The Perfume Shop, the UK’s largest fragrance retailer, has introduced its latest financial wellbeing initiative for employees, marking 2023/2024 as a significant year for employee financial support.
Earlier this year, The Perfume Shop launched Wagestream across its UK and Republic of Ireland operations, benefiting over 2,000 employees. Wagestream allows employees to track and access their wages, set aside money directly from their salaries for savings, and access financial education. Nearly 40% of the UK workforce and over 50% of the Republic of Ireland workforce have already downloaded the app, with employees accessing an average of £40 per month before payday. The platform also encourages savings, with employees having saved over £10,000 since its launch.
In the past 12 months, The Perfume Shop has introduced several financial support initiatives, including increasing pay by 10% to the real Living Wage in January 2023. The company became formally accredited as a real Living Wage employer by the Living Wage Foundation in July 2023. Additionally, all store employees receive commission during the busiest months of October, November, and December, with over £1M paid out since the scheme launched in October 2022.
The company also enhanced its paid holiday entitlement for store teams, with full-time employees receiving 30 days, increasing to 35 days after five years and up to 38 days after 15 years of service. Enhanced maternity pay has also been implemented, providing eligible employees with full pay for the first 13 weeks and 50% pay for a further 13 weeks.
The Perfume Shop offers a generous employee discount and savings through their Perks at Work app. Employees also enjoy discounts at Superdrug and mobile phone offers through Three. The company has introduced Aviva DigiCare+ for UK-based employees, providing virtual GP consultations, nutritional advice, second medical opinions, and health assessments. In the Republic of Ireland, employees have access to free virtual GP services through a partnership with The Retail Trust.
Michelle Fellows, People and Development Director at The Perfume Shop, said: “The health and happiness of our employees is extremely important to us, which is why our People Strategy has a clear focus on financial wellbeing. With the continued impact of the cost-of-living crisis, we’re constantly looking at ways we can support our teams. We’re proud to be real Living Wage accredited employers and our new partnership with Wagestream, plus commission, enhanced maternity pay, additional paid holiday entitlement, in addition to all our established benefits has been hugely popular with our employees. We’re confident we offer one of the best suites of benefits and wellbeing offerings on the High Street and these further investments demonstrate how much we value our teams.”
The Perfume Shop’s ongoing partnership with Retail Trust continues to offer financial and wellbeing support, ensuring comprehensive care for its employees.
