A month of celebrating everything about being a B Corp. An annual coming together of B Corps. It’s big, and it’s beautiful. Over 6,300 companies around the world, over 1,000 in the UK alone, all uniting to champion a new, better way of doing business.
This year, for the first time, we find ourselves among that number.
So, as we wrap up our first B Corp Month as an official B Corp business, I was keen to take a look back at Catch A Fire’s journey so far. And, more importantly, where we’ve set our compass to.
B Corp Month and beyond
When Craig and I joined forces to launch Catch A Fire, we didn’t know what a B Corp was. We’d never heard of B Lab or the global B Corp community.
What we did know was that we had a purpose, a mission. We set out to build an agency that would be a force for good. We combined our agency and client-side experiences and went on the lookout for like-minded people we could help to make a positive difference.
By early 2020, B Corp was firmly on our radar. It felt like the most natural step for us to take. And in August 2022, we joined the B Corp community.
For us, becoming certified was all about measuring our impact and progress. The certification process itself showed us how we were doing in balancing profit and purpose. And it proved to us that we were already doing a lot right.
But it also opened our eyes to everything else we can – and should – commit to as a purpose-led business. Yes, it’s scary, but it’s also thrilling. Being part of a united, passionate team brings strength and determination. Challenges become opportunities.
On impact and creating great work
From the very beginning, Catch A Fire’s purpose gave us strong roots from which to grow the business. This purpose helps us make big decisions, giving us guidance on the types of brands and businesses we want to work with.
For us, it’s never been about just working with ‘whiter than white’ businesses. Those brands are brilliant, don’t get me wrong, but for us, it’s the intentions that are crucial. Businesses that want to do the right thing for people, society and the planet but need a little help? That’s right up our street. Because I truly believe that’s how we can make a big difference. By supporting actual behaviour change.
Happiness is…
Craig and I know that, as a business, the more focused and authentic we are to our purpose, the happier our team will be. A happy, proud team ultimately means we can create better work for our clients and the great brands we work on.
Becoming a B Corp in August 2022 was a huge moment for us all at Catch A Fire. It was important we enjoyed it, and we did! But for me, it’s even more important that we see it as the start of the next phase.
Since then, we’ve trained team members as Mental Health First Aiders through MHFA England. We also continued giving our people one day a year, for each of us to focus solely on something close to our hearts. From creating a piece of work for one of our chosen charities to volunteering at our local food bank or even doing a beach clean, we call these Ignite Days.
Local businesses furnished our office with upcycled tables and vegan leather chairs. And our office hours are fuelled by Grind compostable coffee pods and Oddbox wonky fruit. Our first B Corp score was 83 points, against a pass mark of 80. And it’s not easy to score 80, so we were really chuffed. But there were a lot of points that eluded us in the first phase, showing us just how many opportunities we have to step up, and make an even bigger impact.
Coming up for Catch A Fire
We’re really keen to get together and build the B Corp community, so if you are a local B Corp or a business eager to become one, let’s get together! Give me a shout: toby@catchafireagency.com
But Catch A Fire’s B Corp journey doesn’t end with our certification. It’s just the beginning. Over the next two years, we’ll be honing in on how we continue to help our community, people, and the environment around us. We have big goals and even stronger feelings about our areas of purpose – we’re brimming with ideas.
And with ever-growing awareness of better ways of doing business within the public sphere, there has never been a better time to be part of the B Corp community.
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