In 2016, Gary Bertch told the 800 employees of the Bertch Cabinet manufacturer that if they met certain goals for the year, each person would be rewarded with a cruise. The workers rose to the challenge, and next week, they're trading in the cold weather of Waterloo, Iowa, for the warmth of the Caribbean.
"We finally got into the black again last year after we made it through the recession," Bertch told The Associated Press. The company was founded in 1977, and at its peak employed 1,000 people. Recovery from the economic downturn has been "very slow" in the cabinet industry, Bertch said, but things seem to be moving in the right direction. "We were anticipating we'd have better sales again this year," he said. "We just tried to get all of our people pumped up a little more to achieve the various goals, both customer-oriented goals and financial goals."
Subscribe to The Week
Escape your echo chamber. Get the facts behind the news, plus analysis from multiple perspectives.
Sign up for The Week's Free Newsletters
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
From our morning news briefing to a weekly Good News Newsletter, get the best of The Week delivered directly to your inbox.
Create an account with the same email registered to your subscription to unlock access.
-
The hunt for Planet NineUnder The Radar Researchers seeking the elusive Earth-like planet beyond Neptune are narrowing down their search
-
Magazine interactive crossword - April 26, 2024Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - April 26, 2024
-
Magazine solutions - April 26, 2024Puzzles and Quizzes Issue - April 26, 2024
-
Post Office's Capture software to be reviewed over 'glitches'Speed Read Solicitor representing accused postmasters says flaws in the IT system follow 'very similar pattern' to Horizon
-
Empty-nest boomers aren't selling their big homesSpeed Read Most Americans 60 and older do not intend to move, according to a recent survey
-
Brazil accuses Musk of 'disinformation campaign'Speed Read A Brazilian Supreme Court judge has opened an inquiry into Elon Musk and X
-
Disney board fends off Peltz infiltration bidSpeed Read Disney CEO Bob Iger has defeated activist investor Nelson Peltz in a contentious proxy battle
-
Disney and DeSantis reach detenteSpeed Read The Florida governor and Disney settle a yearslong litigation over control of the tourism district
-
Visa and Mastercard agree to lower swipe feesSpeed Read The companies will cap the fees they charge businesses when customers use their credit cards
-
Reddit IPO values social media site at $6.4 billionSpeed Read The company makes its public debut on the New York Stock Exchange
-
Housing costs: the root of US economic malaise?speed read Many voters are troubled by the housing affordability crisis
