Benefit for all
Our journey
Date: 01.04.2025
As B Corp month, which celebrates everything it means to be a Certified B Corp, comes to a close, we share useful takeaways, community campaigns and our own story about our road to certification.
Certified B Corps share three pillars –people, planet and profit–in that order, to benefit all and maintain a sustainable business that can continue to build on positive change. There are now over 9,400 Certified B Corps globally, over 2,400 in the UK, who connect and work together in a community online, in Working Groups, at B Locals and in events and campaigns including the Louder than Words Festival, B Corp Month and the Better Business Act.
78% of consumers believe that businesses should have a legal responsibility when it comes to planet and people.
Surface Matter are big believers in working with great people, doing better and helping others do the same. We wouldn't want to join a pay-to-play certification or sign up to a box-ticking exercise. Exploring the B Corp movement started at talks from leaders from Toast and Holland and Harvey, who explained their journey to create businesses that create a benefit for all, and the impact certifying had on their products, client relationships and in their teams – finding that the people who understand and buy in to the values of B Corp are more committed and energised on the whole. With this we came to see the framework as a True North that helps guide our every day choices, instilling our values and keeping us accountable.
"But you are what you do, not what you say you are." -Yvon Chouinard, Let My People Go Surfing
We quickly ran through the impact assessment, with a bit over 50 points in July 2022 highlighting a lack in governance. We resubmitted in September 2023 with 86.6 points, alongside our 10 year anniversary and brand refresh rooted in our values. By the time we got to the front of the queue in January 2024, our team had grown, putting us in a new category with additional questions to assess. What felt like a daunting set back turned into a silver lining– the ways we'd grown in that four months helped us unlock Land/Wildlife Conservation and Toxin Reduction and Remediation impact business models, certifying in May 2024 with 97.6 points, and a roadmap of more positive changes to work toward.
Alone we are a business, together we are a movement.
By establishing a strong foundation, everything else aligns to uphold high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. Every three years, we need to re-certify and demonstrate that we still meet evolving standards. In between re-certification, we share our progress over the past year with our Impact Report, on the anniversary of our certification.
Build Connect Change gives people an opportunity to learn about the B Corp movement and its powerful impact, sharing insights and plans for our own journey and encouraging more brands to join the movement. Building positive connections with speed networking, values-led conversations, insights and some fun raising awareness of fellow B Corps in the UK, with B Corp Bingo, the evenings help to empower change and drive sustainability.
As we continue our journey to enhance our impact and enrich our knowledge, we're working on engaging our stakeholders, working through carbon literacy and neurodiversity training, improving our teams travel and reducing our carbon footprint, and focus on growing Material Rescue to be more than just a takeback service.
How can we collaborate and work together better?
