Rip Curl, the “ultimate” surf company, recently announced that it’s now a B Corp Certified Corporation, or a B Corp for short. Rip Curl has long and winding origins in the surf industry, tracing all the way back to the humble backyard board-shaping beginnings of Doug Warbrick and Brian Singer in 1968. Their iconic ad campaign, “The Search,” was a way of connecting with surfers in the ’90’s and getting back to the core of surfing: finding perfect waves.
Nowadays, Rip Curl still stands by those values, and is working on its own business practices as well. Rip Curl’s Chief Executive Officer, Brooke Farris released the following statement: “We are so proud to receive B Corp Certification. Our Rip Curl crew have welcomed the challenge of certifying against the high-standards required of running responsible business. The process with B Lab has seen us both develop and implement a benefit mindset company wide. We continue to make significant steps in progressing as a more sustainable brand, with our Global Wetsuit take-back program and the Reflect step of our Reconciliation Action Plan just recently approved. We are motivated by the positive impact we can make both now and in the future.”
As Farris stated, B Corp certifications, at their simplest, mean a company has the ability to set, and operate under, high ethical standards as a business. Specifically, in order to receive this certification, a business must achieve an environmental and social B Impact Assessment score of 80 or above, pass B Lab’s risk review, be accountable to all stakeholders, and be transparent about their performance as measured against B Lab’s standards. And, this certification process must be reviewed every three years for renewal. Other B Corp certified businesses include the likes of Patagonia Works, Faithfull The Brand, Fair Planet Advisors, and Greenvest.
Rip Curl’s Mick Fanning spoke out about his longtime sponsor’s recent B Corp certification achievement, noting that he is “proud to represent a brand that believes in doing its part to protect the environment, support our communities, and is committed to using business as a force for good.”
In a world of ever-more-concerning environmental issues, including pollution, global warming, and waning resources, taking action the way Rip Curl did is not only a big deal for its business, but hopefully for many other brands in the industry to follow. If more do, perhaps the search for beautiful, clean waves will be able to continue for years to come.
