IN THE USA (RE)BORN THE LAND OF THE B

As of this moment, there are precisely 2,496 B Corp certified businesses operating out of the United States and Canada, a pool that includes some of the best-loved brands found at retail today, from Ben & Jerry’s ice cream to Patagonia.

Working across three pillars of change: Racial Equity, Climate Justice, and Stakeholder Economy, B Lab US & Canada has made it its mission to transform business as a force for good. And given that, according to 2021 data from the US Small Business Administration, it is believed there are some 32.5 million businesses in operation across North America right now, that’s a lot of force to be harnessed.

A recent survey from Protiviti found that while 98% of global business leaders cite ESG as a top factor in business success, only 25% of North American respondents think prioritising an ESG strategy will be an ‘extremely important’ focus by the year 2032.

The same report states that just 37% of North American executives believe their greenhouse gas emissions will decline by 2032 – that’s compared to the 81% across Europe. So, it would seem it’s a market that still needs some convincing.

Except, we know that the US market is on the move. The influence of its leading retailers over the environmental practices among its supplier networks is now starting to be felt and Walmart’s Project Gigaton is already over halfway on its mission to reduce or avoid one billion metric tons of greenhouse gases from the global value chain by 2030. Meanwhile, brands are beginning to use their muscle to move efforts forward, too.

In its 2022 CSR report, Disney’s executive vice president of CSR, Jennifer Cohen reaffirms the company’s commitment to “operating respectfully and responsibly in all that we do, and having a meaningful, positive impact on all the communities and people we serve.”

And when names like Disney, or Paramount, Universal Music Group, or even the NFL begin to put such wheels in motion, it can only be a matter of time before we see some substantial shifts of perspective.

When Products of Change takes to the Licensing Expo

Main Stage on Wednesday, 14 June, it will do so joined by leaders of sustainability from some of these very titans of the brand licensing industry. Jakob Max Hamann, sustainability lead at the LEGO Group; Sagan Harlin, senior manager of consumer products and strategy at the NFLPA; Matt Young, president, Bravado (Universal Music); and The Walt Disney

Company’s vice president of environmental sustainability, Yalmaz Siddiqui and senior manager of environmental sustainability, Christian Del Maestro will all convene for a very special session Scoping out the Future of Sustainability and what the next gamut of environmental legislation will mean for brand owners and licensed manufacturers over the next seven years.