Social Entrepreneur Leads B Corp Through Nearly 30 Years of Brand-Building and Over $2M in Community Contributions
Russ Stoddard is the founder and CEO of Oliver Russell, a socially geared business and Certified B Corporation that builds brands for purpose-driven companies.
Stoddard started Oliver Russell in 1991, and for nearly three decades he has been at the helm of the B Corp helping companies with a passion for people and our planet. He and his team strive to be a force for good with their services in as many ways possible, even committing to donate their time to help social enterprise companies craft their brand identities and elevate their impact.
In this episode of the Grow Ensemble Podcast, Stoddard shares much of his story and experience. We learn about the beginnings of Oliver Russell and how the B Corp has managed to stay afloat for so many years in an ever-evolving industry. We also dig into the social impact that has come to characterize much of Oliver Russell’s history and how Stoddard manages the purpose-profit balance.
Oliver Russell is part of the community of businesses that have used a third-party verification of their impact. Use the free B Impact Assessment to evaluate your company’s impact on all stakeholders, including the environment, your workers, your community and your customers.
A few valuable takeaways from our deep dive with Stoddard:
- The story behind Oliver Russell’s purpose, founding ideas, and ethics.
- How a company that started nearly 30 years ago continues to thrive and make a difference while remaining profitable.
- How Stoddard and Oliver Russell have managed to make $2 million in contributions to the community.
B the Change gathers and shares the voices from within the movement of people using business as a force for good and the community of Certified B Corporations. The opinions expressed do not necessarily reflect those of the nonprofit B Lab.
Motivated by the Heart and Building Purpose-Driven Businesses was originally published in B the Change on Medium, where people are continuing the conversation by highlighting and responding to this story.
