Back in 1972, the CEO of Danone stood up at a conference of business leaders in Marseille, France, and made a radical suggestion. As the era of mass consumption was being ushered in, he controversially suggested that a business shouldn’t just be a vehicle for profit at any cost, but should also look after the wellbeing of its employees, the wider community and the environment.
“There is only one planet. We only live once,” said Antoine Riboud, then head of the global food and drinks company. “People work eight hours of their day … [but] the business’s responsibility does not stop at the factory or office door. Its actions have repercussions throughout the whole community and influence the quality of life of every citizen.”
At the time, Riboud’s thinking was met with scepticism, but in the intervening years, the idea of linking business success with social progress has seeped into the mainstream. In 2025, it could not be more relevant, with the climate emergency, the widening poverty gap and a global mental health crisis taking its toll on the Earth and many of its citizens.
More than 50 years on from Riboud’s speech, three college friends in the US, Andrew Kassoy, Bart Houlahan and Jay Coen Gilbert, shared a similar vision for a better way of doing business. In 2006, they set up B Lab, a non-profit organisation to recognise and certify businesses committed to high standards of social and environmental performance. In 2007, the first 82 B Corporations (B Corps) were named, gaining recognition for their positive impact on their wider stakeholders – workers, communities, customers and the planet. Then, as now, they were challenged with a meticulous set of performance and legal requirements to prove their credentials.
In 2015, B Lab UK was launched and to date has certified more than 2,400 B Corps – up from 1,700 in 2024. Between them, these companies employ about 150,000 people, but there still seems to be some misunderstanding over what the initiative is all about.
In a recent poll for the Guardian (the only major media organisation certified B Corp), while 60% of people claimed some awareness of B Corp, 27% said they simply recognised the name, and just 7% agreed that they knew a lot about what a B Corp is. As part of its commitment to promoting B Corp principles, the Guardian offers a 10% discount to B Corp companies advertising their job vacancies with it and has a Green Job recruitment package for all sustainable jobs, aimed at environmentally aware readers.
Being a B Corp means that a company has been put through B Lab’s rigorous assessment and verification process to ensure it meets high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. The standards are regularly updated to ensure the bar for good business is continually raised. New standards will be published later this year, which will be the most significant shift since the inception of the B Corp movement.
What does that actually mean for people who choose to buy goods or services from a B Corp? It means they can be safe in the knowledge that their hard-earned money is going to businesses that are committed to working ethically: that their employees’ needs are valued and that the businesses operate in an eco-conscious way that benefits the wider community. While B Corps don’t claim to be perfect businesses, the B Corp logo signifies a business is committed to continuous improvement in how it measures and improves its impact across a range of areas.
Chris Turner, B Lab UK executive director, says: “B Corps across the UK consistently prove that business can be a force for good. They consider the interests of wider stakeholders to go beyond profit maximisation and to create a better future for all. Above all, B Corps provide better outcomes for their workers, customers and the environment, in turn pioneering a culture of business that raises the ceiling for what business can and should be.”
To be certified, companies first have to pass B Lab’s B Impact Assessment and then change their legal structure by amending their articles of association to include their commitments to being a responsible business. Two reviews follow – by B Lab UK and B Lab Global. If successful, businesses need to produce an annual impact report and recertify every three years.
As consumers’ awareness increases and they use their spending power to support ethical companies, the aim is that more businesses will recognise the benefits of working towards an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economy for all people, and the planet.
With B Corp Month being celebrated this March – an annual, global campaign to highlight the positive impact of the B Corp community – here are 11 UK B Corp brands that are changing the world for the better by following their own unique paths:
Ticket Tailor – Disrupting the event ticketing industry, Ticket Tailor offers event organisers around the world an easy-to-use, affordable platform for selling tickets – whether for an intimate workshop or a sell-out festival. The company became a certified B Corp in 2022 and, in addition to donating more than £435,000 to climate charities through its Penny for the Planet programme, maintains a strong focus on employee wellbeing: offering annual profit-sharing, 13 weeks of equal paid parental leave, among other benefits, resulting last year in an impressive eNPS of 90 (employee engagement score, with 100 being the maximum possible and -100 the lowest).
Assembly – This global marketing and media services company aims to “leave the world better than we found it”, and is one of the most recent businesses to become B Corp certified, in December 2024. The practices that helped it land the certification include the net zero mission Clean Media Lab, a decarbonisation solution that helps clients meet sustainability goals, and a pro bono partnership with Prince William’s The Earthshot Prize, providing media support to help discover and scale innovative solutions for the planet.
Danone UK and Ireland – The progressive vision of the company’s global CEO in the 70s has been brought to life through its B Corp journey – in the UK this started in 2017. By 2022, all its operations in the UK and Ireland were B Corp certified. It has been praised for its advocacy for healthy eating policies and its support for community initiatives tackling food waste, unemployment and social isolation.
giffgaff – “We’ve baked sustainability into the DNA of giffgaff” says the mobile virtual network operator and, in 2022, B Corp status recognised this. Customers can be more sustainable by choosing refurbished mobile phones over new ones (and selling their old phones to be reused or ethically recycled). The company’s commitment to making a positive impact on communities is demonstrated by a partnership with Big Issue to tackle digital and financial exclusion. This involves donating devices and investing in digital-skills training to help magazine vendors and jobseekers to improve their skills, confidence and earnings.
Zest – Leeds-based Zest funds and operates electric vehicle charging solutions for local authorities, brands and destinations, and it achieved B Corp status in 2023. Its certification, the company says, “reflects our dedication to the people, planet, profit framework, our commitment to maintaining high social and environmental standards, and a promise to continuously challenge our ways of working”. With its growing network of EV chargers, it’s working to decarbonise transport one mile at a time.
Good Energy – Launched 25 years ago with the mission of powering a cleaner, greener future, the business makes it simple to generate, use and share clean energy. In 2024, it became the only UK home energy supplier to achieve B Corp status. It has more than 250,000 customers, including over 180,000 who generate their own clean power – driving the shift to smarter, small-scale electricity generators. It assists homes and businesses to become more eco-friendly by offering solar, battery, EV charging and heat pump installations.
Hymans Robertson – Hymans Robertson is an independent B Corp-approved pensions, investments and insurance consultancy driven by its purpose “together, building better futures”. Its 2024 impact report [pdf] shows that the firm met its climate pledge by reducing core emissions by 57%; donated more than £150,000 to its eight partner charities through the Hymans Robertson Foundation; and recorded 2,200 volunteering hours in the year.
Tilda – In 2023, Tilda became the first UK rice company to be B Corp certified, an achievement that reflects the ethos that runs throughout the company. It has been working with farmers since 2021 to cut methane emissions [pdf] from paddy fields by almost half while using 27% less water and other resources as farmers discover a more sustainable way to grow rice. These are in addition to its longstanding partnership with The Felix Project, a leading food redistribution charity in London.
Muckle Media – Muckle Media became the first Scottish PR agency to be awarded B Corp Certification in 2022. Its certification revolves around its three key values: to be kind, get results and leave the world in a better place. Not forgetting the move to a four-day working week, transparency and the commitment to continued professional development for its staff.
Toast Brewing – The company says that it sets out to make beer that “tastes amazing and does amazing things”. That’s why it brews with surplus bread, turning leftover loaves into a refreshing lager. Not only does this make use of one of the world’s most commonly wasted foods, but it cuts back on the amount of land, water and energy Toast uses to brew its beer, reducing its carbon emissions. Certified in 2018, Toast also invests in communities through initiatives such as its Food Sustainability Heroes Fund – proving that it’s doing more than brewing sustainable beer.
Y.O.U Underwear – “Pants that fight poverty” is one of the straplines for this Fairtrade and organic cotton underwear brand. So, for every pair that is purchased, the company donates a pair to Smalls for All, helping keep girls in education during their period and empowering women at work, achievements that align with several of the UN’s sustainable development goals. More than 50,000 pairs of pants have been donated so far. The brand also has an underwear recycling scheme and is an accredited Living Wage employer. It was definitely ripe for B Corp status, which it achieved in 2021 with the highest B Impact Assessment score in the UK and highest globally of any fashion brand.
