“ Every single person was worrying about their jobs and families . It had a profound impact on people ’ s mental health and positivity as we moved through to a better place . We would be doing events for people with no money in them at all , just to help a charity or a local organisation .
“ That adds workload to everyone when we ’ re all trying to get through really tough times , but actually it was the right thing to do .
“ The shift is being outward focused . For me to say ‘ we ’ re going to do 10 virtual events for charities , recording , setting up , editing , doing all the graphics and design and running them and then not charging anyone for any of it ,’ that was quite a big ask , especially in something we had only just learnt how to do . But it was amazing .”
B-Corporation is a global initiative to rank businesses governance , diversity and sustainability . For Tranter social justice was an important as the environmental benefits .
“ We talk about sustainability , which might mean sourcing everything from much closer to the venue , or not having carpet , that ’ s really important stuff . But , social justice is a huge part and parcel of what sustainability is about ,” says Tranter .
“ Doing the right thing and working with the right kinds of suppliers – not just working with people because they ’ re cheap or driving price down , but giving everyone a fair price for the work they do .
“ It ’ s a lot of work , it ’ s been a twoyear journey to get to this point . It really challenges you on governance , how you treat your staff , the makeup of staff , gender pay gap , having really clear policies on working from home , what we consume as a business , is our energy 100 % renewable , how to do our recycling . When people are working from home , have you got a list of the kind of products we would prefer they use at home , because we know the origins of the company ?
“ A big part is what do you do for
73 Media helps build sanitation facilities in developing countries through the Toilet Twinning charity
“ Making sure your energy provider is 100 % renewable is such a simple thing to do , it takes one email and it ’ s all done for you , but that ’ s a huge thing ...”
your community , how do you make a difference ? How do you use your business as a force for good .”
In order to qualify , businesses need to score at least 80 points on a detailed survey measuring all of their impacts . 73 Media scored 93 and is now waiting for the final verification of their results to achieve official certification .
The transparency required reaches from light bulbs and toilets to Tranter ’ s personal chocolate stash .
“ We had to legally change our articles of association as a company to put in statements that bind us to the commitment B Corp companies make ,” he says . “ It ’ s a big thing to do .
“ One of the things we have to have is transparency in the workforce . You are committing to providing a report once a year , saying ‘ this is how we ’ ve acted , this is who we have dealt with , this is our social justice ’
Tranter is keen to stress that the challenges should not be seen as too daunting for others wanting to make a positive change .
“ The important thing is everyone takes a step ,” he says . “ People look at the scope of the problem , look at how much there is to do and just think ‘ this is massive , I can ’ t even begin ’.
“ Making sure your energy provider is 100 % renewable is such a simple thing to do , it takes one email and it ’ s all done for you , but that ’ s a huge thing . Then within your building how much of the time is the heating and electricity on ? Have you got smart bulbs ? Everything we have is very low energy . Have you got toilets with the double flush ? That water waste mounts up . The cleaning products
May — 19