Family run firm joins the B Corp family
Good business practice has become about being a force for good and little speaks as loudly about your effort currently than achieving B Corp status. Here’s the latest county company to make the grade.
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A family run firm from Cheltenham has become the latest in Gloucestershire, and one of growing number nationally, to not just see the benefits of B Corporation status but actually achieve it too.
Proving it is not just the very biggest firms with the greatest resource who can clear the high bar and qualify for the certification, Beechurst Serviced Apartments has now joined the fold.
To gain the status businesses have to be verified by the B Lab organisation, proving that they meet high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency, and accountability.
Chris Turner, executive director of B Lab UK, said: “We are delighted to welcome Beechurst Services Apartments to the B Corp community.
“It has an opportunity to lead the way within the hospitality industry and champion the idea that we can redefine success in business to be as much about people and planet as it is about profit.”
Beechurst is the first serviced apartment provider in the UK to achieve the standard and the first accommodation operator based in the South West, joining more than 8,000 businesses in more than 90 countries and 160-plus industries now certified as B Corps.
Th at list includes well-known brands such as The Guardian, innocent, Patagonia, The Body Shop and organic food pioneers Abel & Cole.
Angie Petkovic, co-owner of Beechurst Serviced Apartments, said: “We’re joining a collective of formidable names who have demonstrated values towards their employees and the communities they serve, as well as having a purpose for their business.
“The journey to gain B Corp certification has been a lengthy but rewarding one; it has been an enjoyable learning curve and we still have a lot we want to accomplish.
“We’ll continue in our commitment to help promote the importance of ethical values beyond profit.”
Beechurst provides accommodation for business and leisure purposes and is made up of five apartments in Cheltenham.
The assessment criteria for B Corp certification include evaluating a company's performance in five categories - governance, workers, community, environment and customers.
According to the firm, which launched in July 2021 amidst the lockdowns of the Covid-19 pandemic, the carbon cost of overnight stays in its accomodation is less than half the national average, with a stay at Beechurst Serviced Apartments producing just 6.35kgCO2e compared with an industry standard of 14.3kgCO2e.
The business is now on course to be net zero by the end of December 2025, and to be a climate positive, regenerative business by the end of December 2028.
* Everything you read on Raikes is made possible by the generous support of our partners (we’ve already let you know about QuoLux and more will be revealed over the coming weeks) our founding members and our paid-up subscribers. A massive ‘thank you’ to all our other subscribers too. The support of all of you is invaluable!
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