How Gloucestershire businesses can prioritise environmental and social goals this B Corp month

B Corp Month takes place every March as a celebration of the worldwide B Corp movement, spearheaded by B Lab — the non-profit organisation which provides B Corp certification to businesses which demonstrably benefit people and the planet. 

Whether you're considering becoming a certified B Corp or not, starting the journey towards sustainability can be really simple. 

Stroud Brewery is a successful business that has been a B Corp for many years — and its founder Greg Pilley is a passionate advocate for sustainability, especially in the hospitality sector.

Throughout B Corp month, businesses including Stroud Brewery are sharing their positive social and environmental practices to inspire others to make the commitment to a better future. 

According to Greg and the Stroud Brewery team, there are some really straightforward ways to get your sustainability journey off on the right foot. 

A good first step is taking stock of what you're doing currently and B Lab's digital Impact Assessment is a great way to do this. 

The assessment provides a framework to assess performance against metrics including community, customers, employees, environment and suppliers, resulting in a final score — with businesses needing to reach 80 or above to apply for B Corp certification. 

However, Greg suggests some immediate things to consider too, like working with local suppliers wherever possible (Gloucestershire has a wide network of local B Corps); choosing to purchase organic or Fairtrade products; switching to a renewable energy provider (Stroud-headquartered Ecotricity is a great local option); and reducing business waste. 

Stroud Brewery has even created a sustainability guide to help businesses get started, which is free to download from stroudbrewery.com.

Outlining 10 tips to help your business go greener, the guide was written with hospitality in mind, but its helpful advice could be applied to any sector.

So regardless of whether your business is ready to go for B Corp certification, B Corp month is a great time to put your focus on making your Gloucestershire business as sustainable as it can be.