What is B Corp Month and Why does it matter?
Every year, the B Corp community takes the month of March to celebrate B Corps. This month-long campaign is a time for our global community to join together to build awareness and encourage new audiences to buy from, work for, and do business with B Corps.
So - all throughout March, we’re inviting you to see what goes on #BehindtheB. Being a B Corp is something we’re really proud of, so for the next 30 days, we’ll be sharing what that means to us via our social channels, and why it matters. Come and find out what's Behind the B.
So, what is a B Corp?
“Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet the highest standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose.”
Simply meaning that being a #BCorp means valuing your workers, customers, environment, and community as much as your profits (or more!) — and having an internal process that keeps those values in place.
How did Steelhead become B Corp certified?
We realized that becoming a B-Corp certified company would take an all-hands-on-deck approach. The organization kicked off the process by announcing the certification initiative as the company’s annual goal. Steelhead then hired a 3rd party sustainability coach who evaluated internal processes and procedures and advised the company on moving through the application process.
Each department was held accountable for setting goals and milestones to be in alignment with B-Corp standards. Each department reported their forward movement at monthly meetings where progress and completion were celebrated. Once all departments reached their goals, the company submitted its application for certification.
Why it Matters
Steelhead is a values-based organization with sustainability being one of our eight values.
As the only B-Corp certified trade show and event production company in North America, Steelhead is proud to be truly living in alignment with what we've communicated is of value.
The trade show industry contributes heavily to landfill waste, through single or limited time use of branded marketing environments and activations. As an access only exhibit house, we seek to significantly reduce the amount of trade show marketing waste that ends up in landfills.
Our business model diverts what would otherwise be waste in a landfill, to investing into structural environmental components which are reused/shared from brand to brand. This gives our customers access to a wide variety of existing inventory rather than creating new single-use items.
Since 2018, we have converted over 80 brands to the access over ownership model, expanding the community of marketers who understand that they can both meet their marketing needs and participate in a model which is better for the environment.
And as of January 2020, 100% of our client base uses our access and sharing model over the ownership and disposal model.
If you have any questions regarding B Corp or our Access Model be sure to connect with us here.