▲Datagraphic is a document automation company that became a B Corp in 2024 that book, I came to the strong realisation that if we are going to change the world for better, socially, and environmentally, then we also need to transform ourselves. It is not just about a new mindset but about tapping into our other dimensions. We must become people and leaders with more compassion, more heart, and more soul.” Although Hargreaves' approach may appear very optimistic, his main aim is to set new intentions for businesses and create more “regenerative” businesses that don’t just think of the well-known motifs of people, planet, and profit. In 2021 print and marketing company, Webmart, achieved B Corp certification, which it saw as a reflection of its 25-year old journey to building a business that balances profit with purpose. The certification came after the business launched its enviromail brand, took part in the Laptops for Kids initiative, and committed £300,000 to rewilding its Oxygen Farm. The latter initiative is an example of how a company’s values and beliefs can encourage its workers to strive for better actions in both work and personal life. Hargreaves emphasises that: “your people’s purpose needs to relate to the company’s purpose”, meaning that companies need to make bigger efforts to help individuals discover their own purpose in life. For Webmart that has meant embracing its “do good, be kind” spirit which it utilised at the end of 2023 when its employees responded to the felling of Sycamore Gap. Webmart planted ten sycamore trees at its eco-asset in Grange Wood, a voluntary decision that came collectively from the Webmart team when its founder Simon Biltcliffe was away, demonstrating the passion for sustainability that runs through the entire company, not just its founder. “My hopes are that in the future, every company will have the principles of B Corp deeply rooted into their DNA, so that a separate ‘stamp’ is not needed anymore,” says Scheffer, from HelloPrint. “My expectation is that more and more companies will see the importance of balancing profit, purpose, people, and planet in a better capacity, especially since a new generation is more conscious than ever before. They will be the drivers of the future, and they will act differently, so my hopes are high.” Hargreaves concludes: “Yes, the B Corp framework is a fantastic tool for helping us to become a better business, but we need more than that. In today’s broken world full of injustice on a rapidly degrading planet, we need leaders and businesses that are connecting in compassion and love to nature and people. We need the people within our businesses to engage at a heart and soul level as well as at a mind level. We need our workplaces to be those where there is depth and creative life. “It is different and not always easy, but we can’t carry on as we are, can we? It’s not working.” To find out more about becoming a B Corp, visit https://bcorporation.uk 45 www.printmonthly.co.uk May / June 2025 - Issue 354 B Lab UK was launched as a charity in 2015. The B Lab network was created in 2006 and has expanded across the globe in areas like Australia, East Africa, and South America Factoid My hopes are that in the future, every company will have the principles of B Corp deeply rooted into their DNA, so that a separate ‘stamp’ is not needed anymore ►Webmart celebrated becoming B Corp in 2021 BECOMING A B CORP
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