Meet Anna Bays

Meet Anna Bays

Written by Lindsey Lapointe

Name: Anna Bays 

Title: Storefront Staff - Sales, Quality Control, Inventory

Hails From: Bethlehem, New Hampshire 

Been at Burgeon Since: March 2024

Preferred Ways to Move It Outdoors: She loves it all: hiking, running, rock climbing, and paddling sports in New Hampshire and beyond.

Favorite Food: Sushi! Anna shares, “I could probably eat sushi for breakfast, lunch, and dinner,” and she also adds, “Don’t sleep on Market Basket sushi. It’s really good.” 

Music: 70s-80s Classic Rock and an “obsession” with the band The Alan Parsons Project 

Pastimes: Besides everything outside, she loves art, sewing, birding, and collecting classic rock vinyl

Past life: Anna has a four-year degree in Adventure Education. She likes to tell people she went to school for “Outside”. She previously worked in nonprofit youth programming.

Recent Adventure: Hiked Galehead, North Twin, and South Twin Mountains

Favorite Small Adventure: Quincy Bog in Plymouth for the wildlife

Favorite Burgeon Product: Pemi Hoodie (see why below)

Anna has been at Burgeon for less than a year, but she’s already a valuable member of the team and a dedicated advocate for the brand. During our recent chat, I discovered more about Anna’s many dimensions and how she helps support Burgeon and its customers.

A typical day for Anna

Anna’s day starts by opening up the store and making sure everything is in order. She’s also one of the employees to process online orders. She shares, “There’s a good chance that if you order from Burgeon, you’ll receive a nice little handwritten note with my name on it.” She also shares that customer service is always a “top priority,” and she also processes returns and answers emails from customers. 

As the store picks up during the day, Anna’s main job is with the customers. She is there to advise them on the best type of product based on their needs in addition to helping with sizing and fit. 

She also likes taking on projects including everything from custom order printing to quality control. At Burgeon, this means she literally hand checks every single garment on the rack. “Every product?” I asked her. To which she replied, “Yes. Every single product. We put in a lot of care to go above and beyond on the quality control.” 

What brought Anna to Burgeon

Anna wasn’t necessarily looking for a job in sales. She was searching for a job that “meant something”. As a long-time local - she wanted to work at a place that respected the local community. She shares, “I saw that Burgeon was about the local environment and community and they had that one of the focuses. That really drew me to the job. I wasn’t interested in just selling outdoor products. I was interested in doing something with a purpose behind it. I just like that there’s that dimension to Burgeon.” 

On why her favorite Burgeon Product is the Pemi Hoodie

As a storefront and sales employee, Anna knows Burgeon products well. From the fit and materials to use and comfort - she’s an expert. However, she shares her reasoning has nothing to do with typical clothing qualifications. She explains, “The reason I like the Pemi Hoodie so much is it’s the most environmentally friendly hoodie because it's only ever made of “deadstock” material. It’s all material that would otherwise be sent to a landfill.” You can learn more about this product and deadstock material here.

Hobbies and interests

Our conversation showed Anna’s jack-of-all-trades description goes beyond her work life. She also has a well-rounded range of hobbies and interests. While you can often find her galavanting in the White Mountains or birding at Quincy Bog, she’s not just an outdoor enthusiast. Anna loves drawing and painting. In addition, she’s recently picked up a new artistic endeavor with sewing and multi-media artwork. She shares that her work at Burgeon is part of her inspiration: “Ever since working at Burgeon, I’ve taken on a lot more sewing projects.” She’s using scrap fabrics in new and unique ways by dying fabrics and adding them to other pieces. What’s more, she’s been inspired by seeing the sewing team at Burgeon. She states, “It’s been cool to see the back end of production.” To her, sewing clothing now “makes more sense.”

On what keeps her at Burgeon

Anna’s happy to be here. She’s found peace and balance in this position so that she can enjoy work and take advantage of living in a beautiful place. When I asked her why she stays, it’s the team that comes to mind. She says she loves “how close-knit everybody feels together.” She likes knowing everyone in the company and how it's intertwined. She explains that it makes it feel “transparent.” 

Final Thoughts

Anna’s enthusiasm for her work at Burgeon is obvious. As we wrapped up our conversation, Anna wanted to be sure to share her favorite part of working at Burgeon. She was happy to gush, “My favorite part about working here is that when customers come in asking for advice on clothing or advice on what to do in the area. I like getting to know people and their backgrounds and being that local guide.” Anna’s approachable demeanor, dedication to the Burgeon mission, and love of the products shined through. 

Whether you’re looking for the perfect new hoodie made here in New Hampshire or you just want to talk about 70s rock, Anna’s looking forward to meeting new customers (and seeing the regulars) in the shop.

This blog post was written by Lindsey Lapointe. Check out her blog, The Freelance Adventurer.