Sun Life Financial has bolstered its status in the area of health promotion services with the announced purchase of a 36% stake in Buffett & Company Worksite Wellness for an undisclosed amount.
A minority interest in the Whitby, Ont.-based company will allow Sun Life’s HealthyRETURNS program to provide plan sponsors with more health and wellness programs, according to Dave Jones, vice-president of market development for Sun Life.
“We’re committed to helping our customers understand and manage their benefit costs on a go-forward basis through high quality health and wellness programming,” he says. “We see Buffett & Company as a leading provider of some of those solutions in Canada, and a great fit for our healthy returns program.”
“We made the decision to form a strategic alliance with Sun Life, as it provides a tremendous opportunity to grow our business,” says Lori Casselman, vice-president of Buffett & Company. She adds that the deal is not exclusive and allows the firm to continue its relationships with other insurers.
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The deal will also allow Buffett & Company to advance its technological capabilities in the worksite wellness industry, according to Casselman.
Jones says the partnership is unrelated to Monday’s announcement of the sale of Sun Life’s 37% stake in CI Financial to Scotiabank for $2.3 billion, and that the deal is not evidence that Sun Life is decreasing its focus on wealth management.
Buffett & Company provides a wide variety of programs to help employees and organizations identify and assess health risks and subsequently adopt and sustain healthy lifestyle changes.
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