Crystal Medina is a Baskin-Robbins franchisee based in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where she owns and operates three restaurants. One of those locations – the first shop she ever purchased – is the same place her ice cream career started more than 20 years ago.

“I needed a job,” recalls Crystal. “I was attending college and figured it’d be an easy gig while going to school, so I applied to my childhood Baskin-Robbins on Central Avenue. I found out pretty quickly that scooping wasn’t nearly as easy as it looked!”

Not one to be deterred by a challenge, Crystal stuck with it and quickly learned everything she needed to be a standout member of the team. “I loved working there – eventually the scooping got easier, and I learned how to be a shift lead, then an assistant manager.” Crystal rose in the Baskin-Robbins ranks and was promoted to restaurant manager after two years, then General Manager over five locations just three years after that. “With new titles came new responsibilities, like learning how to make ice cream cakes, which I really enjoyed! I loved constantly learning new things; it’s why I stayed with the brand.”

Twelve years after joining Baskin-Robbins, Crystal became a franchisee of the brand when she bought the Central Avenue location from her boss. After five years as an owner and operator, she went through the process of opening a brand-new Baskin-Robbins in Albuquerque. “That’s been my biggest moment so far,” says Crystal. “I would never have thought I could develop a store from the ground up all by myself.”

Crystal purchased an existing location two years later, making her the proud owner of three shops in New Mexico. “Looking back, it was surreal to be able to buy my childhood Baskin-Robbins. But if you’re going to work hard for someone else, you have to make sure you work just as hard for yourself.”

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