Last month, Dr. Bronner’s announced it dropped B Corp certification and called on certifying body B Lab, which has granted B Corp status to multinational corporations such as Unilever Australia, Nespresso and Nestle Health Sciences, to upgrade its standards by requiring third-party certifications across companies’ supply chains in countries throughout the world, not only where they’re headquartered.
“Requiring credible third-party eco-social certification of all major multinational supply chains would protect against the B Corp certification being misused by companies to hide these unsustainable and unjust corporate practices,” wrote David and Michael Bronner, CEO and president of Dr. Bronner’s, respectively, in a statement. “While some food, personal care and textile companies certified as B Corps do take responsibility and certify all major supply chains to credible eco-social certifications, including our esteemed partners at Patagonia, they are unfortunately a minority, and this is not required by B Lab, most glaringly in the case of large multinational companies and their enormous supply chains.”
Dr. Bronner’s’ move has sparked discussion about the role of B Corp certification. To dig into it, for this edition of our ongoing series posing questions relevant to indie beauty, we asked 11 brand founders and executives the following: What do you think of Dr. Bronner’s’ action and demand? Do you think B Corp makes a difference to consumers? How can B Corp and other certifications like it be relevant in today’s beauty market?
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JENNIFER NORMAN Founder, Humanist Beauty Dr. Bronner’s is a beloved brand and organization. David and Michael Bronner were pillars of the B Corp movement for years, and so of course it is hard for all of us, particularly in the beauty industry, to see them go. They had valid reasons for their decision, and as a supervisory board member of the B Beauty Coalition, I fully respect that.
B Lab has taken to heart the feedback it has received over the years from Bronner’s and others in the community who felt that the standards needed to evolve to ensure movement integrity. In fact, the certification standards have been updated no less than six times since B Lab’s inception 17 years ago. After much work and stakeholder input, new standards will be issued in April that raise the bar even further on B Corp certification qualifications.
To me and those within the community, B Corp certification remains the gold standard of environmental and social impact. We believe in continuous progress over perfection, and we are passionate about accountabilities that shift the business narrative from “profit-at-any-cost” to prosperity for all people and the planet.
Now more than ever, values matter. People who have been systemically oppressed need to know they are safe. And the planet needs to be taken care of. March just so happens to be B Corp month, thus some notable datapoints about B Corps were recently shared:
Compared to ordinary businesses, B Corps globally are:
- 8 times more likely than ordinary businesses to screen suppliers based on positive social and environmental practices like environmental-friendly manufacturing processes or excellent labor practices
- 7 times more likely to have supplier diversity policies or programs that give preferences to suppliers with ownership from underrepresented populations
- 5 times more likely to use 100% renewable energy
- 3 times more likely to tie executive compensation to social and environmental performance and include related accountabilities in their job descriptions
- 5 times more likely to be carbon neutral
- 4 times more likely to have programs to reduce their end-of-life waste
- 2 times more likely to pay 100% of their workers a family living wage
- 5 times more likely to produce zero waste to landfill or ocean
Whenever I’m asked if the B Corp movement makes a difference to consumers, the answer is a resounding yes, not only for consumers, but for the world and the very soul of business. We all work together to make each other better by sharing best practices and celebrating collective impact.
The B Corp community is growing tremendously. Within the beauty industry, we’ve been thrilled to welcome L’Occitane, Lumene, Jurlique, Amika, Eva NYC, The Inkey List and many other incredible brands. The question for us is never about relevancy because B Corp Certification is not a marketing ploy. It’s about making a meaningful difference.
- Rachel Budde Founder, Fat and the Moon
Two years ago, Fat and the Moon was on track for B Corp certification until I heard Darcy Shiber-Knowles, VP of operational sustainability and innovation at Dr. Bronner’s, share concerns about the deteriorating integrity of B Corp and B Lab. As a small, bootstrapped company, every investment we make financially and relationally matters. Once we saw how B Corp was diluting its mission by allowing multinational corporations to be certified, it no longer made sense to move forward.
The irony for us is, as a self-manufactured brand, our internal standards already exceeded B Lab’s benchmarks. We initially pursued certification to align with a movement of like-minded businesses, a collective committed to doing business differently. But that movement is no longer under B Corp. While I believe multinational corporations absolutely need third-party accountability for their environmental and social impact throughout their supply chains, B Corp is not the watchdog it set out to be. It’s become another hijacked, greenwashing tool.
While we identify more so with brands like Bronner’s who are doing away with their B Corp Certification, I still admire many companies with B Corp status. Ultimately, though, it’s the companies themselves, not the certification, that uphold their values. At Fat and the Moon, we’re lucky to have a savvy customer base that sees through corporate greenwashing. Stacking pay-to-play certifications on our packaging is just noise for them and for us.
For Fat and the Moon, we’ve determined that, instead of spending valuable time and resources on an application process and certifications like B Corp or Women Owned, we’d rather invest in the actual material expression of our values: strengthening our infrastructure, refining our environmental and social commitments, supporting aligned suppliers, and staying accountable to the values that define us. That’s the work that moves the needle, and that’s where our energy belongs.
- MELODIE REYNOLDS Founder, Elate Beauty
The integrity of B Corp certification is critical to ensuring that companies are truly committed to sustainability and ethical practices, not just using the certification as a marketing tool. Requiring third-party certifications across global supply chains is essential to holding brands accountable for their impact worldwide.
At Elate Beauty, we take B Corp certification seriously, knowing it reflects our commitment to both people and the planet. To me, it isn’t just a badge of honor, but a challenge to do better every day. I believe that, if B Lab raises its standards and requires transparency across supply chains, it would encourage companies to prioritize integrity at every level and give consumers even more confidence in their purchasing decisions.
- Jamika Martin Founder, Rosen Skincare
I think it's a fair move and callout by Dr. Bronner's. Sometimes these external certifications don't actually mean much in terms of how a company is run. I do believe customers care less and less about certain stamps of approval as they can connect with brands much more directly these days to truly understand their values.
For example, we don't have any certification around our ownership status because I’m so vocal about my role in the company, and people already know we're owned by a Black woman.
- Nora Schaper Co-Founder and President, HiBar
HiBar is a small, mission-driven company reformulating beauty products to eliminate plastic waste. Certifications are a core part of our business strategy and budget because we believe they play a vital role in building trust and communicating a brand’s values to consumers.
We absolutely believe certifications like B Corp are still relevant and important in today’s beauty landscape, but for them to remain meaningful, they must maintain strong standards and accountability. When certification bodies allow large corporations to certify only segments of their business while the broader company may not align with the same values, it inevitably weakens the certification’s credibility. That’s where we agree with Dr. Bronner’s: This dilution borders on greenwashing, and it erodes the trust that smaller, mission-driven brands like ours work so hard to earn.
HiBar has always prioritized transparency and authenticity as brand pillars. Today’s consumers are smart. They care deeply, and they’re doing their homework. Increasingly, they’re voting with their dollars. For B Corp (and similar certifications) to stay relevant, they need to not only reexamine their standards, but also clearly communicate how decisions to certify some brands align with their mission.
At the end of the day, consumers want to know that certifications mean something real, not just marketing. The credibility of those certifications must be protected if they’re going to help both brands and consumers push the industry forward.
- Rebecca Hamilton Co-CEO, Badger
Badger has been a certified B Corp since 2011. What drew us to the certification then and remains true today is its commitment to creating an economy that benefits all. Those qualities make the B Corp movement stronger, and our customers and partners know they can expect a high standard of care and transparency from us. Dr. Bronner's is a trusted peer and collaborator.
We have had many conversations since they announced their decision not to recertify, and we appreciate and understand their position, chiefly around multinational corporations with histories of supply chain issues being allowed to certify as B Corps.
Dr. Bronner’s recently announced their intention to start Purpose Pledge, a separate, but complementary effort to the B Corp certification in collaboration with consumer goods companies and industry organizations. We support that work and are actively engaged in determining whether joining would be a fit for us in addition to our B Corp certification. We believe there is room for both and agree with the need for deeper supply chain work and product safety standards in consumer packaged goods.
Over the years, much effort has gone into communicating the benefits of the B Corp certification, especially to consumers. We are heartened that B Lab, the organization that administers the B Corp certification, is releasing updated standards soon that will address many of the issues highlighted by Dr. Bronner's to demonstrate its commitment to maintaining high standards in the certification.
There is power in numbers, and B Corp is rapidly approaching 10,000 certified companies. As the movement grows, so does its ability to improve outcomes and have a broader impact across industries. As consumers in today's beauty market become more informed and ingredient-savvy, B Corp and other certifications will continue to play a major role in helping skincare brands educate, build trust, drive change and meet consumer expectations.
- Barbara Paldus Founder and CEO, Codex Labs
We have never seen B Corp make a difference to our customers. Our customers expect cruelty-free, vegan and MyMicrobiome certifications. We have also found that sustainability is no longer a big driver in purchasing decisions compared to 2021 whereas product efficacy and price are the main drivers today.
- Kate Assaraf Founder, Dip
Dr. Bronner’s call for stricter standards in B Corp certification resonates deeply with what we believe at Dip. Certifications can be a useful tool for consumer trust, but they can also be manipulated as marketing shields rather than meaningful indicators of sustainability. The reality is that not all B Corps are created equal. Some brands go all in on sustainability, while others use the certification as a PR move without ensuring full supply chain accountability.
At Dip, we’ve seen firsthand how certifications can fail brands that are actually trying to do the right thing. We went above and beyond to invest in a certification that promised consumer ingredient transparency, only to have the company quietly sunset that part of their business without informing us. We believed in the mission, spent valuable resources securing the certification, and, in the end, it was meaningless because the certifier itself wasn’t accountable.
That experience left us burned by the certification process, and we decided that investing in certifications isn’t worth it if consumers increasingly feel they have been "watered down" and co-opted by big corporations. Instead of chasing labels, we put our efforts into real transparency and impact. Our focus is on salon-grade, plastic-free haircare that delivers exceptional results while prioritizing the environment, not because a certification tells us to, but because it’s the right thing to do.
For consumers, B Corp and similar certifications only matter if they enforce full supply chain accountability. Until then, we encourage people to look past labels and dig into what brands are actually doing. That’s where the real impact lies.
- SYDNEY DAKE Founder, Gntl
I view Dr. Bronner's decision to drop their B Corp certification as an admirable stand for integrity in certification standards. When B Lab certifies multinationals with documented ethical issues alongside mission-driven brands, it diminishes the certification's value and may degrade consumer trust. B Corp has signaled ethical practices to conscious consumers, and its relevance depends on maintaining consistent standards across companies of all sizes.
I think specialty retailer curations such as Credo, Bluemercury and Violet Grey are emerging as an alternative trust signal for those seeking brands that align with their values, offering more credible guidance than certifications with inconsistent standards.
- Alastair Dorward CEO, Dropps
At Dropps, we're still big believers in B Corp and are actually doubling down on our commitment by converting to a PBC, a public benefit corporation. Dr. Bronner's is such a unique and trusted strong brand from a sustainability perspective. They're almost unimpeachable as a beacon of excellence in this space. It makes sense that they wouldn’t need the certification.
Yet, for emerging or newer brands that are less well known or have less history, third-party credentials are absolutely imperative. We see these certifications as critical for building trust with consumers who are increasingly skeptical about sustainability claims. Rather than stepping back, we're investing more deeply in ensuring our practices align with the highest standards possible.
- SION OWEN Founder, Kobi
Earning a B Corp certification is no joke, so if the values underpinning that certification are put into question, then I fully support brands like Dr. Bronner’s in their decision to walk away. I imagine for B Corp companies it could feel a bit like busting your butt to earn a four-year degree, only to then have the school start giving them out after a year.
There’s no magic bullet for winning consumer trust. It has to be earned by continuously demonstrating your brand’s integrity over time. Certifications are just one small part of that equation, so for a brand to invest the time, money and resources required to get one, we need to feel confident that it’s going to mean something for the long haul.
If you have a question you'd like Beauty Independent to ask brand founders and executives, please send it to editor@beautyindependent.com.
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