Clear Future Financial Planners based near Stroud is delighted to announce that it has achieved B Corporation status. It joins 2,000 companies in the UK, and more than 8,800 companies worldwide, who are committed to using their business to do good for their staff, the local community and the environment at the same time as running a successful business.
The announcement was made at the company’s annual Summer Social where its clients were the first to hear this good news. Clear Future Financial Planners sees this as a win-win: a way to help future-proof the company and serve its clients better whilst also contributing towards a healthier environment and thriving local communities.
B Corporation is a global corporate mark laying down tough standards which companies must meet to prove they are genuinely embracing more sustainable and ethical ways of operating. It indicates that the business considers the impacts of its decision-making on workers, suppliers, the local community and the environment. It’s overseen and awarded by the charity, B Lab, and is the business equivalent of the organic certification.
Clear Future Financial Planners joins an impressive roll call of companies who are B Corporations: Patagonia, Ben & Jerry’s, Innocent Drinks, Emma Bridgewater and, closer to home, Stroud Brewery, Hobbs House Bakery, ProCook and Tyler Grange.
Simon Evans, Clear Future’s MD, said that consumers can be confident when they see the B Corporation logo that a company is genuinely doing what it can to operate in more ethical and sustainable ways: “There are so many schemes that businesses can join to show they’re being more sustainable and responsible that it can be difficult for the consumer to know which to believe and which is just a tick box exercise. Having been through the process, we can say that becoming a B Corp is hard work so when you see the logo, you can be sure the company really is doing what it can.
“Right from the start, we believed it was the right thing to do to both strengthen and future-proof the business as well as using our power as a company to help make a better world. For so long, it’s been assumed that the two couldn’t be combined but the B Corporation movement shows it is possible.”
Clear Future Financial Planners started the certification journey over a year ago, identifying ways to reduce its environmental impact and improve its support for staff, clients and the local community. The changes implemented don’t have to be complicated or large scale and could be achieved by most businesses. Even small actions can add up to make a positive difference. Examples of what Clear Future is doing include:
* Offering sustainable investment and pension options
* Choosing local suppliers in order to support the local economy
* Buying the office coffee from a Glos-based coffee company
* Supporting its staff to further their professional qualifications and skills
* Carrying out a year-long energy audit to identify ways of improving energy efficiency
* Adopting a charity each year – this year it’s HomeStart Stroud & Gloucester
* Introducing flexible working hours to help staff balance work and home life
* Recycling office resources such as ink toner cartridges, batteries, and paper.
Market research reveals there’s increasing demand from consumers to purchase with purpose: over three-quarters of people say they prefer to buy from companies which they can trust are undertaking activities to improve society and the environment, and many say they want to live a greener life but don’t know how. A good place to start is looking for the B Corporation logo when choosing which company to buy from.
Pictures by Sam L Legge Photography
