In the spring of 2021, sisters Karli and Meagan Pickett were out to dinner at a hotel. As the owner of a restaurant, herself, Meagan began to empathize when she witnessed the hotel clearly struggling with a staffing shortage. Meagan’s restaurant, Chuckanut Manor Seafood & Grill in Bow, Washington, was experiencing similar trials after mandatory closures during the COVID-19 pandemic, followed by a remodel, and ultimately reopening at the height of worker shortages.
“With staff returning and a need to fill in gaps for the summer, there was no good place to find the hires I wanted to make. It was either sketchy job boards or expensive corporate platforms, neither of which cater to the types of positions I’m hiring,” said Meagan.
As the evening went on, the Pickett sisters dreamed of a simplified way for employers to connect with job seekers—which ultimately led to the concept of a job marketplace app with functionality similar to a dating app.
“You could get a quicker sense of the job seeker from seeing a profile with their picture, skills, and interests compared to the traditional paper resume,” said Karli when describing the app.
Karli then reached out to their cousin, Josh Pickett. Each of Jyst’s three co-founders comes from a family of entrepreneurs, giving them unique insight into the challenges small business owners face. Josh recalled the frustration his father experienced hiring for the family’s dry-cleaning business, and the idea of a job marketplace app instantly made sense.
With Josh’s tech background, he was able to run the app idea by a few connections in his network.
“I came back to Karli and Meagan saying that we should keep working on this idea because there was really something to it. There is a huge need for something like this in the service and hospitality industries,” said Josh.
This is when the three of them started having weekly meetings.
“We’re fortunate to be such a well-rounded group. I’ve been able to project manage the app’s development and keep things moving while Josh’s tech literacy has enabled us to ask all the right questions as we navigate the steps needed to build the app. Then, through Meagan’s restaurant, we have direct insight into the challenges job seekers and employers face in the service industry,” said Karli.
“The problem we’re trying to solve is matching employers to job seekers. It’s really that simple,” said Meagan.
However, going from an idea to an app is no simple feat. What started as the seed of a solution to a major pain point grew into wireframes, designs, development, and is now a complete app available to download from Google Play and the Apple App Store.
The Jyst Philosophy
At Jyst, we see the Foundational Worker as the backbone of the American economy. For far too long, this workforce has been referred to as unskilled, uneducated, and inexperienced. These words imply that something is lacking, which is not only degrading but diminishes the Foundational Worker’s contribution to society.
Together, we can shift this narrative and give Foundational Workers the acknowledgment they deserve. After all…the Foundational Worker is our server at our favorite restaurant.
The cashier at our local gas station.
The driver dropping off our takeout orders.
The barista making our daily lattes.
The warehouse assistant packing our online orders.
Some are reentering the workforce after raising families. Some want to work part-time while going to school or traveling the world. Some prefer the flexibility of a career in the service industry.
Whatever the reason or motivation for seeking a position, the search should be the least difficult part. That’s why we’ve created a mobile job marketplace to help job seekers and employers connect. That’s the Jyst of it!
Swipe to your next job or hire on Jyst! Learn more and download the app at www.thejyst.com.
