In celebration of our first B Corp Month since becoming certified, the Pinstone team has had a busy few weeks, moving our business forward in line with this year’s campaign theme.
We constantly strive to make a positive impact in our sector by responding to the issues that matter to us. In this blog, we share some of the highlights from this month’s journey to being better, bolder, brighter, and being the #BeesKnees.
Bee brilliant – celebrating awards shortlist
The office has been buzzing with excitement after we heard Pinstone has been announced as a finalist for not one, but three industry awards!
- Boutique Agency of the Year: PR Moments (North)
- Independent Agency of the Year: PR Moments (North)
- Business of the Year: National Women in Agriculture Awards
It’s a real achievement to be recognised in this way and is testament to our agency values, brilliant team and the meaningful services we consistently deliver for clients.
Bee bodacious – team success at the VMA Awards
On 15th March, six members of the team attended the VMA Awards in London.
Hannah Lloyd has been a VMA Committee member for two years, giving her time on a voluntary basis as part of Pinstone’s commitment to supporting causes that align with our values.
Hot on the heels of last year’s success, we were thrilled to receive the newly established Sustainability Award for our work with VetPartners. There were also two highly commended nominations and four other finalist submissions.
These awards served as timely reminders of the importance of showcasing PR theory in action through a strategic approach that demonstrates great outcomes, outtakes and impact.
Bee bountiful – Pinstone hits the podcast airwaves
March also saw the re-launch of the latest iteration of the Pinstone podcast. To better reflect our focus on telling authentic sustainable stories, the new-look ‘Bees’ Knees Comms-Cast’ shines a spotlighting on people, brands and businesses that share our passion for being a force for good.
In the first episode in the new season, Catherine interviews Harry Mayhew, co-founder of Ember Snacks who founded the business with his brother Jack. As a fellow B-Corp business, it was fascinating to hear about Ember’s mission to do meat snacks right and change the narrative on farming practices that support the conventional market for products such as biltong and jerky.
You can listen to the latest episodes here.
Bee brighter – Catherine and Kate head back to school
Following their conservation trip to Kenya to support the work of South Rift Land Owners Association, Catherine and Kate shared their experiences with 400 local primary children at Holmer CofE Academy in Hereford as part of our focus to engage kids in food and farming from a young age.
Based on the theme ‘Small animal. Big impact,’ the morning assembly highlighted how bee hives are being used to protect farmers’ crops from being devastated by elephants.
Catherine and Kate also met with the school’s pupils who are part of their eco and social justice committees to answer questions about their African adventure.
“It was great fun talking to the children and – in a small way – open their eyes to lives that are very different to their own and the challenges people and wildlife face in living side-by-side,” said Catherine.
Thanks to everyone at Holmer School for inviting Pinstone to take part in the assembly.
Bee bolder – Local MP to visit the Pinstone orchard
Having previously met local MP, Sir Bill Wiggins at Westminster while supporting the Better Business Act in April 2022, Catherine and Robin have extended an invitation for Bill to visit our orchard.
Here we can demonstrate Pinstone’s B Corp credentials and the environmental work being undertaken through our beehives, wildflower meadow and tree planting.
We’ve made a big commitment to doing business better and our B Corp promises are fundamental to this, you can find out more in our latest Impact Report.
Expect to hear more from Catherine following the MP’s visit.
Bee better – Bokashi bin opens for business
And last but not least, our very own sustainability queen, Nina has introduced the team to the joys of bokashi composting as a way to re-use our office food waste and importantly, make good use of all the coffee granules we get through!.
The system turns our food scraps, including meat, bones, fish and dairy, into nutrient rich compost which will be used by the green fingered members of the team to feed their home-grown veggies.
Keep an eye on our social channels for more bokashi bin updates.
Stay tuned for more buzzy updates from the Bee’s Knees team
Throughout 2024 we’ll be sharing more about how we’re moving comms forward.
Let’s connect and explore the possibilities together – Contact Us – Pinstone
