Sun Life has rebranded globally as Sunlife, merging its name into a single word and adopting a new logo and the tagline “Making life brighter.”
The Toronto-based group said the change reflects how far it has grown beyond its origins in life insurance into asset management, health, wealth and insurance. The new logo is a modernized, simplified version of its sun globe design, built for digital use.
The rebrand will roll out in phases across markets and businesses, starting with high-impact digital and client-facing channels. Sunlife said customers may see both the old and new branding during the transition.
“By bringing the strength of Sunlife together under one clear global identity, we create deeper relationships, serve more of our Clients’ needs and unlock new opportunities for growth,” said Kevin Strain, president and chief executive.
In the US, Sunlife is best known as a group benefits carrier, working with brokers and consultants on employee benefits for employers. For brokers and their employer clients, the rebrand is a change of name and logo rather than of products, plan terms or service. New branding will start to appear on Sunlife materials, portals and communications over the coming months.
The practical step for brokers is to make sure clients and plan members are not caught off guard. Employers may want to update any benefits guides or enrollment materials that show the old name and logo, and HR teams may field questions from employees who notice the change.
Sunlife released global research alongside the rebrand, setting out the case for a more integrated approach to protection. The survey of adults in Canada, the US, Hong Kong, the Philippines, Vietnam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore found wide gaps between what people say matters and the plans they have in place.
Across the eight markets, 61% said protecting against the costs of an unexpected illness or accident was very important, but only 33% had a full plan. Some 60% said securing their family’s future was very important, while 31% had a full plan. The largest gap was in caregiving: 57% said being able to care for an aging or sick family member was very important, but just 27% had a full plan. For retirement, 56% rated having a plan as very important and 31% had one.
More than half said managing their finances (52%) and health (51%) had become more complicated over the past five years, and 65% said they wanted support that treats health, finances and protection together rather than separately.
Earnscliffe conducted the 15-minute online survey for Sunlife from September 10 to 25, using panels from Leger and Prodege. The headline figures are averages across the eight markets, not population-weighted results.
The caregiving and illness findings point to where employees feel least protected. A gap between how much people value protection against illness and the cover they actually hold is the gap that voluntary and supplemental workplace benefits are designed to fill, and the 65% wanting a joined-up approach to health and finances supports the case for presenting benefits as a package rather than line by line.
The findings also suggest employees are looking for help making sense of their options. That makes clear communication at enrollment as important as plan design.
