Brown Thomas

BROWN THOMAS

Putting People First

Brown Thomas Arnotts (BTA) believes that a great customer experience starts with a great team experience.

Last year, Brown Thomas Arnotts introduced a new Vision, Purpose and Values (VPV) and embarked on an ambitious journey to reinvent its team member workplace experience. With a new store opened in Dundrum in February 2022, BTA is one of the few retailers expanding in bricks and mortar in a challenging sector.

“Our purpose is to imagine and create a sustainable future for our customers and that starts with us,” explains Julie Sharp, People Director, Brown Thomas Arnotts. “We really believe in taking care of our people. A great customer experience starts with a great people experience, so we’re promoting a culture where talent is developed and creativity and learning are valued.”

To support a sustainable future for their team members, BTA is focusing on a robust Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DE&I) agenda and prioritizing team health and wellbeing through the introduction of new experiences, benefits, policies and programmes that support team members wherever they may be on their life or career journey.

Sustainability is embedded across all areas of the business and, from new circular services to charity fundraisers, team members are actively engaged in driving positive change for people and planet. “We have been leading Irish retail for over 175 years and continuously reimagining the way we work is the only way to ensure we are here for the next 175 years,” says Donald McDonald, Managing Director, Brown Thomas Arnotts. DRIVING INNOVATION As part of the evolution of its workplace experience, BTA has launched a refreshed Future Leaders Programme and is developing career and capability frameworks. They will provide clear pathways for talent development in the business.

BTA also places a focus on ensuring that its policies and practices fit the needs of its team and use demographic data to inform inclusive supports.

For example, the recently introduced assisted fertility, pregnancy loss and menopause policies were inspired by its majority-female workforce.

Many of the initiatives are based on feedback received from employees. It builds on a commitment to provide a supportive, inclusive environment where voices are heard, and everyone belongs. For BTA, taking team member feedback on board ensures programmes are meaningful and have a long-term impact; many of the new initiatives introduced this year were taken directly from feedback in the last employee survey.

“We’re in the driving seat,” says Sharp. “We have taken it upon ourselves to be the future-focussed

leaders driving innovation. To borrow a phrase, we are ‘being the change we want to see in the world’. This ambition is having an immediate effect on our team members, and a wider impact on our society and community as a whole.”

OUR PURPOSE IS TO IMAGINE AND CREATE A SUSTAINABLE FUTURE FOR OUR CUSTOMERS, AND THAT STARTS WITH US. WE’RE PROMOTING A CULTURE WHERE TALENT IS DEVELOPED AND CREATIVITY AND LEARNING ARE VALUED