21 February 2024
As it celebrates its 21st year in business, Glasgow-based creative agency Material has been officially certified B Corp.
Having undertaken the rigorous application and assessment process, Material now joins the globally recognised B Corp community of just over 8000 businesses that share a vision for business as a force for good.
B Corp’s principles align with the agency’s work, both internally with its staff and externally with a diverse group of clients, which include The Macallan, University of Strathclyde, the SEC, BAFTA and Celtic FC.
It’s part of a natural evolution that has seen Material’s outlook and work become increasingly more purpose focused.
Founder Colin Spence said:
“Being B Corp will hold us to high social and environmental standards.
But we also believe it will continue to inspire us to break new ground – for our people, our community and importantly, in the work that we do for our clients. And that’s genuinely exciting for us.
Our work is increasingly influenced by social and environmental purpose, so becoming a B Corp feels like a very natural part of that continued evolution.
It’s a constant work in progress but we’re excited for the journey ahead.”
Material – previously awarded ‘UK’s Best Small Place to Work’ – will work towards re-certification every 3 years as per B Corp protocol.
The news follows last year’s launch of Material Change – a dedicated social and environmental sustainability strategy and communications service, formed by the agency to meet increasing market demand from clients who are embedding climate impact and sustainability into their business.
The support on offer is scalable for businesses of any size and sector across a full range of social and environmental sustainability strategy and communications services and builds on Material’s heritage work in sport, music and culture.
For over two decades, the agency – which counts T in the Park as its founding project – has been a leader in audience understanding, delivering compelling work for some of the UK’s biggest brands and events, including COP 26, the Olympics, the Commonwealth Games, TRNSMT, Tennent’s Lager, OVO, MTV Europe Awards, BAFTA Scotland, the Scottish FA and many more.
And Spence believes becoming a B Corp will positively influence the agency’s approach to its continued work in sponsorship and events:
“Being guided by B Corp’s principles and taking the knowledge we’ve gained through our social and environmental sustainability work can only help to positively influence our approach to our work in sponsorship, live events and brand experiences. Sustainability best practice will increasingly marble through everything we do as a business, and we believe our diverse blend of knowledge and expertise is unique in the Scottish marketing sector.”
Pictured: The Material team.
Image courtesy of Ryan Johnston.