REI employees volunteer to clean up the park.
Provided by REI
Recreational Equipment, Inc., best known as REI, sells gear for enjoying the outdoors. This requires more than just a great product.
“Our mission is to get more people outside,” says Wilma Wallace, director of diversity and social impact at REI. “There has to be an outside to get more people outside.”
REI has made fighting the climate crisis part of its core business. A cooperative whose members have a voice and vested interest in the organization, supplying their stores and distribution centers with 100% renewable electricity. With $3.7 billion in sales (2021), the equipment store offers used gear to reduce waste and carbon emissions. We partner with more than 450 organizations that protect public lands and make outdoor spaces available to everyone, including those living in urban areas and unmaintained areas, making them disproportionately disproportionate to people of color. It’s having an impact.
These efforts and more have propelled REI to the top. forbes‘Latest list, Best Brands for Social Impact 2023, which brands are most admired by consumers for their environmental, social issues, and community engagement. The list, created in partnership with data analytics company HundredX, is based on an online survey that asked more than 100,000 consumers to rate brands and products on more than a dozen items. The Best Brands for Social Influence was created by combining respondents’ ratings on overall brand value and trust, and his three subcategories: social stance, sustainability, and community support. Nearly 4 million ratings across over 2,000 unique brands.
REI’s performance was impressive, not only taking the top spot overall, but also ranking first in the social stance and sustainability subcategories. Ranked 4th in community support.
No other brand came close, except maybe Subaru. Subaru ranked second overall after finishing in the top six in all four categories. Grocery stores fared well as a sector, led by HEB (3rd place), Trader Joe’s (4th place) and Publix (7th place), flanked by tech giants Sony (5th place) and Apple (6th place). . The complete list can be found here and a gallery of insightful quotes from all top 10 respondents can be found here.
“Companies that align their brand values with their business stand out,” explains HundredX CEO Rob Pace. “This is the second-highest driver among the hundreds of business drivers we track in terms of influence on future purchasing decisions. You can more accurately predict your behavior. The only thing is the taste of the food in the restaurant.”
Subaru employees are partnering with the South Jersey Food Bank to prepare meal kits for children in Camden as part of the 2022 Subaru Share the Love event kickoff.
Provided by Subaru of America, Inc.
Subaru of America’s community-oriented programs are integral to the company’s business operations. Over the past 15 years, the company and its retailers have donated more than $250 million of his money to charity through the annual Subaru Share the Love event. The organization is comprised of four national nonprofit organizations covering a wide range of issues: the ASPCA, Make-A-Wish, Meals on Wheels, and the National Park Foundation, as well as more than 1,700 people in the regions served by Subaru. Focuses on local charities.
“We want to be seen as more than just your average car company,” says Tom Doll, former CEO of Subaru of America and the man behind the Share the Love event. “We want to give back to our local community and help them become better and stronger.”
Customers have noticed.
“We’re a Subaru family!” We’ve owned a total of five cars over the years (my husband still owns an ’88!),” said one survey respondent. “It’s a great company that brings a lot of benefits to the community. Our local dealership also sponsors volunteer trash pickup.”
HEB, a supermarket with hundreds of stores in Texas, ranked third with similar rave reviews. This includes one from a respondent looking to buy a store in his area. and their involvement, especially how they emerge after natural disasters. ”
Financial services organization USAA (No. 8 on the list) was honored for serving military personnel, veterans and their families. Respondents praised Harley-Davidson (No. 9) for initiatives such as Black History Month events that celebrate the contributions of Black riders to motorcycle culture.
In some cases, a brand’s social stance could lower its overall ranking. Case in point: Chick-fil-A (No. 30) received mixed reviews for its brand value and confidence in the company’s past support for anti-LGBTQ groups. One study participant explained this dichotomy: However, the local shops are well-run! My problem is at the top level of the company. ”
On the other end of the spectrum, brands like NPR (13th overall) and clothing retailer Aerie (15th) ranked high on the list due to their social stance scores. This is often due to how we embrace inclusivity.
One respondent said: “I love the inclusivity of Aerie’s campaigns. It makes a difference in the way I think when trying on products.”
And at the end of the day, having an impact on society is about making a difference.
methodology
Best Brands for Social Impact draws on an online survey conducted from March 2022 to February 2023 by data analytics company HundredX. The survey asked more than 100,000 consumers to rate brands and products in more than 10 categories, including quality and value. , customer service, etc. This particular Best Brands for Social Impact list was created by integrating overall brand value and respondents’ ratings in his four survey categories: Trust, Social Stance, Sustainability, and Community Support. . Overall, we received nearly 4 million ratings and reviewed over 2,000 unique brands.
As with all Forbes lists, companies do not pay a participation fee. For questions regarding this list, please contact listdesk (at) forbes.com.
