day operations for the All Star team. Duncan Smith joined All Star in 2000 and is the company president. Devin Smith is vice president of technology and oversees the equipment and new technology for All Star. Caroline Holden serves as director of office coffee services and handles procurement. Rounding out the company leadership is Jon Holden, Caroline’s husband, who handles sales and marketing as well as the company’s efforts to support products from Michigan.

Good partners are key to success

The company has evolved steadily since its early days, through both acquisitions and organic growth.

“All Star really grew quickly through the 70s, 80s and early 90s through acquisition,” said company president Duncan Smith. “We made 11 acquisitions in little over 20 years. We haven't made one in well over a decade now, but if the opportunity arose for us to do it, we'd always look at it.”

The primary driver behind All Star’s organic growth is collaborative partnerships — a thread that connects so many aspects of its business.

“We don't look for deals, we look for partnerships — with our clients that we support, and our suppliers that work with us,” Duncan said. “We're not interested in anything short-term. Everything is long-term strategic vision.”

The company’s core values — partnering with the right suppliers and customers, creating a positive work environment by focusing on their employees continuously, and finding ways to do things better — serve as the bedrock upon which the company’s success is based.

“Those three things have been the core that we’ve built on almost a decade now, I don't think we're changing those anytime soon,” Duncan said.

One key partner that All Star points to is its participation with GlobalConnect, a consortium of independent food service companies in North America. As members of GlobalConnect, All Star offers all its customers the USConnectMe Loyalty and Rewards Program via its cashless payment system.

The program allows All Star to offer promotions on snacks, beverages and food in its vending machines and markets. Customers earn points from purchases that can be redeemed for future purchases. In addition, 1.5% of US Connect loyalty sales are donated to the customer’s charity of choice.

Growing from challenges

Speak to any of the company leaders, and you will soon see how each is quick to point out the key role that their team plays in its success.

“We're currently at 80 employees. As we've grown, we've added along the way. We focus on promoting from within and starting that growth to leadership the day that someone walks in the door. We try to identify future leaders in the interview process, whether it's through just natural feeling, or even asking the question. We put them on a track to help them grow to become the next leaders, the next generation of our organization.” Duncan said.

“Right now, we have a really strong group of operational managers that all came up through the ranks and are managing the jobs that they were hired for originally. It's a real collaborative effort. It's helped with our morale and the positive workforce that we've talked about for years, and we've focused on,” Duncan said.

“It's our team — our HR manager and the operations folks — that take that message from us —from Jon, from Caroline, from Devin, from Duncan — that we want to be a positive work environment, and we want to have a place where people want to work.

“They carried it forward, based on the growth they have and the knowledge they have of working with us, and our vision. So, we’re real proud of what they've done and the work environment we've created,” he added.

Having such a strong team also helps insulate All Star from some of the workforce shortages that have plagued other operators. “I wouldn't say lined up at the door, but we have a lot of employee referrals for employment here because it's a good place to work,” Duncan said.

“As you hear of industry struggles — or other industries struggle with employment just in general — we have not had one issue with employment since the pandemic. Whenever we have an opening, we fill it within reason. I firmly believe that's because of the work environment we've created here.”