Event: Sustainable Business Network Launches Series on Triple Bottom Line Businesses

The Sustainable Business Network (SBN) is holding a series of workshops at Impact HUB Philly on what it takes to become a triple bottom line company.

The concept of a triple bottom line (TBL), at least that exact phrasing, was created in the early 1980s by writer Freer Spreckly. The idea behind the concept is that companies should look beyond a single bottom line, profit, and also consider their environmental and social impact.

Today, the triple bottom line has become the backbone of how a company’s impact is measured. Nonprofit certifier B Lab, for example, designates businesses as “B Corps” based on how they impact workers, suppliers, customers, community, and the environment. 

In Philadelphia, SBN has helped bring these standards to local businesses by vetting its members – using B Lab’s own “B Impact Assessment” – as well as sharing best practices, holding networking events and advocating for sustainable policies.

The first workshop in SBN’s Triple Bottom Line (TBL) Series will expand this strategy to include teaching companies how to contribute to the environment and the community while also succeeding as a business.

Nicole Marquis, owner of HipCityVeg, the center city vegetarian-friendly restaurant, will talk about how operating as a TBL business affects the restaurant’s operations and bottom line. Hardik Savalia, senior associate at B Lab, will follow with a general introduction to how to become a TBL business and why it’s important to do so.

Then there will be a presentation by Investor’s Circle – a network of angel investors focused on social good – on what it takes to appeal to attract investment. Hempstead & Co. LLC. will finish the event with a workshop on how to evaluate a business.

When: February 25, 2014, 8:30 AM – 11:30 AM
Where: Impact HUB Philly, 1227 North 4th St.
Cost:  $15 for Impact HUB or SBN members, $30 for non-members, $5 for students
More info:  Purchase tickets here.