{"id":1443,"date":"2015-12-10T22:09:57","date_gmt":"2015-12-10T22:09:57","guid":{"rendered":""},"modified":"2021-08-03T16:42:51","modified_gmt":"2021-08-03T16:42:51","slug":"q-shinolas-movement-assembly-team-supervisor-willie-holley","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/q-shinolas-movement-assembly-team-supervisor-willie-holley\/","title":{"rendered":"DETROIT MOVING FORWARD: TALKING SHOP WITH WATCH ASSEMBLY SUPERVISOR WILLIE HOLLEY"},"content":{"rendered":"

Learn more about Willie and his career at Shinola below.<\/p>\n

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Inside the watch factory. <\/p>\n

How old are you and where did you grow up? <\/strong><\/p>\n

I\u2019m 28. I grew up on Hayes and Outer Drive on the East side of Detroit. I graduated from Cass Technical High School. After high school, I tried to get into different training programs, but despite my working income being low, it was too high for me to qualify. If I hadn\u2019t come to Shinola, I think I would still be trying to do something else in a technical field.<\/p>\n

How did you discover Shinola?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I was working as a security guard down on the first floor of the Taubman Building (Shinola\u2019s headquarters), and I could see the increase in activity and excitement as Shinola started moving in. Shinola staff were coming and going. One day, I heard that Olivier (now the Director of Watch Operations) was in the building, overseeing the last stages before the startup. I was doing rounds, and I saw him in his office. I knocked, and he was startled\u2014I was a security officer, after all, and my knocking meant something was maybe wrong. But I told him that I was interested in a job. <\/p>\n

He said that a position had already been filled for a maintenance tech, which is what interested me. But I came back to be interviewed as a line assembler and tested for dexterity\u2014handling the tiny tools and \u201csticks\u201d for manipulating the small watch parts. I really wanted to impress him, so that I could move up in the company\u2014I had that drive, right away. He gave me a test to see if I could put a watch\u2019s movement sample together\u2014I passed, and he was impressed.<\/p>\n

During the training, I didn\u2019t realize that I was being observed and vetted for a team leader position. I was placed on various jobs\u2014in every single operation, for every single caliber. <\/p>\n

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This is the final check operation on the movement line in the watch factory.<\/p>\n

What was the company like three years ago compared to today? <\/strong><\/p>\n

There was only one production line. There were not even many tables and chairs, and there was no administration side. We hadn\u2019t learned how to assemble the watches; we were just learning, and now our operations take up two entire floors (Shinola is taking on a second floor at CCS starting in 2016).<\/p>\n

What has been a highpoint for you so far in the company? <\/strong><\/p>\n

When I was sent to Thailand to be trained on movement assembly\u2014that was awesome. The culture and people, even the night life is so different, and someone is always selling something. I was there for two weeks and knew I had chosen my profession. They had always wanted to send someone from the movement team to bring knowledge back from Thailand, what they do there, and how they assemble. I learned an awful lot about how movements are made and just how seriously they take creating movements. I also recently went to New York with a co-worker to accept a prestigious Ace Awards (Accessories Council), for Best Brand Launch, on behalf of Shinola.<\/p>\n

What do you want to do in the future at Shinola?<\/strong><\/p>\n

I would like to be involved in building one of the company\u2019s startups\u2014opening more factory lines, training and vetting others like what was done for me.<\/p>\n

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Te’Nesha “T.T.” Martin, Willie Holley, and Titus Hayes were all hired in 2012. (L to R)<\/p>\n

What is your favorite thing about working at Shinola?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It\u2019s changed over time, but I think now it\u2019s being recognized as a leader.<\/p>\n

How does it feel to be from Detroit and work for a company that manufactures products in Detroit?<\/strong><\/p>\n

It makes me feel like I\u2019m a part of the city moving forward. Shinola is literally a Detroit company, it really took root and grew here. Detroiters work here, and it\u2019s a place right here in Detroit to work for good wages and opportunity. We\u2019ve all come here and started from the bottom, but you can move up in this company.<\/p>\n

This interview is part of a new series called JOBS that highlights the people that make Shinola tick. Find their stories here on The Journal or on our Jobs page<\/a>. <\/em>This interview was done by Marsha Music.<\/em><\/p>\n

Nearly all of Shinola Products are Built in the US with US or Imported Parts<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Learn more about Willie and his career at Shinola below. [[{“type”:”media”,”view_mode”:”media_original”,”fid”:”1525″,”attributes”:{“alt”:””,”class”:”media-image”,”height”:”540″,”typeof”:”foaf:Image”,”width”:”960″}}]] Inside the watch factory.  How old are you and where did you grow up?  I\u2019m 28. I grew up on Hayes and Outer Drive on the East side of Detroit. I graduated from Cass Technical High School. After high school, I tried to get […]<\/p>\n

Read More…<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":67,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[],"tags":[8,14],"yoast_head":"\nDETROIT MOVING FORWARD: TALKING SHOP WITH WATCH ASSEMBLY SUPERVISOR WILLIE HOLLEY - Our Stories<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/ourstories.shinola.com\/our-stories\/q-shinolas-movement-assembly-team-supervisor-willie-holley\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"DETROIT MOVING FORWARD: TALKING SHOP WITH WATCH ASSEMBLY SUPERVISOR WILLIE HOLLEY - Our Stories\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Learn more about Willie and his career at Shinola below. 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