Mental Health Matters: Building a Culture of Trust

Retail has always been a people business. Every interpersonal interaction, connection, and relationship—whether externally with customers or internally among team members and with leaders—is a vital link in the chain that creates results. In today’s environment, though, where every department is being asked to do more with less and the pace of change feels relentless, this pivotal human side of the business is under strain like never before.

During Mental Health Awareness Month this May, I wanted to take a moment to talk about something that isn’t always discussed openly in our industry: the mental and emotional toll of working in retail and how, as leaders, we can be part of the solution.

Let’s be honest: Mental health isn’t just a personal issue; it’s a business imperative. When your associates are stressed out, burned out, or emotionally exhausted, everything suffers, from customer experience and operational efficiency to team morale and retention. Ultimately, your employer and brand reputation and bottom-line results are all at risk.

We also know that the intensity of this stress isn’t being exaggerated, and it doesn’t exist in a vacuum. It comes from very real, day-to-day pressures that retail professionals across all levels are experiencing.

This month, I’m highlighting six retail stressors we can’t ignore, as well as some specific action steps all retail leaders need to prioritize. Because regardless of external variables, mental health support will remain a critical leadership responsibility. We know ours is an industry that is continually navigating shifting undercurrents of change and disruption. We can’t thrive over the long term unless our teams feel seen, safe, and supported.

Here’s the good news: When you do the work to build a culture of trust and support, productivity, engagement, and retention will rise. People won’t just stay—they’ll show up with their whole selves. In an industry as demanding and dynamic as retail, that’s the real competitive advantage.

Let’s use this Mental Health Awareness Month to take meaningful steps, big and small, toward being the kind of leaders our teams need today. Because when you care for your people, your people will care for your business.



Please enjoy a great and safe Memorial Day holiday, and I look forward to sharing and engaging with you again soon!

Mary Beth Garcia, CEO

P.S. Time’s running out to register for our upcoming SSL-Store Support Leadership Public Workshop! Corporate and distribution center teams are dealing with their own stresses and pressures. Make sure your support center leaders have the skills and strategies they need to strengthen their teams and navigate the range of interpersonal situations they face on a daily basis.

Building Safety and Trust in the Retail Environment: From the Front Line to the C-Suite

To increase trust, leaders need to understand where people are emotionally today, and that’s a big shift from retail leadership mantras of the past. It used to be common for retail leaders to operate by a set of principles that advocated separation of the personal and the professional: “Don’t bring your personal life to work.” Check your emotional baggage at the front door.” “Always keep your personal feelings to yourself and don’t share with your work teams.”

Times have changed. We now understand that not only is it unrealistic to expect someone to completely “turn off” who they are when they get to work, it’s also ultimately counter-productive, particularly in a human-to-human industry like retail. 

MOHR Retail gathered together retail executives, loss prevention specialists, and crisis prevention experts to talk about the business challenges and risks retailers are facing today and what it takes to increase trust, safety, and well-being across the organization. This white paper summarizes key takeaways from a panel discussion focused on the areas of training, development, and support necessary for both enhancing safety and building a culture of trust and engagement.

What we’re reading and sharing



• Retail job cuts up nearly 80% in April (Retail Dive)
• Tariffs push Tanger to start back-to-school campaigns almost two months early. (Modern Retailer)
• Tariffs will make sneakers, jeans and almost everything Americans wear cost more, trade groups warn (Associated Press)
• Inflation isn’t stopping shoppers from eating healthy (Supermarket News)
• Brands, Retailers Navigate Changes at World Retail Congress (Women's Wear Daily)
• David's Bridal is opening a new, higher-end boutique to appeal to Gen Z brides (Business Insider)
• Roslyn Jaffe, Discount Retail Pioneer Who Co-Founded Dressbarn, Dies at 96 (The Wall Street Journal)

Stay Connected

What’s on your mind this month? How can we help? We’d love to hear from you!