Lost Grove Brewing Becoming a B-corporation

Story by Courtnie Dawson

When Jake Black first conceptualized Lost Grove Brewing, he wasn’t thinking of B Corporation certification. Sure, he wanted to create a business that was environmentally sustainable; and yes, he wanted to use the brewery as a way to give back to the Boise community; and of course, he wanted to prioritize a positive work environment for his employees--but these were all just ideals, nothing that had been adapted to any structure or planning. Luckily for Jake (and the whole world, really), a lot of people wanted the same good things for their business, and have come together to form a network under the B Corporation certification.

“After realizing what a B Corp was and what it’s values are, it was a no brainer,” Jake says.” It aligned perfectly. We love Boise, so why wouldn’t we try to give back to the community? The certification pushes us to do those things.”

Now, “B Corporation certification” sounds pretty stiff and formal, which Lost Grove Brewing is not. In actuality, however, being classified under that certification means that a business uses a strict framework to constantly improve their environmental impact, their community involvement, their work conditions, and more. 

Kylie Bolland, the general manager of Lost Grove, has taken on the challenge of obtaining the certification. When Lost Grove Brewing first opened, they found it difficult to keep organized with all the improvements they wanted to make. The rigorous certification process changed that.

“I loved filing the application,” she says, “because with starting this brand new company, [the certification] provided a great groundwork on what we were going to do, and what we really wanted Lost Grove to become.”

B Corporations use business as a force of good rather than simply a conduit for profit. As a future B Corporation, Lost Grove Brewing makes most of their decisions by asking how an action will impact their goals under this framework. Some changes that Lost Grove has implemented are a significantly higher minimum wage for staff, incentives for employees to reduce their car emissions with alternative transportation, and reimbursing employees for hours volunteered in the Boise community. 

Under several different parameters, a business must score at least 80 points to be considered for certification by the B Corporation organization. Lost Grove approached B Corp with a score of 99, with particularly high marks in community involvement. But they are only at the beginning of the process and there’s always room for improvement.

“I knew we would score high in the community benchmark, but we had also scored lower in customer service than expected,” Kylie relays the application report. “What I like is that we were able to take that feedback and make decisions to improve in that area. We aim to excel in every benchmark.”

The state of Idaho currently has only 13 certified B Corporations. It’s not an easy process, and requires changes to be made in favor of people over profit. But for Lost Grove, the B Corporation values and what they stand for are the backbone of their business.

“We can be a successful company and also give back to our community and employees,” Jake says. “We hope this process helps us to become better and more efficient, and ensure that we think about everything a little bit longer before we make decisions.”

Photos courtesy of Casual Creative

Want to learn more about B Corporations? Visit: https://growensemble.com/what-is-a-b-corp/