ekomia is a certified B Corporation

What is a B Corp?

B Corp certifications are awarded by the nonprofit organization B Lab™, which works to transform the global economic system towards an inclusive, equitable, and regenerative economy.

B stands for Benefit for all. The nonprofit organization founded in 2006 in the USA and its members aim to transform our economic system to create value for all stakeholders – employees, customers, communities, and the environment. Today, well-known sustainable companies such as Patagonia, Weleda, or The Guardian are certified B Corporations.

What is assessed during certification?

Companies must complete detailed questionnaires in five categories. All answers must be verifiable, promises must be formalized, and anchored in the company’s articles of association.

1. Governance: Assesses a company’s overall mission, its commitment to social and environmental impact, ethics, and transparency.

2. Workers: Assesses a company’s contribution to financial security, health and safety, well-being, professional development, and employee engagement and satisfaction.

3. Community: Assesses a company’s engagement with and impact on the communities where it operates. Topics include diversity, equity and inclusion, economic impact, civic engagement, philanthropy, and supply chain management.

4. Environment: Assesses a company’s overall environmental management practices and its impact on air, climate, water, land, and biodiversity. This includes the direct impact of operations as well as supply chain and distribution channels. Companies with environmentally innovative production processes or those offering products or services that positively impact the environment are also recognized. Examples include products and services that reduce consumption or waste, protect land or wildlife, introduce less toxic alternatives to the market, or educate people about environmental issues.

5. Customers: Assesses a company’s responsibility to its customers through the quality of its products and services, ethical marketing, data privacy and security, and feedback channels.

Our path to B Corp certification

Since our founding, we have focused on consistent ecological and social business development. We use almost exclusively renewable raw materials such as FSC®-certified solid wood and organic cotton in our products and avoid plastic packaging whenever possible. We select our suppliers based on strict criteria such as short transport routes, quality, and the use of natural colors and sustainable packaging. We also aim to reduce consumption overall by offering repair kits for our furniture and free upcycling guides.

It is often very difficult for consumers to evaluate companies' sustainability promises. That is why it was important for us that our social and environmental impact be quantified and confirmed by an independent body.

We used the lengthy certification process as an opportunity to critically review our business processes and identify areas for improvement. It also helped us professionalize further by formalizing practices that previously only existed in our heads and were done automatically. For example, ecological goals are now bindingly set for each team member, and product and service guidelines are clearly written down so that the entire team works sustainably now and in the future.

Today we are proud that after a long process we have received B Corp certification with a high score of 119.9 – particularly in the area of environment.

View ekomia B-Corp profile