Barbara and Sam Cooke at SpaFest / BC Softwear

Since April 2021, the brand has eliminated 111 tonnes of plastic across 19.2 million products, weighing more than 79 double-decker buses 

The leading UK-based textiles supplier, BC SoftWear, is now a Certified B Corp, joining the global community of more than 10,300 businesses across 103 countries, each using their influence to drive positive change.

B Corp certification recognises business that meet high standards of environmental impact, social responsibility and governance. B Corps are counted among the businesses leading a global movement for an inclusive, equitable and regenerative economy.

“When I started this business over 20 years ago, my goal was simply to create products that genuinely made a difference to the hotels, spas and teams who rely on them. Sustainability wasn’t a trend then: our choices were about making things well, making them last and doing the right thing by taking responsibility for the impact we have along the way,” says Barbara Cooke, CEO and founder of BC SoftWear. “For us, this milestone formalises the work that’s been part of our business for years. Sustainability is central to every decision we’ve made, from creating long‑lasting, high‑performance textiles and reducing waste across our supply chain to investing in responsible manufacturing with our long‑standing production partners.”

As part of the B Corp certification process, every aspect of BC SoftWear has been assessed, from how its products are made to how the company supports its team and the customers it serves across hospitality and spa. A score of 80 qualifies a company for B Corp Certification; BC SoftWear achieved a record high of 118 points.

With a long history of considering the environmental impact of everything it does, BC SoftWear’s sustainability achievements include:

• Using corn starch or paper wraps for all footwear packaging, saving 50 tonnes of single-use plastic every year
• Removing polybags from every towel and robe supplied, saving a further 40 tonnes per year
• Replacing plastic shrink wrapping with rubber bands in the warehouse, saving a tonne of plastic per annum
• Shipping 19,164,615 individual products ‘naked’ since April 2021, eliminating 111 tonnes of plastic. Laid end to end, this alone would stretch over 6,683km and weigh more than 79 double-decker buses
• Saving 202 tonnes of cardboard thanks to a 90% cardboard box reuse rate on inbound shipments
• Saving 417 tonnes of CO₂e thanks to reduced gas consumption year-on-year (20%) plus reduced lighting energy consumption. To absorb this amount of carbon emissions naturally would require 19 hectares of mature UK woodland growing for one year – the size of approximately 27 FA-sized football pitches
• BC SoftWear is just ~13.4 t CO₂e a year from achieving Net Zero.

Cooke continues: “The B Corp process challenged us to measure our work, strengthen it and hold ourselves accountable as we grow. While the work is never finished, B Corp provides a clear framework to help us keep improving – in how we design, how we operate and how we support the industry we’re part of. This certification isn’t an endpoint; it’s a commitment to keep improving, to keep asking more of ourselves and to continue building a business that stands for something.”

B Corp™ is a trademark