Why Doing Good is Good for Business - The 7 Most Socially Responsible Companies

Summary

This video from Grow Ensemble highlights seven socially responsible companies setting benchmarks in ethical business practices. Brands like Tony's Chocolonely, combating child labor in cocoa production, and Greyston Bakery, with its open hiring policy, are featured. Others include Bombas, Dean's Beans, Lisa, Thrive Market, and Eileen Fisher, each with unique missions to improve social and environmental standards. The video encourages viewers to explore more about these companies and engage in discussions on social responsibility in business.

Takeaways

• 🌍 Tony's Chocolonely was founded by Dutch journalist Toon van de Keuken after discovering the extent of legal child labor in cocoa farms and aims to make the chocolate industry 100% slave-free.
• 📈 Tony's Chocolonely has been transparent about their learning process, failures, and challenges in their pursuit to improve fair trade certification and ensure a living income for farmers.
• 🏭 Greyston Bakery has an open hiring policy since 1982, offering employment without background checks or resumes, and has created the Greyston Center for Open Hiring to support inclusive hiring practices.
• 🐝 Bombus follows the 'Bumblebee Way of Life' and has donated over 47 million pairs of socks to those in need through their 'buy one, give one' model, addressing the high demand for socks in homeless shelters.
• ☕ Dean's Beans is a coffee company founded by an indigenous rights and environmental lawyer, focusing on direct relationships with growers, fair trade, and sustainable development in coffee-growing regions.
• 🛏️ Lisa mattresses operates on a 'buy one, give one' model, donating a mattress to a family in need for every 10 sold, aiming to end childhood bedlessness.
• 🍏 Thrive Market's mission is to make natural and organic foods more accessible, offering memberships to low-income families, teachers, students, or first responders for every membership purchased.
• 🌱 Eileen Fisher has a long-standing commitment to social consciousness, with an employee stock ownership program, transparency in supply chain, and a focus on sustainability and human rights.
• 👗 Eileen Fisher's brand is valued at $400 million and is privately owned, with 40% of the company owned by employees, emphasizing the importance of staying true to their values.
• 🔄 The company has a strong environmental commitment, collecting over 1.5 million garments for resale or remaking since 2009, and using sustainable materials like organic cotton and regenerative wool.
• 📊 Eileen Fisher's supply chain is regularly audited by third parties and undergoes internal social life cycle assessments to ensure there are no issues such as human trafficking or slavery.

Q & A

What is the unique hiring policy of Greyston Bakery?

Greyston Bakery has an open hiring policy, meaning they hire anyone who walks through their doors and wants a job without requiring a resume, background checks, or any questions.

What was the founding principle behind Tony's Chocolonely?

Tony's Chocolonely was founded by Dutch journalist Toon van de Keuken after he was shocked by the extent of legal child labor on cocoa farms. He aimed to produce chocolate that was 100% fair trade and 100% slave-free.

How does Tony's Chocolonely address the issue of slave labor in the cocoa industry?

Tony's Chocolonely addresses the issue by launching a research project in Africa to study the cocoa industry's supply chains and improve fair trade certification. They also introduced a premium that pays 25% higher than fair trade prices to ensure farmers make a living income.

What is the 'Bumblebee Way of Life' that Bombus follows?

The 'Bumblebee Way of Life' that Bombus follows is based on the idea that many small actions add up to make a remarkable collective achievement. Bombus donates a pair of socks for every pair purchased to someone in need.

How does Dean's Beans support sustainable change in coffee-growing regions?

Dean's Beans supports sustainable change by maintaining long-standing relationships with coffee growers, paying a fair price for beans, redistributing profits back to the growers, and engaging in people-centered development programs that are invited by local communities.

What is the 'One Good Bed' promise of Lisa mattresses?

Lisa's 'One Good Bed' promise is a buy-one-give model where for every 10 mattresses sold, they donate one to a family in need, aiming to end childhood bedlessness.

What is Thrive Market's approach to making organic and natural foods more accessible?

Thrive Market offers a low price promise, where they price match every product found on their marketplace. They also provide memberships to low-income families, teachers, students, or first responders for every membership purchased.

How does Eileen Fisher demonstrate social consciousness in the fashion industry?

Eileen Fisher demonstrates social consciousness by having a transparent supply chain, valuing employee ownership with a stock ownership program, and committing to using sustainable materials and practices in their garments.

What is the significance of Eileen Fisher's employee stock ownership program?

The employee stock ownership program allows Eileen Fisher employees to own 40% of the company, started in 2006, enabling them to cash out their stock upon retirement or when leaving the company.

How does Bombus ensure the socks they donate are suitable for those in need?

Bombus designs their socks with reinforced seams, anti-microbial treatment, and darker colors to show less visible wear, specifically addressing the needs of individuals experiencing homelessness.

What is the 'Mission Task Force' program at Thrive Market?

The 'Mission Task Force' program at Thrive Market involves selecting employees every six months to allocate 10% of their weekly work time towards impact-related activities, promoting social and environmental responsibility within the company.

Outlines

00:00

🌏 Ethical Chocolate: Tony's Chocolonely's Journey

The first paragraph introduces Tony's Chocolonely, a Dutch chocolate company founded by Toon van de Kuiten, who was appalled by the prevalence of legal child labor in cocoa farms. In 2004, he attempted to turn himself in for consuming chocolate produced with child labor, but the public prosecutor refused to prosecute. Instead, Toon started Tony's in 2005, producing fair trade and slave-free chocolate bars. The company is known for its transparency, documenting its learnings and challenges on its website. Tony's has taken steps to improve fair trade certification and ensure a living income for farmers, paying a premium over fair trade prices.

05:02

🏭 Open Hiring and Social Impact: Greyston Bakery's Philosophy

The second paragraph discusses Greyston Bakery, a New York-based bakery with an open hiring policy since its founding in 1982. This policy means that anyone who wants a job is hired without background checks or resumes. Greyston has created the Greyston Center for Open Hiring to support businesses in implementing inclusive hiring practices. Beyond hiring, the bakery offers transitional housing, employment programs, and workforce development initiatives in the local area.

10:02

🐝 Bombus: Socks for the Homeless and Product Line Expansion

The third paragraph highlights Bombus, a company that follows the 'Bumblebee Way of Life' and has donated over 47 million pairs of socks to those in need through its 'buy one, give one' model. Recognizing that socks are the most requested item at homeless shelters, Bombus designed socks with reinforced seams and anti-microbial treatment. The company has expanded its product line to include new T-shirts and underwear, which are also highly requested at shelters.

☕️ Dean's Beans: Specialty Coffee for Positive Change

The fourth paragraph presents Dean's Beans, a coffee company founded by Dean Saikon, a former indigenous rights and environmental lawyer. The company is committed to fair trade, organic certification, and being a B Corporation. Dean's Beans maintains direct relationships with growers, pays fair prices, and redistributes profits back to them. The company also supports sustainable development projects in coffee-growing regions, initiated by local communities rather than external organizations.

🛏️ Lisa Mattress: Ending Childhood Bedlessness

The fifth paragraph focuses on Lisa Mattress, a company that operates on a 'buy one, give one' model to combat childhood bedlessness. For every ten mattresses sold, one is donated to a family in need. Recognizing the high cost of mattresses and their impact on children living in poverty, Lisa has donated over 38,000 mattresses through its network of giving partners. The company is a certified B Corporation.

🌱 Thrive Market: Making Organic Foods Accessible

The sixth paragraph describes Thrive Market, a membership-based platform that aims to make natural and organic foods more accessible. For every membership purchased, Thrive provides one to a low-income family, teacher, student, or first responder. The company offers a wide range of vetted products supporting sustainable farming and fair trade practices. Thrive also has a 'Mission Task Force' program for employees to engage in impact-related activities and became a certified B Corporation in late 2020.

👗 Eileen Fisher: Sustainability and Social Responsibility in Fashion

The final paragraph showcases Eileen Fisher, a clothing brand that has embraced social consciousness since the 1990s. The company has focused on human rights, environmental sustainability, and supporting women in society. With an employee stock ownership program, Eileen Fisher ensures that employees have a stake in the company. The brand is transparent about its supply chain, regularly undergoing third-party audits and internal assessments to prevent issues like human trafficking and slavery. Eileen Fisher also has a garment recycling program and is committed to using sustainable materials.

Keywords

💡Socially Responsible Companies

Socially responsible companies are businesses that consider the social, environmental, and economic effects of their operations and strive to make a positive impact. In the video, this concept is central as it discusses companies that are setting standards in social responsibility, such as Tony's Chocolonely and Eileen Fisher, which are committed to ethical practices and transparency in their supply chains.

💡Open Hiring Policy

An open hiring policy refers to a recruitment strategy where anyone who wants a job is hired without the traditional barriers like background checks or resumes. Greyston Bakery exemplifies this by employing individuals regardless of their past, which is a significant aspect of their social responsibility and inclusivity.

💡Fair Trade

Fair Trade is a system that aims to ensure producers in developing countries receive fair prices for their goods, improving their working and living conditions. Tony's Chocolonely is highlighted in the video for its commitment to 100% fair trade and 100% slave-free chocolate production, indicating the company's dedication to ethical sourcing.

💡Child Labor

Child labor refers to the employment of children in work that affects their schooling, health, and overall development. The video mentions the issue of legal child labor on cocoa farms, which was the catalyst for Tony's Chocolonely's founding and mission to combat it through ethical chocolate production.

💡B Corporation

B Corporations, or B Corps, are companies that meet high social and environmental standards and are certified by the nonprofit B Lab. The video mentions several B Corps, such as Dean's Beans and Thrive Market, which are recognized for their commitment to social and environmental responsibility.

💡One-for-One Model

The one-for-one model is a business approach where a company donates one product or service for every one sold to a person in need. Bombas and Lisa use this model, with Bombas donating socks and Lisa donating mattresses, to address specific social issues like homelessness and childhood bedlessness.

💡Supply Chain Transparency

Supply chain transparency refers to the ability of a company to disclose information about the origins, production methods, and labor practices involved in creating its products. Eileen Fisher is commended in the video for its transparent supply chain, allowing consumers to trace the journey of their garments from field to factory.

💡Sustainable Practices

Sustainable practices are methods that a company adopts to reduce its environmental impact and promote long-term ecological balance. The video discusses how companies like Eileen Fisher and Thrive Market implement sustainable practices, such as using organic materials and supporting regenerative farming.

💡Employee Stock Ownership Program

An Employee Stock Ownership Program (ESOP) is a type of employee benefit plan where workers can own a share of the company they work for. Eileen Fisher is highlighted for having such a program, which gives employees a 40% ownership stake, aligning their interests with the company's long-term success and social responsibility.

💡Social Entrepreneurship

Social entrepreneurship involves starting businesses or initiatives that aim to solve social problems while also being financially sustainable. The video features Dean's Beans as an example of social entrepreneurship, where the company's founder transitioned from being an environmental lawyer to creating a coffee business that supports indigenous rights and sustainable development.

💡Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR)

Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is a business approach that contributes to society by delivering economic, social, and environmental benefits. The video's theme revolves around CSR, showcasing companies that go beyond profit-making to create positive change in society, such as Thrive Market's mission to make organic foods accessible to everyone.

Highlights

Seven of the world's most socially responsible companies and brands are discussed in the video.

One company has an open hiring policy, offering jobs without resumes or background checks.

Tony's Chocolonely was founded by a Dutch journalist shocked by legal child labor in cocoa farms.

Tony's Chocolonely aimed to produce 100% fair trade and slave-free chocolate bars.

Tony's Chocolonely launched a research project to improve fair trade certification in the cocoa industry.

Tony's Chocolonely introduced a premium price for cocoa farmers, 25% higher than fair trade prices.

Tony's Chocolonely documents their learnings, failures, and challenges on their website to promote ethical practices.

Greystone Bakery has an open hiring policy, offering jobs without background checks since 1982.

Greystone Bakery created a center for open hiring to support inclusive hiring processes.

Bombus follows the 'Bumblebee Way of Life', donating socks to those in need with a buy one, give one model.

Bombus has donated over 47 million pairs of socks, focusing on items most requested at homeless shelters.

Dean's Beans is a coffee company founded by an indigenous rights and environmental lawyer, focusing on fair trade and organic practices.

Dean's Beans redistributes profits back to coffee growers and supports sustainable development in coffee growing regions.

Lisa Mattress follows a buy then give model, donating a mattress for every 10 sold to end childhood bedlessness.

Thrive Market aims to make natural groceries and organic foods more accessible, giving memberships to low-income families.

Thrive Market is the largest grocer to become a certified B corporation, focusing on sustainable farming and fair trade practices.

Eileen Fisher has a social consciousness department focusing on business responsibility, environmental sustainability, and supporting women.

Eileen Fisher employees own 40% of the company through an employee stock ownership program.

Eileen Fisher tracks their clothes from field to factory and conducts third-party audits of their supply chains.

Eileen Fisher has collected over 1.5 million garments for resale or remaking since 2009, promoting sustainability.

Transcripts

hey y'all cory here from grow ensemble

and in this

video we're gonna share with you seven

of the world's most

socially responsible companies and

brands this year

one of these companies has even

implemented a completely

open hiring policy which means whoever

walks

through their doors and wants a job gets

a job

no resume no background checks no

questions

asked and coming up we'll reveal just

exactly who that company is

as well as share with you six other

examples

of brands that are setting the standard

for social responsibility in business

and using their success as a vehicle for

real change

let's dive in first we have tony's

chocolately on a recording of the social

entrepreneurship and innovation podcast

chief evangelist of tony's chocolately

enzo

von zatten shared with us how tony's was

founded by a dutch

journalist named toon vande kuken after

he was shocked

to learn the extent to how much legal

child labor exists

on cocoa farms in 2004 tune

attempted to turn himself in for

consuming chocolate that he

knew was produced using illegal child

labor the public

prosecutor refused to prosecute toon he

pushed on

and found four boys who had worked as

slaves on cocoa farms in the ivory coast

they gave

statements and testimonies as witnesses

while he never achieved the legal

recourse he was hoping for

tune decided to lead by example and in

2005 he produced

tony's 100 fair trade 100

slave free chocolate bars tonys was a

smash

success they quickly sold out on their

first 5

000 chocolate bars produced but i think

what stands out

most about tony's is their willingness

to tackle

challenges in their industry head-on and

learn in public as they do so for

example it turns out that a hundred

percent

fair trade doesn't necessarily mean a

hundred percent

slave free so tony's decided to launch a

research project

in africa to study the supply chains of

the cocoa industry

very deeply to see how they could

improve fair trade certification

from the inside out or as well in 2014

when tony's learned that fair trade

prices

weren't enough so they introduced a

premium paying

25 percent higher than fair trade prices

to farmers to ensure

that they were making a living income

and the best part of all this

is is that i know this because tony's

shares these things very publicly they

document the timeline of their own

learnings

short-term failures and challenges to

make the most ethical

chocolate company they can very clearly

on their website for anyone and everyone

to see

why do they do that well they're very

serious about their mission to make the

entirety

of the chocolate industry 100 slave

free and that's the reason for their

tagline crazy about chocolate

and serious about people and next on our

list we have greystone

bakery the slogan for greystone bakery

is

simple and straightforward eat brownies

change

lives the yonkers new york-based bakery

and social enterprise

has gained some notoriety for their open

hiring policy

this means no background checks no

resumes

no questions asked as the greystone

folks

say themselves when people say yes i

want to work

they say yes right back and this policy

has been in place since greystone's

founding in 1982.

since then they've created the greystone

center for open hiring which offers

training implementation supports

research and more

to ensure that any interested businesses

have all that they need to implement

this more inclusive hiring

process this is just the beginning if

you dive deeper

you'll see that greystone offers

transitional

housing programs transitional employment

programs

and other workforce development programs

in their local area

and now we have bombus bombus abides by

the bumblebee way of life

a lot of small actions adds up

to make remarkable collective

achievement well to date

bombus has donated over 47 million pairs

of socks this is because of bombus buy

one give one model

where for every sock purchased they

donate one to someone in need they call

these 47 million

donated socks and counting the greatest

socks

never sold because bombas founders randy

goldberg

and david heath discovered that socks

are the number one requested item at

homeless shelters

and they designed these socks

specifically to address the needs of

folks experiencing

homelessness they have reinforced seams

in anti-microbial treatment and they're

made with darker colors to show less

visible wear

falling closely behind socks are new

t-shirts

and underwear as the second and third

most requested items

at homeless shelters and it's this that

explains bombus's

recently expanded product line and then

there's dean's beans

dean saikon the founder of dean's beans

was previously an indigenous rights

and environmental lawyer before becoming

a social entrepreneur

dean first started in coffee through the

non-profit sector in 1993.

he then set out to forge his own direct

relationships with coffee growers around

the world

today dean's is a usda organic fair

trade

bird friendly certified b corporation

coffee company

and has dean so impactfully shared with

me on our podcast recording

and i believe that if your business is

based on

the suffering of others you have no

right to be in business

and of course i i couldn't agree more

dean's beans

produces specialty coffee as a vehicle

for positive change

they maintain long-standing

relationships with their coffee growers

they pay a fair price for the beans

and they redistribute profits back to

the growers themselves

dean's also attempts to affect

sustainable change in coffee growing

regions

through their people-centered

development programs these are a variety

of economic

environmental or social developmental

projects

that they take on only when invited by

the local communities not by governments

or foreign aid agencies

if invited they listen to and talk to

local groups

to see what might be holding them back

from their self-identified

development goals then they design the

project with local stakeholders and they

avoid at all

costs bringing any outside organizations

or help

if the local community can manage this

project themselves

then they fund these projects with the

sales of dean's beans

or in some cases dean's home equity loan

as he says himself

now if you look at a five pound bag of

deans beans which often

arrives at our house you'll understand

why it reads

brew great coffee create real change

next we have lisa mattress like bombas

who we mentioned

earlier lisa has built their business

off a buy

then give model their chosen area of

impact

ending childhood bedlessness for every

10 mattresses

sold lisa donates one to a family in

need they call this their one good bad

promise

one in seven children in the u.s are

living in poverty and as mattresses are

often times

the most expensive items to purchase in

furnishing a home

children living in poverty are more

likely to

sleep on a couch every single night or

as well

in overcrowded bed with other family

members or even in some cases

sleep on the floor that's why with the

help of their network of giving partners

lisa which is a certified b corporation

has donated over

38 000 mattresses and counting to folks

who need them

here we have thrive market thrive market

was founded on a specific

mission make natural groceries and

organic foods

more accessible to everyone and for

every thrive membership

purchased thrive gives a membership to a

low-income family

a teacher student or a first responder

thrive wanted lower prices for high

quality

highly nutritious products they wanted

to make

eating better far easier that's why they

have their low price

promise where they price match every

single product that you find

on their marketplace organic natural

foods

and supplements have traditionally been

very expensive

and as a product of that exclusive and

while thrive

isn't exactly there in making all of

their products

obtainable by everyone i do really

appreciate where they're pushing

the market on organic foods and natural

groceries

also everything on their marketplace is

highly vetted

and supports sustainable farming

sourcing fair trade practices

and more you can shop by almost any

categorization

imaginable you can shop by certification

like certified b

corporation fair trade or biodynamic by

diet

paleo keto vegan or more nut free

paraben free or hypoallergenic or you

can even shop by environmental or social

concern

local sourcing regenerative farming

female-owned businesses

bpoc-owned businesses or even

family-owned businesses

thrive also has a program called mission

task force

where they select employees every six

months to allocate 10 percent of their

weekly work time

towards impact-related activities and

thrive

recently became a certified b

corporation

in late 2020 which makes them the

largest grocer to have

such a coveted qualification and finally

on our list we have

eileen fisher in 1997 harsh

and exploitative working conditions were

making headlines

in the fashion industry and at the same

time the eileen fisher team

took it upon themselves to create their

own social consciousness

department they specifically wanted to

raise awareness around

three values practicing business

responsibility with

absolute regard for human rights guiding

product

and practice towards sustaining our

environment and supporting women to be

full participants

in society 20 plus years later and

cumulatively

30 plus years in business you could say

that eileen fisher a sustainable

clothing brand has truly lived

those values in early 2020 it was

reported that

eileen fisher employees own 40

of the company through an employee stock

ownership

program this program that was started

back in 2006

allows employees to cash out their stock

when they retire

or leave the company eileen fisher is

currently valued at

400 million dollars this was largely a

motivation

for the company to remain privately

owned owned by eileen fisher herself

as well the brand claims to be able to

track their clothes from field to

factory and visit their website and it's

actually quite

easy to find a list of their suppliers

with many having exact addresses

of the farm or factory as well a list

on what sort of materials are being

provided from that supplier and in some

cases

a number of estimated employees each

supplier

has under their employment to date there

has been no

evidence of any human trafficking or

slavery

in eileen fisher's supply chain and that

might sound a little bit weird but this

isn't because they aren't looking for it

they routinely

invite rigorous third-party audits

of their supply chains and as well they

conduct a list of internal

social life cycle assessments to

determine

where there might be any potential issue

spots in their own supply chain of their

garments and materials

they've likewise taken environmental

impact seriously for years

and since 2009 they have collected over

1.5

million garments these are then resold

or remade

into something new they're also

committed to using sustainable products

from the very beginning

organic and traceable cotton recycled

polyester

nylon and cashmere and now they're using

regenerative

wool it seems fitting to quote eileen

fisher herself here

we don't want sustainability to be our

edge

we want it to be universal all right

y'all

that's a wrap i do hope you enjoyed this

video if you want to learn

more about any of these companies direct

links to check them out will be in the

description below

and as well if you want examples of

other truly socially responsible

companies

like these you can go to

growensemble.com or likewise

check for a link in the description

that's where we share our complete list

and if you liked this video i'd really

appreciate if you hit the like

button and subscribe to our channel

right now and lastly i'd love to hear

from you

are there any companies that we didn't

include on this list

that you think truly set the standard

for what social responsibility in

business

can and should look like let us know in

the comments below

you