Blog
Hortensia — A Pillar at Steven Label!
Posted: April 23, 2020 |
About Hortensia
Hortensia is a customer service representative and a team leader in her department. She is one of the pillars of Steven Label. She truly grew up with Steven Label, having started working for them in 1979 at the age of 19. Most of our longest standing customers have worked with Hortensia at one point or another and have always given complimentary support of her work ethic and commitment. Hortensia has mentored a lot of employees, both in and out of the customer service department, to help grow their skills at Steven Label and in other life aspects. It is obvious to anyone that has worked with her that Hortensia cares a lot about doing the right thing for both the customer and for our company, and manages this balance well. Hortensia’s laugh is contagious and is heard often in the office when you spend any time near her. She is proud of her family– her husband Juan, and her two boys, Isa and Juan Jr (Pablo). One of the things that Hortensia does best is to help us all remember what type of company we want to be, and that is: to be good and do good.
HORTENSIA WITH THE STEVEN FAMILY, THE ORIGINAL OWNERS OF STEVEN LABEL, RAY BROWN, WHO HIRED HER, AND NORAH ENGLE, A FORMER LONG-STANDING EMPLOYEE OF STEVEN LABEL
What are your hobbies?
My hobbies and interests are centered around my family. I have a really large family and we are all close. I have 5 brothers and 7 sisters. My husband Juan and I have two sons, Juan Jr. (endearingly called Pablo) and Isa, both of whom I am very proud of. The majority of my family all live in the same town or nearby. Each weekend and any other free time is typically spent with my family at my mother’s house. We now take turns and work together cooking for such a large family. If something is happening, it’s at mom’s house!
Steven Label is part of who I am today and has played a large part in most of my life. I had my bridal shower hosted by the granddaughter of Jim Steven, the founder of Steven Label. Press operators even took bets on whether my first born was going to be a boy or girl! When I say my family, Steven Label is included.
HORTENSIA WITH HER MOTHER, CHILDREN AND HUSBAND
HORTENSIA’S SONS AS BABIES – ISA (LEFT) AND PABLO (RIGHT)
HORTENSIA’S SONS NOW – PABLO (LEFT) AND ISA (RIGHT)
What does your favorite vacation consist of?
Today, my favorite vacation means Vegas! Mostly because that’s one of the places my husband also likes to go and it is fun to relax with a bit of excitement mixed in.
We’ve also vacationed on sunny beaches like Cancun, just sweating away the days with cold drinks, but the excitement of Vegas is more our style now. I love slots, it is easy entertainment and there is a chance for a big win. Typically, we bring home our winnings. I remember one particular trip where I won the jackpot. It was really exciting and we won a lot! Luckily (no pun intended), we are good at keeping to a budget and avoiding the ATM. We really have a good time there.
What could you teach me to do?
I could teach you to dance! I love to dance rancheras and cumbias! My favorite music style is mariachi and listen to it quite a bit. Dancing is something I’ve done since I was a young girl. I have always enjoyed the rhythm of the music and it feels great to get on the dance floor and have some fun! Also, I really like doing Zumba workouts because of the dancing. It is quite fun!
How did you get started in the industry?
I was job hunting straight out of High School and was using the local Santa Fe Springs Neighborhood Center who helped setup opportunities for me. I had a few job interviews scheduled, Steven Label was the first, with Mr. Ray Brown. The other interview was at J.C. Penney which I never ended up going to. I came into Steven Label for the receptionist position. During the interview they offered me the position and asked me to stay. They asked if I needed anything before starting immediately. My only request was to call my mother to let her know I wasn’t going to be coming home right away! That was almost 41 years ago.
HORTENSIA ON BREAK WITH CO-WORKERS
HORTENSIA AND HER HUSBAND AT THE FIRST COMPANY PICNIC
What has been one of the biggest changes you’ve seen while working here?
Order processing has changed a lot. I used to type out orders on a manual typewriter and then use the ditto machine1. Now we use STAT, which is incredibly fast and handles many complicated tasks for us to make our jobs much easier. Even though we still do the same basic function – support our customers – we can do it much more effectively.
Fortunately, one of the things that has not changed is the general culture, and that is a great thing. Even with new managers, employees, additional facilities and technologies, I still feel like we all really want to work together and be successful. We’re a united family. We are growing and we have our pains but we all generally still have the same feel as when I first began working here. When we work on new projects, we are all working together to figure out the best way to meet our customer’s needs while supporting our business along the way to ensure we all get to be here tomorrow. It’s all I know, and I feel fortunate to work with such a great group of people.
1Hortensia was very patient in the interview to explain how a super duplicator, or ditto machine, actually worked to Nate. Even though the technology was replaced by conventional photo-copiers, tattoo artists often still use this technology to transfer the template onto the skin.
HORTENSIA AND KELLIE TAYLOR WITH THEIR SPOUSES AT A STEVEN LABEL CHRISTMAS PARTY
What advice would you give to future employees that are new at Steven Label?
Take a minute and listen. This company is not just a “small printing company,” even though we have grown so much since I first started. If you pause to hear about what is happening in almost any department at almost any time, you’ll realize how many opportunities there are and how many things are going on. There is such a future here. Together, we have created a company that has supported so many of our livelihoods and want to see this continue with the new employees. I see some employees who seem to get this message early on in their career and have learned the trade and have grown a lot with the company. I have seen that our culture of honesty and caring is a message that carries through to our customers. We have passionate customers that enjoy working with us because they can tell we want to do what is right and work hard to support them. Funny, I didn’t really think about all of the things this company has done in my life until we took this moment to reflect. And now it’s all a bit overwhelming and endearing and I love it!
KARYN WILL, NATE SHEARER, STEVE STONG, DON CHELIUS AND HORTENSIA AT A STEVEN LABEL CHRISTMAS PARTY
Thank you for your continued contribution to Steven Label, Hortensia!
