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Audiobooks platform xigxag gains B Corporation certification
Audiobooks platform xigxag has been awarded B Corporation certification, meaning it has been verified by non-profit network B Lab for meeting high standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability.
Co-founders Kelli Fairbrother and Mark Chaplin said B Corp certification “forms a cornerstone of xigxag’s strategy to differentiate it from big tech competitors”.
They said that by putting accessibility and sustainability at the heart of their business, they aim to encourage everyone to enjoy more books by modernising the digital reading experience and making reading more accessible.
The firm said xigxag is now the first audiobook app in the UK to have achieved B Corp certification and joins only 5,700 companies in the world "that have committed to positive social and environmental benefits as part of a conscientious movement to harness the power of business as a force for good".
Fairbrother said: “I first learned about the movement in an inspiring meeting with B Corp pioneer James Perry, the co-chair and co-founder of Cook.
“Since then, I observed that the businesses that I most admired were achieving B Corp certification, like World of Books, AllPlants and Daye. Achieving B Corp certification is one of the best accolades to be awarded. It validates our ambition to make books more accessible, engaging and sustainable. And it allows us to credibly start a conversation in our industry about the essential role that digital books must play in the future of sustainable book consumption.”
Chris Turner, executive director of B Lab UK, said: “Welcoming xigxag is an exciting moment because they have an opportunity to lead the way within the audiobook and publishing industry. We and the rest of the B Corp community are really pleased to support xigxag in paving the way for a new way of doing things.”
Earlier this year xigxag secured a £500,000 equity investment from the Cornwall & Isles of Scilly Investment Fund as part of a larger £1m funding round.
