Psycho Bunny: Building a culture of wellbeing to fit a global fashion brand

In the fashion retail business, there are no down days. The fast-paced, demanding environment creates unique challenges for workers at both store and corporate levels. Industry-wide, 84 per cent of retail workers report experiencing declining mental health, with the retail sector scoring in the bottom 10 per cent for workplace mental health.

"You're operating in a customer-service arena with a constant flow of clients and need to maintain your best behaviour at all times," says Salah Sahib, Director of Total Rewards, Payroll & HRIS at Psycho Bunny, a fashion brand with over 100 locations across the U.S. and Canada.

Staff regularly handle various customer concerns while managing unpredictable situations. Unlike those who work from home, explains Sahib, "If you’re having a bad day, you can't really show it.” 

Adding to the pressure is Psycho Bunny's own rapid expansion into domestic and international markets, requiring scalable support systems for a diverse and growing workforce.

The challenge

Psycho Bunny, a rapidly expanding fashion retail brand with over 100 locations throughout the United States and Canada, needed an employee assistance program (EAP) to complement their corporate strategy that focuses on supporting the mental health and wellbeing of their diverse workforce. From corporate staff to sales associates at stores operating in public-facing environments, the company wanted a virtual, comprehensive solution to support mental health challenges in a demanding industry. The ideal wellbeing partner would help enhance frontline staff resilience, while scaling with Psycho Bunny's ongoing international expansion. 

The solution

Psycho Bunny launched TELUS Health EAP in early 2022 to provide accessible mental health and wellbeing support to employees in both corporate and retail-based roles. The partnership delivers flexible, accessible and comprehensive wellbeing support across the workforce. This includes multilingual wellbeing resources, quick access to counsellors, an on-site crisis response team and digital access that appeals to their predominantly younger employee demographic. The partnership is further strengthened by TELUS Health's commitment to data privacy and confidentiality, a key factor in Psycho Bunny's selection process.

The impact

Psycho Bunny has seen significant positive outcomes from implementing TELUS Health's EAP services, particularly in helping retail employees navigate the pressures of customer-facing roles.

Comprehensive approach to employee wellbeing

Psycho Bunny partnered with TELUS Health in early 2022 to implement a comprehensive EAP. The digital solution provides swift access to flexible support that can help address a variety of needs across roles, locations and preferred languages. The solution offers 24/7 access to confidential resources for employees and their dependents, including mental, physical, social and financial health support, work-life services such as child and elder care assistance, and short-term, solutions-focused counselling in digital and in-person modalities. In addition, employees can access targeted support for those who have experienced a traumatic event in their personal or professional lives.

For Psycho Bunny, the partnership aligns with the company’s own comprehensive approach emphasizing the mental, physical and emotional wellbeing of its workforce, with a strong focus on accessibility and proactive care. 

"It didn't just check a box for us," says Sahib. "It has become a cornerstone of our culture."

Approximately 200 store and regional level managers and corporate office staff in the US have access to TELUS Health EAP, while another 200 staff in Canada have access through their group benefits package. 

Crisis support for retail locations

A standout feature is access to an on-site crisis support team, which can be deployed to retail locations during emergencies, such as a robbery or angry confrontation – a reality of a public-facing industry. An estimated 38 per cent of Gen Z retail workers say they’ve witnessed workplace violence to another employee in the last five years. The impacts range from psychological to physical injury.

Following an incident at one of their stores, Sahib says the crisis team proved invaluable care – arriving quickly and meeting with all team members to answer questions and provide much-needed psychological support. 

“The outcome was great,” recalls Sahib. “It really helped employees when they were under a lot of anxiety, stress and potential trauma.”

Multilingual support for a diverse workforce

With stores across 30 states and international markets, Psycho Bunny also appreciated TELUS Health’s multilingual support. 

"In our US-based stores we have a large South American employee demographic. So, the fact that they can get the service in Spanish is a huge plus," Sahib explains.

Psycho Bunny was also attracted to the digital platform, which appeals to their predominately young workforce.

"One of the biggest pieces of feedback I've received is how quickly employees can speak with a counsellor without having to navigate through excessive screening questions first,” says Sahib.

Strong communication strategy

Psycho Bunny employs a multi-channel approach to promote EAP benefits across their workforce. The strategy begins during the onboarding process, where new team members receive comprehensive EAP information through downloadable brochures, pamphlets and cards designed to introduce available resources. Awareness is reinforced through targeted email campaigns, ensuring the benefits remain top-of-mind for all employees.

For retail staff, Psycho Bunny maintains visibility through store posters and weekly employee newsletters, and has plans to launch an intranet to provide an additional platform to promote EAP services.

Management engagement represents a critical component of the communication strategy, says Sahib. The HR team consistently informs and reminds executives that the EAP service is available, encouraging them to share this information with their employees, and reminding them how and where to access support through the EAP platform. 

A valued long-term partner

Overall, Psycho Bunny has seen that “benefits are becoming more important," notes Sahib. "Salary will always matter, but employees increasingly prioritize having a comprehensive benefits offering."

This trend aligns with broader findings from the TELUS Mental Health Index,  showing that 33 per cent of employees would prefer better support for their wellbeing over a 10 per cent salary increase.

As a company with Canadian roots, Psycho Bunny finds value in partnering with TELUS Health, a respected Canadian provider. "The Canadian connection is meaningful for us," says Sahib. 

Data privacy is also paramount in their selection process: "One of the key reasons as well is protecting employee information. TELUS Health is known for keeping all calls or employee information confidential," Sahib emphasized. "One of the reassuring elements why we also selected TELUS Health as part of my job is ensuring that employee data always remains confidential."

Looking ahead, Psycho Bunny sees TELUS Health as a strategic partner in their continued global expansion.

 "As we continue to grow, we would love for TELUS Health to continue growing with us, because I see shared values between our organizations," says Sahib. "They offer the perfect blend of technology and human-centric approach that aligns with a modern workplace like ours."