The Body Shop in Malaysia, Vietnam & Cambodia Achieves B Corp Certification

The Body Shop Franchisee InNature Berhad The First B Corp Certified in South East Asia. InNature Berhad, the franchisee for The Body Shop in Malaysia, Vietnam and Cambodia, has achieved B Corp certification. InNature joins a global community of businesses demonstrating a commitment to sustainable business and calling for all companies to work together to make real change happen for people and the planet. 

The Body Shop in Malaysia, Vietnam & Cambodia Achieves B Corp Certification

In gaining the certification, InNature joins its franchisor, The Body Shop International, a long-time leader in ethical business, which achieved B Corp certification in 2019.

B Corp certification is awarded to businesses that meets high standards of verified social and environmental performance, public transparency and legal accountability to balance profit and purpose. It is the only certification that measures a company’s entire social and environmental performance, extending well beyond standard product or service-level certification. 

Together, B Corp companies form a global community of over 6,000 businesses using profits and growth as a means to greater end, building a more inclusive and sustainable economy for all. B Corp certification is awarded by B Lab, a non-profit body serving a global movement of people using business as a force for good.

Datin Mina Cheah, Managing Director of InNature Berhad said: “Our belief that business can be a force for good is embodied in every aspect of our business and operations. From the communities which we trade with, to the colleagues we work with, to customers we engage with; each one represents an opportunity to inform, to change and to inspire. We believe that as a business, we possess the power to make a difference. InNature has used its position to campaign for social and environmental change for the last 38 years, contributing to local communities wherever we operate”.

In Malaysia, The Body Shop has worked continuously for the protection of our forests and wildlife, through joint campaigns with environmental NGOs, notably the Save Belum-Temengor forest campaign with Malaysian Nature Society between 2006 to 2010, and the Bio-Bridge project in Endau Rompin with Wildlife Conservation Society between 2016 to 2019. Similarly in Vietnam, The Body Shop joined hands with World Land Trust and Viet Nature Conservation Centre on a Bio Bridge project in Quang Binh in 2016.

To mitigate its environmental impact, The Body Shop Malaysia pioneered the movement to encourage customers to ‘Kick the Bag Habit’ by using their own bags or making a donation if they needed to take one. The funds from this programme are channeled towards community service actions such as annual Beach Clean-Ups and Earth Day Plant Giveaway events. 

The Body Shop also incentivizes customers to return their used packaging to the stores through the ‘Bring Back Our Bottles’ programme, where the packaging is recycled and turned into usable products again, thereby closing the loop. Refills stations have also been recently introduced in nearly half of its stores in Malaysia, further reducing the use of plastic and lowering its carbon emissions.

The Body Shop is also well known for its’ commitment to women and youth empowerment programs. In Malaysia, The Body Shop has worked with long-term NGO partners such as Women’s Aid Organisation and Sisters In Islam over the last two decades to speak out for women and girls on issues ranging from domestic violence to end child marriage. We have also campaigned against child sex trafficking in both Malaysia and Vietnam from 2009 to 2011. In 2021, we collaborated with Undi18 on a nationwide campaign to petition the government to lower the voting age from 21 to 18, which was successfully implemented. 

Thereafter, in 2022, we worked with Impact Malaysia in our ‘Be Seen Be Heard’ campaign to drive further awareness and increase voter education levels, to enable youths to vote for positive change.

Qas Qayyum, The Body Shop International Head Franchise Managing Director said: “I’m so proud of InNature, our franchise partner, for this wonderful achievement – what an amazing team and a shining example of a market truly bringing The Body Shop brand purpose to life”.

Christopher Davis, International Director of Sustainability and Activism at The Body Shop said: “We are delighted that InNature has become our first franchise partner in Asia Pacific to become a B Corp. Purpose-led collaborations, partnerships, networks and coalitions are key to driving the change we need business to lead in the world today and gaining B Corp accreditation is a very important step in this direction.”

For more information about The Body Shop Franchisee InNature Berhad The First B Corp Certified in South East Asia, please visit https://www.thebodyshop.com.my/about-us/our-story/b-corp