Kathmandu, Rip Curl, and Oboz are now recognised as being Certified B Corporations (B Corps,) as announced by parent company KMD.
This significant achievement is the first for multinational companies in Australia and New Zealand, with KMB being the first company to have all its brands individually certified.
KMD brands managing director and group CEO, Michael Daly said that this achievement is important due to the fact that the entire business was now part of a global community, and that it meets the high standards, social and environmental impact, accountability, and transparency expected of the appointment.
“At KMD Brands, we continually push ourselves across our group of Brands to be better and being B Corp Certified is recognition of that and of our commitment to balancing people, planet and profit. This is a great achievement for our business and our people.”
B Corps is a for-profit organisation which measures performance across five areas of impact: governance, workers, customers, community and the environment. In order to be considered for the prestigious group, companies must document their positive impact on all categories and must undergo an independent verification process every three years in order to achieve, and then maintain the certification.
Kathmandu was one of the first outdoor apparel brands appointed to the B Corp-certified status in Australia and New Zealand and has been a member since 2019. Since being inducted, Kathmandu has recertified the acknowledgement in respect of its ongoing impact in all five necessary categories. Rip Curl and Oboz have been striving to achieve the accolade for a number of years.
“We are a large organisation and have a responsibility to consider the impact of our decisions on all of our customers, our employees, our shareholders, the wider community, and the environment,” Daly said. “Being B Corp Certified across our entire business demonstrates that we take this responsibility very seriously and that we need to continue working hard to retain our certification.”
