It’s B Corp Month – But is it Still Worth it?

It’s B Corp Month – but is it still worth it?

There are about 𝟵,𝟱𝟬𝟬 𝗕 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗽𝘀 𝗮𝗰𝗿𝗼𝘀𝘀 𝟭𝟬𝟮 𝗰𝗼𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗲𝘀 amounting to ∼𝟭% 𝗴𝗹𝗼𝗯𝗮𝗹 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿𝗮𝗴𝗲 and mostly SMEs and mission‑driven startups plus some mainstream corporates.

In the UK, 𝗮𝘄𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗕 𝗖𝗼𝗿𝗽 𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗲𝗹 𝗵𝗮𝘀 𝗻𝗼𝘄 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗰𝗵𝗲𝗱 𝗮𝗯𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝟱𝟭% 𝗼𝗳 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗽𝘂𝗯𝗹𝗶𝗰, but the question remains over whether it translates into behaviour: many people recognise the logo yet still can’t or don’t use it to make consistent purchasing decisions.

That gap – between 𝗯𝗿𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗿𝗲𝗰𝗼𝗴𝗻𝗶𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 and 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹‐𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗹𝗱 𝗶𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗰𝘁 – is exactly where the movement is being questioned.

This is the first B Corp Month after the standards overhaul. This redesign is in response to accusations of greenwashing, uneven standards and public non-renewal exits by purpose‑led businesses like Scrumbles and Dr. Bronner's.

Certification costs for smaller firms often land in the £𝟴𝗸–£𝟮𝟱𝗸+ range, with annual fees starting around £1,000 and scaling by revenue, plus submission and verification charges – a heavy lift for many SMEs.

That said, the interworking between B Corps clearly contributes to a powerful movement.

Three shifts that would make this matter more:

• Move from “𝗜𝘀 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗮𝗻 𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗶𝗰𝗮𝗹 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀?” to “𝗛𝗲𝗿𝗲’𝘀 𝗵𝗼𝘄 𝗶𝘁 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝘀, 𝘃𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗲𝗿𝘀.”

• Less reliance on a single badge serving all all to 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝗯𝗹𝗲 𝗺𝗲𝘁𝗿𝗶𝗰𝘀 that work for both SMEs and mass‑market brands.

• Make it easier for customers and investors to see 𝗮𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗮𝗹, 𝘀𝗲𝗰𝘁𝗼𝗿‐𝘀𝗽𝗲𝗰𝗶𝗳𝗶𝗰 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 𝗱𝗮𝘁𝗮, not just governance and commitments.

The real question isn’t about performative eco‑marketing, or about slapping the same badge on every business. It’s about whether there can be an evolution into a 𝘁𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝗰𝗼𝗺𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘃𝗶𝗲𝘄 𝗼𝗳 𝗯𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗽𝗲𝗿𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲 that people can actually act on.