Fast 15: Natalie Pridmore

Natalie Pridmore was born in South Florida and moved to Fayetteville as a freshman in high school.

Her parents wanted a fresh start, and a Google search for best places to live showed Fayetteville near the top of the list. She also had family living in Lowell.

“We packed up and moved to Arkansas,” she said. “My cousin found us a house to rent, and we moved without ever visiting.”

After graduating from Fayetteville High School, Pridmore said her mother encouraged her to join Arvest Bank. She initially didn’t think she would work in the industry long-term, but she’s worked for the bank for seven years.

“It was kind of just like to have a good, stable job while I figured out what I wanted to do,” she said. “And then I ended up loving it.”

At 21, she was the youngest assistant manager for the bank’s Sunset Avenue branch in Springdale. Two years later, she became branch services manager. At 24, she was named branch sales manager at the Elm Springs Road branch, becoming the youngest branch manager for Arvest Bank in Springdale.

She oversees nine employees and works to develop them so that they provide the best financial business and opportunities for customers. This includes sales training, coaching and ensuring they can help meet customer needs. She also helps customers open accounts and take out loans. Community volunteer work is another aspect of her role.

A career highlight has been seeing the success of the employees she’s overseen and mentored who have been promoted to management roles.

“Being in banking, I like numbers, but I’m not a super numbers person,” she said. “I’m more of a people person, so … getting to mentor and see people move up … be successful in their roles … start leading other teams, and take on hopefully some of what I’ve taught them and use that.”

Pridmore is a member of the Springdale Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership program. She hopes to become a vice president over the next three to five years. She’s attending Liberty University, where her parents met. She’s taking online courses.

She volunteers for multiple organizations, including Springdale Public Schools, For The Love, and Downtown Springdale Alliance. She enjoys reading, Lake Fayetteville, and trying new restaurants.