‘Best for the World’: British B Corps dominate list of world’s most impactful businesses

165 UK-based organisations are named, accounting for 16% of the global list

The 165 firms account for 16% of the ‘Best for the World’ list for 2022, published today (13 July) by B Lab.

While all B Corps will need to meet strict standards on social sustainability, environmental impact, transparency and accountability – scoring a minimum of 80 points on the B Impact Assessment and recertifying every three years – those deemed as the ‘Best for the World’ are those deemed to have had the highest impact for good in the past 12 months.

The ‘Best for the World’ list names businesses deemed to be leading in five different categories: impact with customers; impact on communities; impact on the environment; excellent governance and supporting workers.

18 companies are named in the customer category, including Glasgow-based ethical beauty brand Beauty Kitchen; fruit and vegetable delivery box service OddBox, which prevents ‘imperfect’ produce from going to waste; Divine Chocolate and Y.O.U. Underwear. Bear Grylls’ BecomingX, a learning and development agency, is also listed.

The community category lists 15 UK-based organisations, including The Big Issue Group and ClimateCare. Financial firms dominate this list, with those crowned including Trinetra Impact Management, Tribe Impact Capital, WHEB Asset Management, EQ Investors Group, Path Financial and CIRCA5000.

Businesses named in the environment category are deemed by B Lab to be “leading the way towards a more sustainable and regenerative planet”. Y.O.U. Underwear is named for a second time in this category, alongside the likes of coffee grounds recycler bio-bean and digital platform Ecologi, which enables individual and business users to contribute to nature restoration projects.

The governance category is the category with the most British B Corps named, with 65 included. They include strategy consultancy Volans, co-founded by John Elkington; consultancy Kin + Carta, which achieved B Corp certification in the UK last October; carbon footprint tracking app Giki and environmental compliance scheme Ecosurety. Ecologi also picks up a second mention here.

Last but not least is the workers category. Firms receiving an accolade here circular accessories brand Elvis & Kresse, which makes luxury goods from used fire hoses; charity fundraisers Real Fundraising; and Fifty Eight, which helps organisations to identify and end exploitation in their supply chains.

“Best for the World is the B Corp movement’s opportunity to spotlight the businesses who are pioneering business as a force for good,” said B Lab UK’s executive director Chris Turner.

“While there’s much more to be done to transform our economy to benefit all people, communities and the planet, the UK is becoming one of the world’s hotspots for better business. It’s a proud moment for our community, and an opportunity to challenge ourselves to go even further, faster.”

B Corp boon

More than 4,000 organisations across the world have certified as a B Corp. The UK plays host to one of the fastest-growing B Corp communities, with 700 organisations and counting.

edie’s publisher, Faversham House, is currently in the process of certifying as a B Corp and intends to announce certification later this year. Faversham House is working with consultancy Seismic to undertake this process.

Through this partnership, the two companies are also dedicated to sharing best practice on certifying through edie’s bespoke content and events. Click here to see the edie team interviewing Seismic’s co-founder and chief impact officer Amy Bourbeau and click here for our latest guest blog from Bourbeau.

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