B Corp hasn't changed us. It made us prove who we already were.

For years we've made decisions at Source that probably wouldn't make much sense if the only objective was to maximise short-term profit.

We’ve invested in solar. We were early adopters to alternative cleaning products and consumables. We’ve worked with charities and local and international community projects. We’ve tried to reduce waste and optimise our delivery routes. We’ve invested in our people. And we'd bet we've done more deliveries by EV than any other distributor in our industry over the last 5 years.

None of that started and is in place today because we wanted a B Corp logo on the website.

In fact, the B Corp assessment has come much later then we had intended. But, you know, we've been busy doing the doing…

And that's what made the process interesting.

Because suddenly we had to stop saying “we're a sustainable supplier and we really believe in operating in this way” and start asking “can we actually prove it?”.

After all, we've been quick to point out that greenwashing is a real issue in our industry so it was time to ensure we could never fall foul of such an allegation. Virtue signallers, we are most definitely not, but we need more than lip service, EVs, solar and community connections.

We needed, and our customers needed, certification.

More Than Words

We're really proud of our B Corp certification and score of 97.7 points. We also know it's just the beginning of an ongoing commitment to the process.

To achieve certification, businesses have to look inward and be realistic. Celebrate the boxes you can tick, be real about the areas where you need to level up.

What B Corp has given us is a framework for meaningful improvement and progression, with accountability driving the process.

We have the words ‘Change starts at Source’ adorned on our office wall and we're fully committed to living up to that statement. We just might have to add a little B Corp logo underneath it to really hit it home.