We live in a society where billionaires like Tesla founder Elon Musk, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates make daily headlines for the wealth they have accrued and the challenges their workers face on the job. If you’re not as plugged into the social entrepreneurship or impact investing movements, it can be easy to lose sight of the potentially positive impact for-profit companies can make on the communities where they’re based.

B Corps are a subset of for-profit companies that have made strict commitments to social causes. They voluntarily adopt rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability and transparency. Their goal goes beyond profit, aiming, too, to treat their workers and the planet well. (Check out the intensive certification requirements.)

To get certified as a B corp, a company must be certified by Berwyn-based nonprofit B Lab, founded by Jay Coen Gilbert, Bart Houlahan and Andrew Kassoy — all of the philosophy that stakeholder capitalism is failing us. Coen Gilbert was also a cofounder of basketball footwear and apparel company AND1, which once mandated that its suppliers pay workers living wages and offered its employees received free day care. The company gave 10% of its profits to local charities.

Today, thousands of companies are certified as B Corps. As of May 2021, 24 of them are based within Philadelphia city limits. From breweries to coffee chains to real estate startups, these socially minded for-profits balance business with the public good: