Hattrick has claimed the title of first female-founded marcomms and PR agency to gain B-Corp status in Manchester.
According to its B-Lab UK’s directory, Hattrick is one of only 20 women-built B-Corporation businesses spanning advertising and market research services headquartered in the country. The achievement also makes Hattrick the 10th business in this category with less than 10 employees to succeed in the certification process.
Being a Certified B-Corporation means that Hattrick is officially and legally committed to being a ‘force for good’ – balancing profit with purpose, while considering the impact of its decisions on employees, customers, suppliers, community and the environment. Scoring especially highly in the ‘workers’ category reflects owner, Malin Cunningham’s, commitment to addressing the gender equality issue.
“We care passionately about supporting women – particularly working mums – giving them the opportunity to continue their professional development alongside raising a family,” said MD Cunningham. “This means offering genuine – no ‘walk of shame’ – flexibility around schools, childcare and activities and the same benefits as everyone else regardless of hours worked or time served.”
Cunningham goes on to note that the ‘Buy Women Built’ movement reports only three per cent of funded British businesses are female founded, while 81 per cent of 11-18 year olds are unable to name a single women entrepreneur: “There is still a way to go to address gender equality and inspire a more inclusive economy,” she added.
The certification also shows Hattrick’s commitment to climate action. It comes on the back of the business launching a fully certified carbon literacy course to help B2B sales and marketers make sense of all things ‘Net Zero’ – a first of its kind in the built environment.
The team’s most recent projects have been procured on the strength of its sustainability credentials and include work with fellow Manchester business, APEM, and the UK division of global flooring group, Tarkett.
World-leading environmental consultancy, the APEM Group, approached Hattrick to shape a mission and vision that reflects the investor-backed business’s scale and ambition. The agency helped the group, which advises government and regulatory bodies regarding environmental guidelines, to align and inspire its growing team following a spate of acquisitions.
Similarly, Tarkett UK, a champion of the circular economy, has engaged with Hattrick to put a spotlight on its environmentally focused initiatives: “When we put out the brief, we were anticipating having to ‘hive off’ the sustainability communications from the rest of the PR activity, believing it would be difficult to find a partner that could confidently tackle both elements.” said Mikael Persson, head of marketing UK & Ireland at Tarket. “Hattrick proved us wrong and we look forward to building a long and successful partnership.”
