Seniors Kailyn Hall and Annie Lanter split time at La Patisserie
It’s 12:30 in the afternoon and fourth period has just ended. But instead of joining her friends for a satisfying lunch, senior Annie Lanter is on her way to decorate a birthday cake.
Lanter, along with friend senior Kailyn Hall, works as a sales associate at the popular bakery La Patisserie (French for “pastry”) on Stevens Creek Boulevard. As the managers’ aides, they are responsible for a variety of duties that range from writing on cakes to managing the cash register, for up to eight hours a day. It is not uncommon for Lanter to squeeze in a few hours in the morning before coming to school in addition to working in the afternoon.
Having been employed at La Patisserie since the summer after her freshman year, Lanter is a veteran of the working world, but by no means does that lessen the pressure she feels each day to succeed both at work and at school. Both Hall and Lanter work four hours a school day on average.
“It’s really hard. It’s definitely exhausting,” Lanter said. “When you start working, you get a different perspective on things—sometimes you completely forget you have school. [Hall] and I were talking one night on Sunday, and we were just like, tomorrow’s Monday, just another work day, and then we were like, wait, we have school too!”
Hall, who previously had her own business selling food in Monterey, started at La Patisserie when Lanter invited her earlier last year, and the two split a work day into four-hour shifts Monday through Thursday. As they share the same position, it is often a struggle to work out a schedule that suits both of them.
“I know [Lanter] got the job because she really needed money, and I kind of needed ‘luxury money,’” Hall said. “She knows she needs to work a certain amount of hours a week, and we try to work it out as much as possible.”
In addition to the difficult scheduling, the two had to learn a brand-new set of skills when they started working at the bakery, such as making gourmet coffee, providing quality customer service, and working with a larger group of people. Many of their fellow employees have also become their good friends.
“One of my managers really tries to get to know us, asks about our lives, they have really nice husbands…it’s like a new family,” Lanter said.
Love and compassion can also be observed in other ways, such as the way the customers help one another. Lanter describes an instance in which a man bought an apple Danish for a woman whom he did not know because she could not afford to buy one. Witnessing such events is Lanter’s favorite aspect of working at La Patisserie.
Together, Lanter and Hall distribute sweet eclairs and tortes to the public, gaining work experience and building relationships.
“We’ve definitely had our hardships… but it’s been fun [working with Lanter], especially when our schedules overlap,” Hall said. “We have a lot of fun.”
