Made in B Italy is the first of our signature projects, conceived alongside our company and developed to raise worldwide awareness of the revolutionary Società Benefit sustainable business model launched with pioneering courage by Italy in 2016.
The innovative, disruptive Società Benefit legal status allows companies to promote business while benefiting the community and the planet.
Italy was the first sovereign country after the United States to recognize Benefit Corporations, introducing the “Società Benefit” legal status with the Del Barba law in 2016.
It is precisely with the aim of highlighting our country’s leadership as an early adopter of this model that we have devised Made in B Italy, a project that encompasses the many initiatives by which our company spreads awareness of this new form of enterprise.
Those who know us know how strongly we advocate the urgent, irrefutable need to establish a more equitable, inclusive and regenerative economic system. This is what led us to set up our translation agency as a Società Benefit and then to achieve B Corp certification.
With Made in B Italy we intend to show that being a sustainable business and taking care of the planet and humanity is not only possible, but also a source of immense satisfaction and a driver of healthy growth.
We are often asked how being a Società Benefit and a certified B Corp is reflected in our growth and bottom line . Our answer is an anecdote that perfectly illustrates the benefits of being a sustainable company.
In our previous life as a traditional, predominantly profit-oriented company, it took us 30 years before we reached the milestones that earned us a prestigious award on the Italian stock exchange for sector leadership and business model innovation.
Yet thanks to our rebirth as a sustainable company, we received the same award in less than three years.
If this is not proof enough, the results we have managed to achieve on an economic, social and environmental level are even more remarkable: Growth Champions, Sustainability Leader, Welfare Champion, Virtuous Equality Ambassador, Assolobarda Award for our “women’s business paradigm for women”, and an Oscar di Bilancio for our Sustainability Report.
These are the kind and number of benefits that becoming a sustainable business can bring to a company and its stakeholders.
We have gained this awareness first-hand and we want to disseminate it by promoting multiple activities to encourage an increasing number of companies to opt for this extraordinary business model.
As founding members of Assobenefit, the association that promotes the Benefit culture and systemic change toward a more sustainable economy, we initiated our institutional commitment. Since then we have shared our story of sustainable rebirth through a wealth of conferences, as well as through events, interviews and projects, with the aim of informing and inspiring all those who are looking for a new approach to business.
Last but not least, we designed and produced our own publishing project explaining what it means to be a Società Benefit, bringing together the stories of several companies that have pioneered this innovative business model.
Made in B Italy: La via italiana all’impresa sostenibile
“Made in B Italy – La via italiana all’impresa sostenibile” (The Italian path to sustainable enterprise) is the publishing venture to which we have devoted two years of energy, research and creativity, the result of an idea that was conceived and developed alongside us.
The book offers a theoretical and practical view of Società Benefit as an innovative type of company aiming at a more sustainable business. It describes the experiences of three Italian companies that have pioneered this choice and explains the legal and economic basis of this model. The publishing project is the result of collective work by a team of high-level partners, including the Hon. Mauro Del Barba, the first signatory of the Italian law on Società Benefit, and Prof. Stefano Zamagni, an internationally renowned economist and leading expert on Civil Economy.
The second part of the book reports the stories of three early benefit corporations: Treedom, the young “tree planters” who have turned environmental offsetting into a hugely successful business; Nativa, which was the first to embrace the Benefit movement and import it to Italy; and of course Way2Global, our Milan-based translation agency reborn as a Società Benefit.
This outstanding team is completed by the work of storyteller Lele Rozza, the collaboration with Blonk, a publishing house affiliated with the Altiero Spinelli School of Excellence in Milan, and the patronage of Assobenefit, the Italian National Association for Società Benefit, and the Cariplo Foundation.
Hon. Del Barba perfectly summed up the intent behind our publishing project: “We have tried to construct a convincing portrait of a world that is changing the way we interpret the market, and consequently to construct the market. Starting from new, human and sustainable bases”.
Launched at the Italian Stock Exchange in November 2019 as part of the BookCity initiatives, the book then travelled to EXPO Dubai during the roadshow for the Le Città delle Donne project, promoted by Gli Stati Generali delle Donne to demonstrate how the Società Benefit model perfectly combines with a new concept of female leadership and entrepreneurship.
In the meantime, the pandemic has changed the world, people have become widely aware of the urgency of sustainable development, and regenerative enterprises are growing exponentially: In Italy alone there are over 4,000 Società Benefit and more than 300 certified B Corps, while worldwide there are more than 8,300 B Corps.
These extraordinary figures prove that our original intuition was sound, reinforcing our commitment to spreading and supporting a paradigm shift that can no longer be postponed.
This is our ultimate goal: While as a translation agency we have always exported Made in Italy quality worldwide, as a Società Benefit and certified B Corp we apply the same commitment to exporting this unique and innovative business model, an example of Italian excellence, which we ourselves are very proud to represent.
Want to know more about Made in B Italy? Fill out the form to read the introduction to the book!