Lavpreet Deol: from uncertainty to success in Subway management

When asked about the challenging time of her career, Lavpreet Deol highlighted the time she waited patiently for her promotion. Lavpreet Deol is the manager of the downtown and Southgate Subway stores. Lavpreet Deol described it as a confusing time of uncertainty. It tortured the hope she hung by. Despite that exasperating delay, she continued to work very hard at her job. She reminded herself that her perseverance should undoubtedly grant her a sweet success. In the end, it sure did. She compared this achievement to “finally coming out for air after holding her breath for so long.”

Lavpreet is the first of three children. She is the only one who was born at Ludhiana, Punjab. Her birth took place at her maternal grandmother’s house to honor their culture’s first-child tradition. A few months after birth, she was sent to her father’s house in Mumbai. She was raised and went to school there. She eventually earned her master’s degree in commerce and accounting. Growing up as the first child of the family, she was adored and spoiled by everyone.

“My dad said I could talk way before I could walk. My family took turns to carry me all day. They never wanted to put me down,” she said, remembering her conversation with her best person in the world.

She admitted that she shared a very strong bond with her father. She is confident to say he is her best friend. She let out an embarrassed laugh when she proceeded to say she loves her father more than her husband. Her husband gave his opinion that she’s a unique one. He mentioned that little girls are often closer with their mothers. Though, Lavpreet is the closest to her dad. She calls him every day, and they would speak on the phone casually for hours. He said he was grateful for her father, who raised her to be the caring and loving woman she is today. Hearing this, she became a little emotional. She expressed that the decision to leave her father’s side to come to Canada was the hardest. It only became harder with the years she spent away from him.

She first arrived in Toronto, Ontario, in 2009, where she lived with her uncle and his family. She was an adored child who got whatever she wanted back home. She had to break out of her shell. She needed to experience life as an independent woman in Canada. Still, that was not easy at all because these new experiences were extremely unpalatable, which is why she became extremely shy. She would sometimes cry because she struggled to express herself. She started her first job as a grocery store clerk.

She quit at the end of her shift because she hated it so much. She believed there should be a good fitting job for her out there. That’s when she started working as a sandwich artist at Subway in Toronto. She fell in love with it. Being in customer service helped her a lot to speak to people and get rid of her extremely shy side. She began to get comfortable speaking her mind and became the cheerful person she is today. She worked at Subways in three different provinces. Then she finally relocated to Edmonton. There she started off as a store supervisor at Commerce Place. After being a manager at her former store in Vancouver, she felt it was a drawback to be a supervisor. Her bosses assured her they would consider her as soon as a manager spot became available.

Being transferred all around the Edmonton stores and watching co-workers get promoted certainly was not easy for Deol. She still credits that experience for the amazing bonds and friendships she has formed everywhere she went. Her coworkers and staff were happy for her as they saw her as deserving for a manager’s position.

One of her staff, Linda De La Vega, said she whooped with joy. She was excited when she heard that Lavpreet was returning to her store as a manager. She describes Lavpreet as a very cheery and benevolent boss who knows very well how to manage her emotions. She recalled an incident where a customer was mad and threw a tantrum. Lavpreet demonstrated capable managerial qualities by how she calmed the customer. She resolved the situation. Even though the customer embarrassed her, she could apologize. She served other customers with a real smile on her face.

Her co-worker and former boss Miss Prency Havinga also extended her well wishes to Lavpreet on her first manager’s tasks. Havinga said working with Lavpreet had been a real pleasure. They worked together for years. They never argued or fought about anything. “She is a very calm person, who can make customers laugh amid their arguing,” Prency said about her. She painted a picture of a kind, patient and hardworking person who would go for what she deserves.

First published on my earlier portfolio site on April 3, 2023. Written as a class project during my communication studies.