Red Orange Studio is B Corp Certified
We’re honored to share that after a year-long journey, Red Orange Studio is now a Certified B Corporation. We’ve always believed in using business as a force for good. And now we are part of a global community to help us measure that impact – and hold us accountable for getting better each year.
Susie Fife, founder and CEO, answers some questions on B Corp and what that means for Red Orange.
Q&A
Q. Why did you want to certify as a B Corp?
A. I have a passion for helping people and believe that Red Orange Studio can be a catalyst for good. Being a part of this global movement will provide us with a community of businesses that share those same beliefs. My hope is to learn from others and become better.
Q. Through the B Impact Assessment, every B Corp is scored on five impact areas: Workers, Environment, Customers, Community and Governance. How did Red Orange score in these areas and what makes Red Orange qualify as a B Corp?
A. After a long assessment process, our overall B Impact Score landed at 98.4. We received high scores specifically in the areas of Workers and Community, meaning that our business operations have a direct positive impact on our employees and our community through specific DEI initiatives, and civic engagement policies. To ensure we were held accountable to these practices, we were required to make a change to our legal documents stating that our decision-making incorporates all stakeholders including our community, customers, and the environment.
Q. How are you doing business differently?
A. More than 55% of our revenue in 2023 and 2024 was from established nonprofits and this is unique to creative agencies our size. Our pro-bono program, the PIP Nonprofit Award, makes us different and contributed to us becoming a B Corporation, along with our HBCU Internship Program.
Q. What did you learn or what challenges did you overcome?
A. I learned that there are small things we can do to make an impact when done consistently. And I learned the importance of measuring our impact and setting goals that our team can rally around and be proud to be a part of, like customer satisfaction, charitable giving as a percentage of profit, and nonprofit clients as a percentage of revenue.
Q. Speaking of goals…what areas are you focusing on in the future?
A. The bottom line is we want to help our clients and the people they serve. We want to make working with and working for Red Orange a great experience. That looks like simplifying our process, making work fun and meaningful, helping our clients tell their impact stories in creative ways… And it also means setting ambitious goals like giving away $1M worth of pro-bono services by 2030.
Q. What are some other B Corps that inspire you?
A. Warby Parker is one of my favorites. But I’m also inspired by Phlow, a local Pharmaceutical company; and Firespring, a fellow creative agency in Nebraska who was the first to become a B Corp in that state several years ago.
Q. How can others be a part of the B Corp journey?
A. You don’t have to become B Corp certified to make an impact. Start small.
- Develop a green team or a volunteer program.
- Measure one impact on the environment, your team or the community.
- Adopt a nonprofit for a year.
- Create a repeatable social impact program.
- Tell your story.
Need help? Message me if you want to learn more!
We are grateful for the support and guidance from Kerrie McDevitt at Impact Growth Partners who assisted us over the past year with the B Impact Assessment and documentation.
What’s Next
B Corp certification isn’t a one-time achievement—it’s an ongoing commitment. Every three years, we’ll go through reassessment and verification to ensure we meet B Lab’s evolving standards.
Certification doesn’t mean a company is perfect; it means we’re dedicated to continual improvement and collective action toward economic systems change.
Considering B Corp for your business? Or want to tell your social impact story? Feel free to reach out to us and we’ll be happy to share our experience.