Celebrating B Corp Month : Julian Burnham
Why did Change Please decide to become a B Corp, and what does it mean for the brand?
One of our missions in Change Please is to demonstrate that there are better ways of doing business. We want to show that by using commercial profits to benefit society, we can generate more commercial success and in turn more profits to deliver further benefits. We are not alone in this mission, but we are still, sadly, a rarity. The B Corp certification helps us stand out and gives some further assurance to customers and partners that we really are as good as we say we are. Securing B Corp certification with such a strong score also gave us an internal boost and a re-assurance that we are doing things better by making a positive difference to the world.
What were the biggest challenges in achieving B Corp certification?
This has to be documenting the great things we do day in and day out. We have been through an amazing period of growth since we weathered the COVID-19 lockdowns.Digging into what we do and how we go about it and documenting it took time but is so worthwhile!
What key impact areas does Change Please focus on as part of its B Corp commitment?
Our mission is about helping fellow humans thrive so understandably our strongest impact areas are around Workers and Community. That does not mean that we do not want to improve other impact areas such as Environment. In fact, since gaining B Corp certification, we have prioritised measuring our carbon footprint to understand our impact on the environment. As a result, we have offset 100% of our Scope 1 & 2 emissions and are actively developing carbon reduction plans.
How does Change Please measure and track its impact as a B Corp?
We continually track and regularly report on our social impact. We report this monthly, and we update our stakeholders quarterly and then annually in our Impact Report.
What does being a B Corp mean for Change Please’s relationship with customers, suppliers, and the wider industry?
As mentioned above the B Corp certification, it gives a certain amount of assurance that we have been audited by an external body and that we do in fact accomplish the great things. The label means more to some customers than others, and for those, they were really pleased to see we secured the certification and the 120+ score we achieved. For others, it was more of a hygiene point, giving them the re-assurance that we are a good partner for them.
How does Change Please plan to continue improving its B Corp score in future assessments?
Our environmental impact is a key area of focus. We sell coffee which by its very nature will produce emissions. Sadly, coffee does not grow in the UK, so we need to ship (not fly!) it here and then it needs roasting which requires fuel. However, we roast our coffee in a carbon neutral roastery, where renewable energy is used wherever possible, and energy usage is reduced through technology and behaviour.