In 2015, Snowflake Gelato implemented a voluntary benefits platform, provided by Perkbox, to help to retain staff.
The luxury ice-cream maker, which employs around 50 staff with an average age of 26, has seen its staff retention rate increase by approximately 50% over an eight-month period and the average tenure of its employees improve since implementing the voluntary benefits platform a year ago.
A return on investment was key for the fledgling employer when it went to market to source the platform.
Asad Khan, managing director and founder of Snowflake Gelato, says: “As a small [organisation], [the platform] benefits employees by offering [them] access to customised benefits that deliver more reward for them and a lower cost for us. As an employer, it’s a very smart way to keep staff happy and give them some nice perks, which aren’t going to cost the earth [for us].”
Mobile phone insurance, cinema tickets and restaurant vouchers are among the most popular perks available to staff through the platform.
The voluntary benefits platform is offered as part of Snowflake Gelato’s employee engagement programme, alongside a points-based scheme through which employees who deliver outstanding customer service can earn financial rewards to spend on voluntary benefits.
“The scheme rewards either a team or individual employees who go over and above what we expect them to do,” says Khan.
The scheme, Snowballs, was launched last summer and was also designed to help staff optimise their performance and hit their targets.
Snowflake Gelato’s wider employee engagement efforts include regular staff social gatherings involving drinks and dinner at which employees’ birthdays, work anniversaries and milestones are recognised and celebrated.
