Launching smol gave us an opportunity to benefit the planet, our workforce and our customers in the way we established ourselves. We also realise this is a journey; that the need to evolve is constant and that we can work to change other cleaning brands for the better.
An integral part of this journey is our application for certified B-Corp status, and Claire, our Head of People and Talent, has been working hard on our impact assessment for this. Gaining this certification has always felt an important step for smol as we work towards the change we want to see in our industry and examine our own working methods and production.
Certified B Corporations are social enterprises verified by B Lab, a non profit organisation. B Lab certify companies based on how they create value for non-shareholding stakeholders such as their employees, the local community and the environment.
Claire began our journey to B-Corp status by registering smol and going through a very long and thought-provoking set of questions. It’s an opportunity to really analyse every inch of our business, scrutinising all areas of our work policy, our operations, the treatment of our staff and the environment and the overarching impact smol has on all of these. As she says,
“Using the B Impact Assessment as a tool is so helpful for any business wanting to take a holistic approach to sustainability. It's reassuring how rigorous the verification process is to become certified, and how supportive B Corp and the B Corp community are.”
The assessment made us think about things that we hadn’t always considered and they actually made us reevaluate certain areas of our business. This was something we welcomed, it was what we had wanted. As we keep saying, this is a journey. We are working hard towards evolving, improving and making the difference to an industry sorely in need of change.
Being a Certified B Corporation is special. The title sets companies apart by confirming to the world that they “Meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability, and aspire to use the power of markets to solve social and environmental problems.”
And if we don’t gain certification the first time around?
We keep trying.
Our goals align with B-Corp and we know we’ll get there.
We care about our social and environmental impact, our people matter here at smol and we want to ensure their safety, their health, progression and happiness. We LOVE the relationship we have with our customers, it’s what sets us apart from the big brands. We need to remain mindful of the communities in which we operate to ensure diversity, inclusion and we are dedicated to working with our charity partners and sponsoring grass roots organisations that are having real community impact. And of course our determination to limit our environmental impact, not just through our products but within our own supply chain and distribution channels.
We’re determined to make that difference and B-Corp is just the beginning.