GREEN BAY (NBC26) — "What was going to make us different," Jennifer Ryan, co-founder of theCroux app, said. "What was going to make us support an industry we love so much?"
- A local entrepreneur's new app, Croux, aims to help people earn extra cash by picking up hospitality jobs whenever they want.
- Co-founder Jennifer Ryan says the app helped businesses fill more than 10,000 shifts and helped hourly workers earn $850,000 since 2022.
- Croux has already partnered with other local businesses, and hotels in Green Bay.Legacy Hotel is one of the more recent partnerships.
(The following is a transcription of the full broadcast story)
"What was going to make us different," Jennifer Ryan, co-founder of theCroux app, said. "What was going to make us support an industry we love so much?"
Ryan never thought she'd live in Green Bay.
Working coast to coast, she still has memories of her first job as a server at a restaurant.
"Despite everything I did in New York, it was probably the hardest job I've ever had," Ryan said.
She and her husband moved to Birmingham, AL, and opened a restaurant.
There, during the pandemic, she says many businesses nearly closed.
"We thought, why couldn't we bring these two worlds together: People who want to work but want to pick their own schedule and businesses who needed to fill shifts in their schedule," Ryan said. "And that was the beginning of Croux."
The Croux app launched in 2022 to help people earn extra money in hospitality — jobs in food and beverage services, event planning, hotels, restaurants, and more.
While the app grew in Alabama, Jennifer's family made an unexpected move to Green Bay.
"This is what life is about," Ryan said. "There's twists and turns and you say yes to doors that open."
Jennifer was referred to Titletown Tech, where she was able to make connections with local businesses including Legacy Hotel.
"There's absolutely a need for it in Green Bay," Robin Orrell, Legacy Hotel director of sales and marketing, said.
The hotel hosted its grand opening on Jan. 10 and still has plenty of work positions available.
"Her company is going to step in and give us that level of service and be seamless to the customer," Orrell said.
Jennifer said Croux has filled more than 10,000 shifts across Alabama and Wisconsin and helped hourly workers earn nearly $850,000.
"This is the beauty in working in a startup," Ryan said. "You get to break barriers and boundaries and rethink how things are done because 'It's always been done that way,' is not a good enough answer."
And while Jennifer says Green Bay is her priority, she's looking to expand the app's reach to Appleton and the Fox Valley.
