THE IMPORTANCE OF WELLBEING – HOW YOU CAN HELP FELLOW RETAILERS

Tough times are upon us, we are all well aware of this. However, what we may not be aware of is how much it can affect our fellow retailers, and our communities. It’s a known fact that many people, most often men, choose to suffer in silence, and in a largely male industry, this needs to change.

The urgency of this issue was reflected at this years ACS Summit, with speaker Rebekah Duncalfe of Meraki Creative Therapies giving an incredibly insightful talk on wellbeing. Rebekah and her team also oversaw the addition of a wellbeing room at this years conference, giving retailers and brand representatives the chance to unwind and let go of their troubles. In her talk, Rebekah touched on the fact that not only are suicide rates going up, but the waiting time for mental health support on the NHS is now as high as 2 years in some cases. 

Whilst we have seen the media get bored of it, COVID does in fact still exist. This deadly virus still worries a lot of retailers, particularly those who are the sole worker in their store, and those with elderly family. This anxiety still exists, customers are now coming into store mask-less, and we’ve seen active COVID cases reach 4 million just in the last month.

There is clearly a need to do more, and here is how you can help. Talk to your fellow retailers, ask them how they’re doing, go for a coffee together. Even though it sounds simple, having a simple conversation about hobbies, sport, life etc. can have an incredible positive impact on people. We often forget that we are one of the hardest working industries in the world, and we rarely get time to socialise.

Something that we can all do that could potentially save a life is spreading word of the GroceryAid helpline. GroceryAid’s helpline is open 24/7, 365 days a year, and can help retailers with any problems they may be facing, financial or mental. The severity of the wellbeing crisis affecting retailers can be seen in the 93% rise in GroceryAid’s applications for financial support, as well as a 47% increase in calls to their free and confidential 24/7 helpline.

GroceryAid can be contacted on: 08088 021 122 or through their website live chat service at: https://carefirst-lifestyle.co.uk/extranet/my-homepage/online-counselling

Wellbeing is important, in fact, it’s key to your business. Not only you, but your store will benefit from a better frame of mind. If anyone reading this is struggling, please reach out to GroceryAid, a colleague, or even the C-Talk team.