‘You can't run a certification based on vibes' – does B Corp still signal a business that cares?

The Guardian

2 days ago

Princess Polly, available on Asos in the UK, has a lot in common with other ultra-fast fashion brands. Although a little more expensive than Boohoo and PrettyLittleThing, the Australian-American multinational offers the same kind of trend-driven, low-priced clothes, mostly made from polyester. At the time of writing, shoppers can peruse more than 2,000 dresses, from a £6 pink mini dress to an £82 cream maxidress. There are bikini bottoms for £3 and barrel-leg jeans from £8. But there is one key difference between Princess Polly and its competitors. In early July, it became B Corp certified, bringing the certification's integrity into question.
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B Corp is the world's most recognisable corporate responsibility certification and, since its inception in 2006, has been awarded to businesses that meet its 'high standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency,' including Patagonia, the Body Shop and the Guardian. The B stands for 'beneficial'.
The B Corp label has long symbolised a business dedicated to caring for people and planet. Through a rigorous, months- or even years-long verification process, it is intended to hold companies to high standards by measuring positive impact on workers, community, environment and customers. However, at the time of writing, Princess Polly is running a buy-one-get-one-60%-off promotion, pushing excess product in a way that doesn't seem to align with B Corp values.
Dale McCarthy, whose carbon-neutral certified swimwear label Bondi Born was awarded B Corp status in 2020, says the news left her 'deeply disappointed ... It makes a mockery of it.' '[Now] it seems any company can get certified if they issue enough policies and tick enough boxes, even if the fundamentals of the business are a major contributor to environmental damage,' she says.
Another B Corp fashion brand, New Zealand designer Kowtow, takes issue with Princess Polly's business model, which relies on producing vast volumes of clothing. 'It contributes to a hyperconsumerist culture,' says its managing director, Emma Wallace. 'The root [problem] of overproduction … needs to be addressed.' A new report from the Apparel Impact Institute (pdf) attributes the apparel industry's 7% emissions increase to ultra-fast fashion, overproduction and a reliance on virgin polyester.
On its website, Princess Polly says: 'We're on a mission to make on-trend fashion sustainable', and notes it has introduced a range of measures, including using 'lower-impact materials' such as recycled polyester and organic cotton in 30% of its 'new arrivals'.
Sustainability campaigners and industry observers voice scepticism. 'It's greenwashing,' says Alden Wicker, the founder of the Substack EcoCult, which reports on sustainability issues in the industry. 'You can't run a certification like this based on vibes. Anybody who wants a better world when it comes to how we purchase and consume fashion would have values that clash with the ethos of this brand.'
B Corp has found itself on shaky ground recently, not just because of Princess Polly. In February, after the certification of several companies not usually associated with good environmental practice, the famously ethically minded soap company Dr Bronner's dropped the certification, stating: 'Sharing the same logo and messaging … [with] companies with a history of serious ecological and labour issues, and no comprehensive or credible eco-social certification of supply chains, is unacceptable to us'.
David Bronner, the company's CEO, is unimpressed with the certification of Princess Polly. 'It's just single-use plastic. You could be doing all kinds of good stuff, but if that's your product offering, then that's inherently not better for the world.'
Princess Polly says it's 'proud of its environmental, social and governance progress', and highlights that its focus is on two areas: ethical sourcing (100% of its mostly Chinese garment manufacturers have a 'valid ethical manufacturing audit') and environmental impact (it has pledged to reduce carbon emissions by 2030). But its circularity initiatives are scant (you can read its policy here) and it only has a vague commitment to paying living wages.
In a statement provided in response to specific questions about Princess Polly's certification, B Lab, the business behind B Corp, wrote: 'B Corp certification is holistic; it doesn't evaluate a product or service, nor is it exclusively focused on a single social or environmental issue.'
With about 10,000 companies certified, now including various well-known multinationals, B Lab says the movement is 'intentionally diverse'. But to some, this broad-church approach reveals another shortcoming. 'If your theory of change is engaging big and questionable players and helping them be marginally better, you need to distinguish companies that are going way beyond that,' says Bronner.
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Companies that apply for status answer more than 200 questions to measure positive impact across governance, workers, community, environment and customers, and are then given a score. The minimum score for certification is 80 points but critics point out a business can be weak in one area and make up for it in another. Businesses must reapply for certification after three, and then five, years. At least some of the contention is with using a points-based system that brands can leverage by hiring consultants able to help them navigate the application process. In other words, says McCarthy: 'large companies can afford teams of lawyers and document writers', which are resources less likely to be available to smaller businesses.
Change is coming. After a five-year consultation process, the certification is due to be updated next year. Under B Lab's new standards, companies will need to meet minimum requirements across seven areas including: climate action, environmental stewardship and circularity.
Since 2024, the sustainable fashion designer and activist Amy Powney has been pursuing B Corp certification for her new label, Akyn. She says the new B Corp standards are more onerous for circularity, waste, overproduction and human rights, so 'it will be interesting to see if [Princess Polly] pass in three years'.
As for the ongoing desirability of the B Corp label and its ability to signal brand value to conscious consumers, the jury remains out. Powney will still apply and at Kowtow the certification remains useful. 'It has empowered our team to work on the tough stuff, ask questions of our suppliers and collaborate on solutions,' says Wallace.
For Bronner, who won't be returning, the new standards are 'directionally getting better but still failing in certain fundamental ways'. Bondi Born's McCarthy remains sceptical: 'I'll wait and see whether B Corp as a brand continues to dilute itself until it's meaningless – or not.'
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