Chapter 18 – What B Corp means to us

Written by Marieke Hammes, Head of Operations & Sustainability 

We are B Corp certified! Just in time for B Corp Month in March, Canned Wine Company Ltd certified, covering both our Canned Wine Co. and The Copper Crew brands. This has been a long journey, starting in spring 2021, with the result of 90 verified points. 

But first – what is a B Corp? 

Certified B Corps are companies verified by a certification body called B Lab UK to meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability. There are over 9,500 B Corps arounds the world in 105 countries, with the UK being the hotspot with over a quarter of certified businesses globally.   

B Corps strive to use business as a force for good – driven by purpose, seeking to effect positive change, committed to doing no harm, with the understanding that we are all interdependent and responsible to act. As part of this, businesses must go through the B Impact Assessment with at least 80 points, pass evaluation and verification, meet the legal requirement to officially amend Articles of Association to consider all stakeholders, and sign the Declaration of Interdependence. Once certified, all B Corps publicly list their scores on the directory, have to publish annual impact reports and also recertify every three years.  

Why did we certify? 

In times of climate change and uncertainty, businesses have the responsibility to do good. Being a wine company and therefore offering a luxury good, we believe that the wine industry must lead on sustainability.  

At Canned Wine Group, our impact strategy is based on the three pillars of people, planet and place, in line with our purpose (to elevate thoughtful connections between people, planet and place, through wine). This has to be underpinned by solid governance structures to hold us accountable. We see certification bodies such as B Lab UK as integral to challenging our ways of doing business, holding us accountable and using comparable scoring systems to help credibly communicate our progress externally.  

Our decision to certify as a B Corp specifically, in a sea of sustainability certifications, has not always been straightforward. When I first did the B Impact Assessment in early 2021, the team only consisted of two full-time staff members, with a further two part-timers. It was a useful tool to benchmark our performance (61 points), however, we did not have the resources at the time to pursue the certification stage. This changed after completing the Positive Luxury Accelerator Programme, as it helped build on our existing sustainability strategy with more robust policies, sourcing criteria and data collection, that ultimately helped us with our B Corp submission in 2024.  

So, what does B Corp mean to us? 

1. To credibly communicate our commitment & values to all stakeholders: 

From our early start, Canned Wine Group has always communicated our commitment to sustainability. The company was started to disrupt the traditional wine industry and bring delicious single serve wines to market in a more sustainable way – using bulk shipments for premium wines, using aluminium cans as packaging, offering single serves to reduce wine wastage. Going through a rigorous, time-intensive certification process like B Corp backs up the commitment to take this seriously and integrate sustainability into every part of the business. Any stakeholder from customer, investor to supply chain partners can therefore see us live up to our values. With the severity of the climate crisis, individuals and businesses alike are seeking businesses that communicate this commitment.  

Lauren – Digital Marketing Executive: “Sharing our sustainability mission on social media has been a joy, from celebrating the wins, embracing the challenges that come with being a smaller business, and staying true to our purpose every step of the way. Positive Luxury really reinforced our core integration of sustainability, and now with B Corp, I can’t wait to share what’s next in our journey toward a more conscious future.” 

2. To be held accountable & be transparent about our performance across people, planet & place: 

It’s easy to say you care about people and planet, but it’s important to back this up with evidence and third-party verification. The B Impact Assessment and publication of our scores helps keep us accountable and transparently communicate our real impact, regardless of good intentions. Each company will naturally prioritise different aspects of sustainability that align best with the purpose of the business – the comprehensive questions across governance, environment, workers, community and customers ensures that we consider all facets of sustainability.  

Ben – CCO & Wine Buyer:” We’re delighted to be certified B Corp as it’s an important step in holding us to account to do and be better. Wine is a passionate, people-led business that relies on the planet we all live on to exist. For the love of wine, we have a responsibility to look beyond profit and continue to inspire a better world to live and work.” 

3. To be challenged & committed to continuously improve: 

While we scored 90 points, there are still many areas where we can improve. Sustainability is not an end goal, but a journey that continuously changes as more research about climate change emerges and best practices evolve. Having scored every part of our business, we have a better view of where our business needs to do better, such as water usage across the supply chain, more comprehensive stakeholder engagement and diversification of our board. With the change in B Lab UK’s standards where a minimum score needs to be achieved in each category, this will further challenge businesses to do better across people, planet and place. 

Matthew – Operations Executive: “Becoming certified as a B Corp means we’re part of a group of companies striving to improve ourselves and do the right thing for people and planet.” 

4. To be part of a like-minded community that encourages learning & open dialogue: 

The B Corp community is full of incredible businesses of all sizes that are trying to redefine a new way of doing business better. While there are a select few companies that we may personally disagree with having been granted B Corp status, the community is overwhelmingly positive. There are many ways of opening dialogue and learning between businesses, from B Locals, conferences, online forums and joint events. I’ve personally learnt so much from other B Corp’s sustainability journeys by reading their impact reports, understanding their policies and observing how they articulate their sustainability journey without greenwashing that I hope to integrate into Canned Wine Group’s internal and external sustainability communications. 

Simon – CEO: “Alongside the Butterfly Mark, B Corp highlights our continued commitment to better business. I’m thrilled to be part of the growing community of business in the UK and globally that strive to deliver not just value for shareholders, but their people, communities and the planet. B Corp has become the standard by which modern business should operate and I look forward to continuing to improve across all facets of the business as we grow.” 

5. To take a moment to reflect & be proud of our progress: 

As a team, we’ve been working towards this moment for years. While we are not perfect, I’m still incredibly proud of the 90 points we scored and the acknowledgement of our work this certification brings! 

Alice – Head of Growth: “Becoming B Corp certified is a huge step for Canned Wine Group in our sustainability, accountability and impact journey.  It’s a formal and public acknowledgement of the hard work, commitment and dedication of a collection of individuals within the organisation who not only live, breathe and champion these values on a daily basis, but also go a step beyond their duties to ensure we really are the best version of the company we can be.”