What does it actually mean to be a B Corp?

March is B Corp month, so chances are high that you’ll see not only us shouting at you about it, but a bunch of other amazing brands too.

That’s because we’re all very proud to be certified B Corps, which means we’re allowed to brag about it. But to some of you, it might not even mean anything at all. Unfortunately, you have to actually BE a B Corp to understand what it means, and the first rule about B Corp is…

Just kidding. We’re going to explain to you exactly what makes us a brilliant bamboo B Corp as best we can. But if you have any questions, we’re always around for a chat.

What does the ‘B’ stand for?

Bees? Bread? BAMBOO?!

It actually stands for ‘Benefit’, because that’s exactly what the community stands for, for everyone. It’s kind of open to interpretation, it can mean any positive thing you want it to, depending on what the aim of your business is.

Not bread. Even though that IS positive, because it’s delicious. That only works for our friends at Toast Ale. 

Better Business

To put it in basic terms, being a B Corp means being a better business and using your stature as a business as a force for good. Being a B Corp means being purpose-driven towards benefitting not only shareholders, but stakeholders, customers, workers, the economy and the planet.

It helps to compare B Corp to what Fair Trade is to coffee – it demonstrates that as a company, we are giving as much consideration into our social and environmental impact as we do with our financial returns.

B Corp assess businesses on five key impact areas: Governance, Workers, Community, Environment and Customers. To become a certified B Corp, you have to pass each area according to their standards. It’s like taking your GCSEs again, but with less algebra.

Companies must meet high standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability to balance both profit and purpose. Essentially, we want to make money as a business, while also doing good and helping the Earth using our sustainable products and messaging.

How do The Cheeky Panda qualify?

Well, our mission is, and always has been, to Innovate – Impact – Inspire.

We want to create a sustainable, eco-friendly world for future generations, while enriching people without exploiting the environment. We do this in a fun, cheeky way – mainly because that’s the only way we know how to do it.

We use fast-growing, FSC-certified bamboo and turn it into everyday essentials to put a stop to the growing deforestation issue the world is experiencing globally. We’re also trying to halt the use of single-use plastic alongside carbon balancing our supply chain.

Not only that, we champion our workers and encourage development, while also supporting a number of charities who do good for the world. See: our Earth, Ocean & People initiative.

We offer an eco-friendly alternative and we’re passionate about offering a simple, sustainable switch to our customers, which we think will make a world of difference. We’re also an MSDUK – Diverse Business, vegan and cruelty-free.

Our carbon emissions are also balanced by our forest-loving friends at World Land Trust – we donate the equivalent of our carbon produced from our supply chain back into protecting and preserving the rainforest.

All in all, we love the planet and the people in it (most of them anyway). We want to make it better.

So, who else is a B Corp?

Since B Corp launched, there are now 3,821 B Corps across 74 countries in 150 industries, all striving toward the same goal of being better businesses and doing good.

Who are our favourites? We don’t like to pick favourites, they’re all amazing, and it’s like picking a favourite out of your own children.

But stay tuned for our next blog post to find out who we love the most.  

But we’re NOT picking favourites.

Those are our favourites, though.