Polly’s Pancake Parlor team, a YuMuuv employee wellness case study

Polly’s Pancake Parlor Case Study: An Employee Wellness Program for a Restaurant Team

Polly’s Pancake Parlor is a historic breakfast restaurant founded in 1938 in rural northern New Hampshire. The town has only about 600 residents, yet Polly’s serves up to 700 meals a day in the peak summer months, and it is known for its maple syrup products and made-to-order pancakes. With seasonal staffing and a physically demanding workday, General Manager Chris Cote wanted a simple way to help his team build healthier habits, and since January 2024 that has been YuMuuv.

Table of Contents

At a Glance

  • Company: Polly’s Pancake Parlor, a family breakfast restaurant founded in 1938 in New Hampshire
  • Team: about 60 staff, with 35–40 taking part in YuMuuv challenges
  • Started: January 2024
  • Format: monthly challenges with 7–10 activities, from hydration and sleep to exercise minutes, flossing and community giving
  • Rewards: a raffle with $30–$50 gift cards to local businesses

The Challenge

Restaurants are a tough setting for workplace wellness. Polly’s deals with the same issues as most of the food service industry: seasonal staffing, last-minute absences and long, busy shifts that leave little room for healthy routines. Any program had to be affordable, voluntary and easy to fit around the work.

Goals

  • Encourage health and wellness among staff.
  • Build a culture of consistency and engagement.
  • Offer a fair and enjoyable way to take part in wellness challenges.

Why YuMuuv

Chris introduced YuMuuv to improve employee health, reduce sick days and lift overall engagement. He chose it for its affordability, its non-invasive approach and its voluntary participation model, which lets employees take part at their own pace at no cost to them.

How Polly’s Runs Its Challenges

Polly’s runs a series of monthly challenges, each with 7–10 achievable activities such as hydration, sleep, exercise minutes and personal habits like daily flossing or community giving. Instead of rewarding only the most active people, prizes are drawn in a raffle, so everyone who takes part has a chance. Gift cards to local businesses worth $30–$50 keep it motivating without a big budget.

Non-fitness challenges have been a big part of the appeal. By including habits like community giving, Polly’s broadened what wellness means for a diverse team, and even people who take part only now and then contribute to the culture.

Results

  • Steady participation: 35–40 of about 60 staff take part, driven by the flexibility of the challenges and the chance to win prizes.
  • Friendly competition: staff naturally started friendly rivalries.
  • Small health gains: Chris has seen marginal improvements even among people who take part for short periods.

What Employees Said

Employees have been enthusiastic about the program and appreciate its flexibility and the chance of a reward. Their wish list included more personalization, such as profile photos, and more challenge options. On the admin side, Chris would like monthly challenge setup to take less time, for example by copying and editing the previous month’s challenge. Health Connect for Android, which Polly’s was looking forward to, is now among the supported integrations.

In Their Words

Chris Cote reflects: “If I took the app away tomorrow, there would be a hole. People would notice and complain. It has become a subtle but significant part of our culture, setting us apart in a competitive industry.”

Looking Ahead

Chris planned to use new YuMuuv features to grow engagement, add team-building and recognize top participants, with New Year’s resolutions as a springboard to bring more people back into the program.

Key Takeaways for HR Teams

  • Small teams can run a full program. Polly’s shows that wellness challenges work in a 60-person restaurant, not just in large offices. For another small-team story, see how ASA Quality Services did it.
  • Raffles reward participation, not just performance. A draw gives everyone a reason to join. Our wellness challenge rewards guide compares the options.
  • Go beyond fitness. Habits like hydration, sleep and community giving reach people a step challenge would not. See our non-fitness wellness challenges.
  • Keep a monthly rhythm. A fresh set of challenges each month keeps the program visible without asking too much of a busy team. Browse the full list of YuMuuv challenges for ideas.

For more stories, see our case studies. Running a small or shift-based team? Book a YuMuuv demo and we will help you set up your first monthly challenge.