The Perfume Shop, the UK’s largest fragrance retailer, has successfully secured certification as a Top Employer from the Top Employers Institute who are the global authority on recognising excellence in people practices.
The Perfume Shop began the certification process in early Summer and it involved completing a detailed submission across a number of different areas of People Practices, which outlined The Perfume Shop’s approach to strategy, people, policy and practice. These included people strategy, recruitment, learning & skills, career development, pay & benefits, engagement, DEI (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion) and wellbeing. Following the submission, Top Employers went through a detailed verification process which was then further audited.
In addition to becoming a certified Top Employer, The Perfume Shop is an accredited real Living Wage employer, reinforcing its commitment to ensuring all staff are paid fairly, feel rewarded and valued. Retail employees in stores also earn commission during the seasonal trading periods, further boosting their take home pay.
The Perfume Shop is also committed to employee development, offering widespread opportunities for people to develop their career through apprenticeships, internal management training programmes as well as access to vocational learning through the British Retail Consortium and the Fragrance Foundation qualification programme.
Gill Smith, Managing Director said “From our store teams, distribution centre teams and our head office colleagues, our Perfume People are at the heart of our business and critical to our success. Formal certification by the Top Employers Institute has been a long-held ambition of ours as it helps us to further understand how we’re positively impacting the world of work and helping our people thrive in their jobs. Receiving the certification will also help us to continue to attract and retain some of the best talent, passion and spark on the High Street (or shopping centre or retail park).”
Alongside their generous staff discount, The Perfume Shop also offers its staff a ‘TPS Perks’ scheme, which provides discounts on other High Street retailers to support with the cost of living crisis. 2023 has also seen the launch of the new Aviva Digicare+ Workplace benefit for all staff which offers a virtual GP service, mental health support and lifestyle advice, recognising the importance of supporting the wellbeing of its employees.
Employees also enjoy a generous holiday allowance which increases with service plus ‘Celebration Days’ – an extra day paid holiday to recognise significant personal milestones; getting married, a big birthday or moving house.
Michelle Fellows, people & development director, commented “We’re proud to be a certified Top Employer. We believe that our brilliant culture, our values and all of our benefits offer some of the very best job environments in retail. As we increase our workforce through temporary Christmas Sales Advisor positions, we’re confident that we have a compelling offer for anyone looking to work in retail on a temporary or permanent basis. Retail offers a range of fantastic career opportunities and we continue to be very proud of the number of Perfume People we promote internally every year.”
