'Wellness Director' For Bonanno Concepts Restaurant Group Considered First Of Its Kind In Industry

DENVER (CBS4)- More money won't solve the mental strain workers in the restaurant industry face- at least that's what employees at Denver's Bonanno Concepts have voiced to owners. There are 10 restaurants within the Bonanno Concepts group and Co-Owner, Jaquline Bonanno said when it came to hiring employees once restaurants were open again, they wanted to know what it would take to retain them for the long haul.

"We started sending Survey Monkeys about how to retain our employees and overwhelmingly they were saying that... it's not about the pay, it's about quality of life. So, we started getting feedback on quality-of-life issues that would make people happier to work with us. Then we asked for volunteers for a focus group to kind of narrow that down, so I said all right, let's do yoga classes. We're already offering fitness, we have this whole realm of things," Bonanno continued, "No. That's not enough. We need someone…"

They wanted someone that the leadership team could consult for a variety of mental health needs, and someone that employees could seek counseling from.

That's how the position of the Wellness Director was born; likely the first of its kind for the industry.

After some research, Bonanno Concepts hired Qiana Torres Flores, a multicultural clinical mental health counselor who got to work right away.

"First and foremost, I kinda act as the in-house therapist. I run an open clinic here where folks can kinda come in and schedule appointments and at their leisure come in and see me for a short amount of time. Over three to five sessions try to resolve what can be resolved and if they need more time, I help bridge them over to more long-term care," said Flores.

In just 6 short months, the wellness director position has already paid off.

"I had not really felt the depression or the stress of the pandemic until a couple of months ago. I think everything started to really hit me and I had a day here where I was really struggling, and I had a talk with Quiana and she was able to help me narrow down what was causing my problems, gave me tips and tools on how to manage myself and help control what I was feeling and I was able to get back to work almost at 100% the next day, feeling a lot better," said Kaylee Maddox.

Maddox is the front-of-house manager at the Denver Milk Market- one of 10 restaurants owned by Bonanno Concepts.

Prior to Flores' arrival, there wasn't much time to take a break and focus on mental well-being, but that has changed. The wellness director is available to all Bonanno Concepts employees.

"I would say it's been a huge help," said Maddox. "You have happy and healthy employees; you have a happy and healthy business. It really stems from the employees first and foremost."

Bonanno Concepts had to make some sacrifices to make sure it could hire a wellness director and realizes, not everyone in the industry has the resources to do the same.

"These resources should be available to all people all the time. No Stigma, and honestly, I don't feel like the small business owners should be the ones seeking the resources. I wish that they were widely available to all of us all of the time," she said.

Flores knows for those working outside of Bonanno Concepts resources these days are scarce.

"There are way more folks who need support than there actually are therapists," she said.

She is working to make sure those in the industry have more support.

"I started to partner in the last month or so with two different organizations and one is called CHOW, it's the Culinary Hospitality Outreach and Wellness program and they offer free support to anyone who works in restaurant or hospitality."

The second group she has recently partnered with is called Khesed Wellness, which offers four free therapy sessions to those working in the service industry.

"Four free therapy sessions- it still blows my mind to say it out loud, to folks who work In the service industry. They started doing that right at the beginning of the pandemic and it's just a huge help to folks like me who are trying to bridge folks who are seeking support for long-term care. So, there are options out there for sure," said Flores.

If you are working in the service industry and interested in mental health resources, follow the links to find out more information about Khesed Wellness or CHOW.