Blowing smoke

A quick one this week, because I'm done in, but I thought it was worth drawing attention to a piece we published today. Ellen Ormesher (I helped a little bit) has been following the fallout from Havas Media's appointment by Shell and the implications for its B Corp status in particular.

In summary, a fair few B Corp agencies are pissed about it. The certification took time and investment to obtain. Founders fear that, if you can hold it and still work for a polluter, it won't have been worth all that work.

So, they want B Lab - the company that gives out the B Corp certification - to 'act' and by act, they mean strip Havas of its badge.

“We are 100% behind what B Lab stands for and what accreditation stands for – it’s ironic that it’s the B Corps reminding B Lab to stand by what we signed up for,” said one.

I went to Havas, and to MSQ (which has also been highlighted) for right of reply. Their responses are considered, and we've included them in our coverage, alongside the full text of the complaint and a list of all 26 agencies behind it. We'll continue following the story as it develops.

Something for the weekend

• In case you somehow missed it, VMLY&R and Wunderman Thompson are merging
• Kin + Carta's going private
• And there's probably going to be a recession