Realm is now B Corporation (B Corp) certified, and joins a select group of UK real estate businesses in meeting the high standards of social and environmental impact set by B Lab, the nonprofit network helping businesses transform the global economy to benefit all communities, and the planet.
This B Corp certification publicly and formally demonstrates how Realm prioritizes positive impacts across its business operations, people, customers, communities and the environment.
“This journey started in 2022, when as a Board, we were seeking to benchmark our performance and find a way of demonstrating the added value and benefits we create in running our business. In fact, our commitment to social and environmental betterment has been integrated into the way we do business for many years, as evidenced by our strong track record and many award wins for sustainability and community outreach. By engaging our colleagues and redefining our mission, this shift to making our enterprise a force for good was a natural next step and excellent cultural fit”, comments Dan Mason, Managing Director at Realm.
“We believe that the outlet retailing model is well suited to engaging in purposeful practices and responding to change – these come as part of our dynamic and agile management model,” continues Mason. “While the discipline of reducing negative environmental impact has always been hard-wired into how we operate outlet schemes, the B Corp certification necessitates a different outlook, one with a clearer focus on finding better ways of doing business for planet, communities and people.”
The B Corp certification process is rigorous, requiring applicants to evidence the socially and environmentally responsible practices across energy supplies, waste and water use, worker compensation, diversity and corporate transparency. Realm is now part of a global community of 7,000 businesses who have certified as B Corps. In the UK, this includes over 1,500 companies representing a broad cross section of industries and sizes, such as The Guardian, innocent, Patagonia, The Body Shop and organic food pioneers Abel & Cole.
“Looking ahead to the future, we know that all businesses need to change, and I have recently used the term Outlet 3.0 as a way of expressing the mandate to continually evolve. As Realm enters its third decade, we’re thrilled to be part of this global community of businesses, making a collective commitment to continuous learning, stakeholder engagement and improving our impact on communities, the environment and our teams of people,” adds Dan Mason.
Realm has previously been recognized for its environmental and community commitment with Green Apple, Flame of Hope, Park Mark Plus and Greener Business Award wins in addition to an ISO 14001 accreditation. Many partnerships have been established with charities and Climate Action Groups, but it is the engagement of the motivated team of employees – who meet regularly in a dedicated future-proofing forum – that has been the driving force in Realm articulating its refreshed and deeper purpose, which has resulted in this B Corp certification.
