Brand Review Overview

Many companies offer more than one distinct brand of products or have different legal entities within their structure. This usually happens  whenever there are multiple legal entities with different trading names grouped together in one certification, for example, under a parent-subsidiaries structure or in assessments that contain product lines with distinct names/brands. In order to prevent consumer confusion on what is B Corp-certified, B Lab ensures the B Corp Intellectual Property (IP) is only used by companies and its related brands that meet the B Corp certification requirements independently. 

To that end, B Lab has created a pathway – Brand Review – for brands that do not share the certifying entity’s name to use the B Corp IP independently. This allows companies to potentially market their B Corp status through channels such as packaging, websites, and other related communication across their portfolio of brands. The B Corp certification remains a company level certification, and not a product level certification. Therefore, the use of the B Corp logo for individual brands is always linked to a company certification and its B Corp profile.  

What does a Brand Review entail?

• If a certifying company wishes to use the B Corp IP in its portfolio of brands, the company should communicate this need to the Verification Analyst at the beginning of the Verification process by providing the list of the desired brands to be considered for the Brand Review. 

• At the end of the verification process, with the company’s final score confirmed, a Brand Review is conducted by the Verification Analyst for the brands requested by the company. 

• The analyst verifies whether the different-name brands meet the B Corp Certification requirements, which means that each brand should individually score 80 points or more on the B Impact Assessment (BIA). 

• The Brand Review results are communicated before the company’ certification is closed. It includes each brand’s individual score, including brands that might or might not use the B Corp IP independently and guidance regarding the correct B Corp IP usage for these brands. 

How is a Brand Review conducted?

For the Brand Review, B Lab calculates the company’s base score. This consists of Mission Lock + points from Operations questions + N/A points.  

Note:  The operations score and N/A score can be found on the BIA dashboard. The dashboard can be accessed through the left ribbon of the company’s BIA page. 

• If the company’s base score is above 80 points, all brands and/or entities in the scope of the assessment meet B Lab’s Certification requirements automatically. 

• If the company’s base score is below 80 points, the Verification Analyst will determine each brand’s BIA score by checking its qualification for each Impact Business Model (IBM)  that the certifying company has earned, and calculating its participation in each IBM score. In this case, B Lab will need access to each brand’s financial figures in order to complete the process.

When can companies request a Brand Review?

• Companies with revenue below USD1B are only eligible for Brand Review during the B Corp certification or (re) certification process. B Lab does not offer Brand Review to these companies in between the certification cycle. 

• USD1B+ revenue companies: If a Certified B Corp with more than $1B in revenue wants to use the B Corp logo for newly launched brands, a new acquisition or a newly created subsidiary (with a different name from the Certified Parent) after certification, B Lab can perform a paid mid-cycle Brand Review to determine whether certification requirements are met independently. Please contact the B Lab Global Partner in your region for further information.

New brands created or acquired during certification or from acquisitions  

• If a company is certified with a base score > 80 points, the company may use the B Corp IP in connection with newly created or acquired brands at its own discretion. These brands will be evaluated at the next certification term and must meet the performance requirement independently in order to continue use of the B Lab IP in subsequent terms. 

• If a company is certified with the base score (ML+OPS+NA) < 80 points, the company is not encouraged to use the B Corp IP on the new brands. It is recommended to wait for the next certification cycle to have these brands formally included in a Brand Review. (exceptions are for USD 1B+ revenue companies that can request a paid mid-cycle Brand Review). 

Pricing

Standard Approach: Companies on the Small, Small-Medium and Medium Enterprise Approach

Companies can have up to 3 brands (name on the B Corp Profile + 2 additional different-name brands)  included in the Brand Review process - covered by the company’s verification fee. Additional brands have a fee. Each additional batch of 3 brands costs USD 500. The fee structure is as follows:

• Brands 1-3 is USD 0

• 4-6 brands are USD 500 total

• Next 7-9 are an additional USD 500 total and so on

Large Enterprise & MNC Approach: 

Brand review pricing is factored into the company’s verification fee. A company can request as many brand reviews as desired. Mid-cycle brand review pricing is available on request for USD 1B + revenue companies.

.