‘No B Corp, no bonus’ - Body Shop to staff
Household name The Body Shop has achieved B Corp status – in part thanks to linking the target to staff bonuses.
Christopher Davis, international director of corporate social responsibility and campaigns at the UK-based multinational, said the company decided to link achieving certification to its 2019 annual bonus scheme, meaning staff would see their bonus cut if B Corp status was not achieved.
Speaking at the BInspired event in London last week – a ‘Ted Talks’-style gathering for 600 people pursuing responsible business models – Davis said the move to involve all its staff meant the end goal was considered in every financial update. “It really mattered… it bought into the heart of the business.”
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What is a B Corp? Certified B Corporations are businesses that meet high standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency, and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. Achieving B Corp certification requires meeting minimum standards on various scores, with assessments to be repeated every three years. There are currently more than 2,500 certified B Corps in 50 countries. |
That was key because the skincare and beauty firm was attempting something that he said even B Lab, the organisation that certifies B Corporations, considered “courageous”: trying to get certified in 20 countries using 14 assessments within less than a year.
The Body Shop, which employs around 10,000+ people, announced its certification last month, becoming the biggest B Corp to be founded by a woman (Dame Anita Roddick) and the first British multinational to certify.
It was acquired two years ago by Brazilian firm Natura & Co, itself one of the largest B Corps. It was the biggest acquisition by a B Corp at the time, and a move that “changed everything” for the UK company, said Davis. “It was the motivation for us from day one to start B Corp certification.”
Davis said two other factors helped achieve certification: appointing two “champions” to drive performance in each of its country offices, and the “tough but kind” approach of B Lab’s verification team.
His advice to others considering verification was to “fix your data systems”.
“When we started the application we found a lot of things under the bonnet that surprised us… There was stuff we knew we were doing brilliantly – our fair trade programme is the biggest in our sector – [but] proving it was a little tough.”
The Body Shop was a pioneer in ethical business when it was founded in 1976, by manufacturing and selling products using natural ingredients and not tested on animals.
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Header photo: A Body Shop storefront in Coventry, UK. Photo by Hazel Nicholson on Flickr (creative commons)
