March is one of our favourite months of the year. The days are shorter, the weather’s a little cooler, and we get a whole month of celebrating what it means to be a B Corp.
Certified B Corporations (aka B Corps) are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. In a nutshell? They’re businesses that are actively doing their bit to make the world a better place (and they’ve got the audits to prove it).
We became a certified B Corp in 2020, and we’re excited to welcome the next wave of purpose-driven businesses to the B Corp family. Here are a few of our favourites who have received their certification in the last 12 months.
The Very Good Bra
Bras are on the ‘surprisingly unsustainable’ list. Generally, they’re made using artificial fibres like polyester, nylon and spandex, so when your faithful brassiere comes to the end of its life, it takes years – over 200, in fact – to break down in landfill. Not ideal.
Bank Australia customer The Very Good Bra is changing all that, with the world’s first fully compostable bra. And guess what? The Very Good Bra is super comfy and looks great too.
Everything within these bras – including sewing thread, elastic and labelling – is made from 100% botanically circular materials, which means that when it’s time to treat yourself to a new bra, your old one can go straight into your backyard compost bin or worm farm.
Need to update your duds? The Very Good Bra make undies and sleepwear too.
Going Green Solutions
Lucinda and Sean Flynn are sustainability activists. Lucinda’s an energy assessor (you might remember her tips for making your home more energy efficient) and together with her partner Sean, they’re the co-founders of Going Green Solutions. You know how it’s hard to find ethical, sustainable products all in one place? That’s what these guys are fixing.
Lucinda and Sean started the company when they struggled to find eco-friendly products in their neighbourhood. After running the business out of their home, Going Green Solutions is now a bricks and mortar store. It’s basically your one-stop shop for low impact, zero waste products.
Stock up on home supplies like reusable cups and bottles, baking gear, books, gardening equipment and baby stuff, or explore the company’s range of eco-friendly catering ware. If you need anything eco-friendly, there’s a good chance Going Green has got you covered.
Scratch Dog Food
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The dog food industry is a pretty dirty one (no big surprises there, if you’ve ever opened a can). For one thing, it’s essentially self-regulated, so most pet owners have no idea what they’re actually feeding their sweet doggos.
Enter Scratch Dog Food. Mike and Doug, Scratch’s founders, are on a mission to make your dog’s food better – and they’re doing it from scratch. They’re the first dog food company in Australia to reveal the exact percentages of what’s in their food, they only use consciously sourced meats (with no added hormones), and they avoid factory farms.
Scratch works on a subscription system, so you’ll never run out of dog food again. Deliveries are all carbon neutral, the packaging is 100% recyclable, too. Plus, dogs love it – we know a few Bank Australia pooches that give it two paws up.
#GoKindly
One of the newest B Corps on the list, #GoKindly creates beautiful, high quality, Australian-made bedding, including pillows, doonas and mattresses. So what makes them good for people and the planet? They donate 50% of their profits to support women experiencing homelessness and housing stress.
The team operate according to a ‘kindness circle’. At each touchpoint of the manufacturing and shopping process, #BeKindly aims to be kind and tread lightly. They don’t use any single-use plastics, they pay fair wages, make their products locally, and support women in need. They also offer a 25% discount to students, pensioners and low-income earners keen to buy ethically made bedding.
It can be easy to forget about what goes into our sheets, but with these guys, you can sleep easy.
The Commons
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If you imagine your dream work setting, The Commons probably comes pretty close. With co-working spaces across Australia, they’re all about fostering community by providing an environment that encourages businesses to connect, collaborate and grow. They’re also one of Australia’s newest B Corps.
Since starting their B Corp journey, The Commons have invested in carbon offsets and 100% renewable energy. They use LED light systems around their offices that work on sensors, to keep energy use down. They also provide staff and guests with locally sourced supplies (including fellow B Corp Who Gives A Crap’s toilet paper), host regular events on how to live with a lighter footprint, and offer a range of valuable resources on sustainability.
They’re also the only co-working space we know that runs a scholarship program for not-for-profit and social enterprises. In fact, they’ve contributed over $840,000 to organisations committed to making the world a better place. Consider The Commons for your next side hustle/conquer-the-world strategy meeting.
Want to dive further into the world of B Corps? Read all about it here.
