Solgaard Announces B Corp Certification, Increases Ocean Plastic Collection to 6lbs Per Purchase

New B Corp Certification Marks a New Milestone In Solgaard's Journey To Maximize Its Positive Environmental Impact. 

NEW YORK, Feb. 15, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- Design driven sustainable travel and lifestyle brand using business as a force for good, Solgaard, announces today it is now a Certified B Corporation™. The certification is a step in the evolution of the brand's ongoing ESG commitments. Additionally, Solgaard announces it will increase its commitment to clean up six pounds (6lbs) of ocean plastic from coastal communities per purchase (previously five pounds per purchase).

Verified as meeting B Lab's high standards for social and environmental impact while demonstrating accountability and transparency through its impact-driven business model, Solgaard is proud to be included among a global community of businesses meeting high standards of social and environmental impact. Earning an overall B Impact assessment score of 82.0, Solgaard surpasses the median score of businesses who complete the assessment, which is currently 50.9. In order to maintain certification, companies must undertake the assessment and verification process every three years, demonstrating they are still meeting B Lab's standards and exemplify a framework for continuous improvement.

"Having the B Corp certification is an important part of our mission: it's an outward sign to our prospective customers that we've been audited throughout our entire value chain, and we're operating at the highest of ethical standards across the board. We're proud to display the 'B'eautiful icon on our website," said Solgaard Founder and CEO, Adrian Solgaard. 

Furthermore, the brand is proud to announce the opening of the Sungai Watch x Solgaard Mangrove Cleanup Facility, a new visitor-friendly plastic collection and sorting facility located in the mangroves of Denpasar, Bali, funded through Solgaard's flagship impact partnership with environmental cleanup organization, Sungai Watch.

As part of the brand's multi-year plastic collection and mangrove health restoration partnership with Sungai Watch, a team of 15 locals have been hired to install and operate a series of river barriers collecting over 1,000 kgs of plastic daily from Indonesia's most polluted rivers and mangroves. In addition to financing the infrastructure to clean and shred the plastic waste collected, the brand funded the construction and operation of the Sungai Watch x Solgaard Mangrove Cleanup Facility, now open for public visitation as of 2023. These efforts not only intercept plastic before it pollutes the open ocean, but also revitalize local mangrove ecosystems, restoring their natural ability to capture and sequester carbon. As part of a joint mission to restore the mangroves of Bali, the partnership between Solgaard and Sungai Watch will see a minimum removal of 1,200,000 pounds of plastic from the mangroves of Bali by next year.

With over a million pounds of coastal plastic collection underway as of February 2023, Solgaard plans to clean up an additional ten million pounds of coastal plastic in the next five years.

About Solgaard:
A design driven brand using business as a force for good, Solgaard's premium travel and lifestyle goods are crafted through sustainable innovation. Pioneers in using ocean-bound plastic in its fabrics (Shore-Tex®) and travel gear (including The Carry-On Closet®), Solgaard cleans up 6lbs of plastic from coastal communities with every purchase. Relentless in his pursuit to create an economic engine for good, Norwegian-Canadian entrepreneur, Adrian Solgaard, founded the brand in 2016 to optimize life on the go for global citizens. With over a million pounds of coastal plastic collection underway as of February 2023, Solgaard is working to collect an additional 10 million pounds of plastic via its current project pipeline. Solgaard is a certified B Corporation.

Learn more at www.solgaard.co and www.solgaard.co/impact

Media Contact: Emma Garner, Head of Public Relations ([email protected])

SOURCE Solgaard