B Corp Month: Celebrating the businesses driving change

March is B Corp™ month – a celebration of the companies, big and small, that make up the B Corp community. As a certified B Corp since 2023, we are proud to be a part of the community of businesses that are taking action, driving change, and demanding a better future.

But what does it mean to be a B Corp? And what difference does it make to those who work with and for the certified businesses? Here we explain more on the certification, what it means to put purpose at the heart of everything we do, and the journey we have taken to become certified and beyond.

The B Corp movement was founded in 2006 in the United States by the nonprofit organisation, B Lab. It came from an idea that a different kind of economy was not only possible, but it was also necessary. The first companies were certified in 2007, with a tour operator said to have been the first to earn it. Since then, the community has grown to over 9,500 B Corps across the world.

Certified B Corporations – or B Corps – are companies that have been verified by B Lab to have met the required high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability. The certification is unique because it measures a company’s entire social and environmental performance. From supply chain and input materials to charitable giving and employee benefits – it verifies that a business benefits all people, communities, and the planet, not just shareholders.

Gaining certification is a comprehensive process. To achieve it, a company must meet stringent requirements and is assessed and scored against five impact areas – Governance, Workers, Community, Environment, Customers. To gain our certification, we went through a rigorous assessment by B Lab where we had to prove that we are using our business as a force for good, balancing purpose and profit – providing examples across each impact area.

Businesses must score a minimum of 80 points across the five impact areas to become certified. When we certified, our score was 84.6, which far surpassed the current median score of 50.9 for non-B Corp certified businesses. But our journey has not stopped there. B Corp certification is a long-term and ongoing commitment, and we are continuing to identify ways to increase our positive impact. Our next assessment will take place in 2026, and we hope to achieve recertification with an even higher score.

Just some of the steps we have taken over recent years that support our B Corp certification include:

1. We are reducing our carbon footprint, investing in our building, including the installation of solar panels.
2. We have purchased land and planted a woodland, with over 1,100 trees planted so far.
3. We are giving back to the community, providing all our staff with a volunteer day and donating money to charities.
4. We pay a living wage, ensuring our staff earn a salary that meets everyday needs, such as the weekly shop, or a surprise trip to the dentist.
5. We are taking steps to support a more ethical and sustainable supply chain.

We still have work to do in the years ahead, but we are committed to continuous improvements and we will strive to improve on our scores across all impact areas.

Since the start of our business, our strong family and community values have formed a key part of our identity, and we have always been passionate about balancing profit and purpose. Becoming B Corp™ in 2023 simply made this official. We recognise that many of our clients share these values, and our B Corp certification is a globally-recognised stamp of approval of our aim to contribute to a better, more sustainable future. This gives our clients full confidence that they are working with a responsible supplier that considers its impact on people and planet – and one that is committed to supporting their own efforts to increase positive impact.

While there are many recognisable B Corp brands out there, including Patagonia, Ben and Jerry’s, Giffgaff and Body Shop, there are very few business travel companies who have completed the verification. In fact, in the UK right now only two business travel management companies have successfully gone through the assessment. And we are the only company specialising in the sports, media and entertainment sectors.

Throughout the month of March, the B Corp community is raising awareness for the certified companies who are prioritising purpose alongside profit, as well as inspiring more businesses to act with transparency and accountability.  This year’s campaign will showcase the rise of ‘Generation B’ as a new wave of businesses and thought leaders driving positive change. Find out more here about this year’s campaign.

You can find out more about our B Corp certification and the steps we have taken to increase our positive impact on the sustainability pages of our website. If you want to know anything more about our certification, or would like to find out how we can support a more sustainable travel programme for your business, email us at: sustainability@travelplaces.co.uk.