By Qiulae Wong
Kiwis have always been proud of our ‘small, but mighty’ persona, and the Aotearoa B Corp community is no exception. Our context is unique and so is our approach to business, from our commitment to doing the mahi (work) to sharing the aroha (love).
While the broader B Lab Australia and Aotearoa New Zealand (AANZ) team is primarily based in Melbourne/Naarm, I am proud to have joined the ranks recently as the organisation’s new dedicated Aotearoa New Zealand Manager.
Welcoming CEO, Andrew Davies, Head of Impact & Growth, Mindy Leow, and Impact & Engagement Manager, Kira Day — for their first visit across the ditch since the onset of the pandemic, I was thrilled for them to see firsthand how much things have grown in that time.
A lot has changed since March 2020 and continues to do so at a rapid pace, so here are a few things to get you excited about the current state of the Aotearoa B Corp community.
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
1. Celebrating a decade doing business
Beginning in Ōtautahi Christchurch a decade ago, our very first B Corp in this part of the world is the fly-under-the-radar, humble team at Eagle Protect. Certified in 2012, they were part of the B Corp movement before the B Lab AANZ regional organisation was even set up!
It’s no surprise, therefore, that the Christchurch community is one of our most engaged and thriving in the country, with the likes of Grow Good, Kathmandu and Untouched World flying the B Corp flag with pride, just to name a few.
When the team last visited in March 2020, the B Corp movement in Aotearoa was made up of 24 Certified B Corps. Now, we’re at over 65! That’s a nearly 200% increase in just two years and shows no signs of slowing down any time soon.
While it might have taken us 10 years to get to 60 B Corps, we already have another 60-odd businesses in the pipeline waiting to get certified. This movement is accelerating fast!
“It was great to meet the B Lab team and see how this wonderful movement is growing in NZ. Amazing to be able to meet other B Corps in person and network with like-minded businesses.”
— Marcia, Emma Lewisham
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
2. Small in number, yet significant in impact
Kiwi B Corps account for 15 percent of the total number of certified companies across Australia and Aotearoa NZ (currently: 67 out of 439), but two of the three biggest B Corps in our region are from Aotearoa: Synlait and Kathmandu.
The total revenue represented by Kiwi B Corps is $2.3 billion and they employ over 6,600 people. That’s no small achievement when you think of the number of workers, customers and communities that are impacted by the B Corp community in Aotearoa!
“Great to see so many values-aligned people/businesses in the room.”
— Jamie Bell, Redvespa Consultants
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
3. A country where the regions represent
Aotearoa New Zealand wouldn’t be what it is without the people and the businesses that operate outside our main city centres. With agriculture and food production so central to building a more regenerative and inclusive economy in Aotearoa, there are an impressive number of B Corps situated throughout the country’s regional locations.
From Chia Sisters who built the country’s first solar-powered factory in Nelson, to the team at Raglan Food Co who started to create their delicious plant-based alternatives from their garage, to the crowd-favourite Sawmill Brewery who started up operations on the site of what was once a local timber mill in Leigh.
While a week was unfortunately not enough time to make it to all these corners of the country, perhaps a campervan tour (offset, of course) should be on the cards sometime soon!
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
4. A movement made up of all shapes, sizes and sectors
While some of the more recognisable names within the community such as Fix & Fogg, Emma Lewisham and ecostore might be the ones that bring B Corp awareness to everyday shoppers, we are proud to have a fairly even split between consumer-facing brands (B2C) and the business-to-business (B2B) products and services in the community.
More traditionally ‘B2B’ B Corps like Brightly, Springload and Write are doing enormous amounts to raise awareness for B Corp certification through the work they do and clients they work with.
This even split between B2C and B2B businesses is reflective of a global trend and shows that B Corp Certification can be suitable for any and every business — no matter your size, sector or location — as long as you’re deeply committed to people, community and planet and increasing your positive impact through continuous improvement.
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
5. Leading the way on important issues of our time
B Corps tend to be made up of restless folk, always looking for ways to improve their impact, challenge the unjust status quo and be a better business. While travelling the country, two big topics that seemed to be on everyone’s minds were:
- How do we accelerate the pace of change needed to address the climate crisis?
- How can we do more to respect Te Tiriti (the Treaty) and embed te ao Māori (the Māori world view) in our business operations to create a more inclusive and equitable society?
Climate change has already had a significant impact on people and livelihoods in this part of the world, and Māori people are often among the first to be directly affected. Aotearoa New Zealand has a significant opportunity to lead in these areas on the world’s stage and our community is up for the challenge.
“The rich kōrero and the acknowledgment about the importance of B Corps coming together to change the way businesses behave and act in the world — ka pai team!”
— Bella Conyngham
At B Lab, part of our role is to create the space for these conversations to happen and facilitate the connections between businesses to drive change. You can rest assured we’ll be following up with specific actions for our B Corp community to do just that in the coming months. Watch this space!
Photo by Bethany Mitchell from Peoples Coffee
A big thank you to the Aotearoa B Corp community
Anytime you get to spend time and share ideas with like-minded people doing important mahi, it’s pretty special. However, there is something truly unique and impressive about the landscape of Kiwi B Corps and we wanted to take this opportunity to shout-out the generosity of a few in particular who helped us deliver these recent events:
- Kiwibank — for support on the Auckland venue and catering
- Sawmill, Chia Sisters, Brightly, and Astrolabe — for delicious drinks at Auckland event
- Peoples Coffee Roastery — venue, food and snacks in Wellington
- CarbonClick — offsetting the Auckland event emissions
Discover all 60+ Aotearoa New Zealand B Corps on the ‘Find a B Corp’ Directory and be sure to keep an eye out for them the next time you’re looking for products or services!
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