The Good Stream. Why this, why now?
The story of why we created The Good Stream
Max McClure 2017
Founder, Matt Tipping has had a long career in retail design as a strategist, designer and customer experience consultant for globally recognised brands. Over the years, he recognised that two things are fundamental to good business: its approach to governance and its ability to nurture relationships. This growing fascination with the culture and mechanics of business inspired him to start Double Retail in 2009, a business founded on the principle of equality and care in our business relationships.
Double grew organically over the years, experiencing many growing pains, successes and transformations. A key moment of transformation happened in 2014 when Matt instigated a dramatic shift in the directorship and ownership structure of the business after reading Reinventing Organizations by Frederic Laloux. An investigation into the world of self-managing organisations, the thinking behind this pivotal book inspired a fundamental and positive change in the culture of Double.
“When organisations are built not on implicit mechanisms of fear but on structures and practices that breed trust and responsibility, extraordinary and unexpected things start to happen.”
Frederick Laloux
Not only did this inspire a change in organisational governance and decision-making, but also a personal shift in the mindset of everyone within the business. There was a realisation that we must give trust to receive it, a simple concept, but hard to put into practice both personally and organisationally. A ‘trust circle’ was born out of this realisation and led to profound change across the business such as the empowering of every individual and the freedom for good ideas to be shared, led and embedded across the business. Hierarchy slowly faded and a fluid change-leader process emerged.
The personal shifts in mindset experienced during this time led the business to become B-Corp, an accreditation awarded after a stringent impact assessment that recognises businesses as a ‘force for good’. Matt’s hands-on experience of the B-Corp process crystallised his own personal purpose of what being a ‘good business’ could and should mean for the world and led him to dive deeper into how this idea of ‘doing good’ could be used to create a blueprint for change for good.
In 2020 Matt left Double and founded The Good Stream, an idea born out of the recognition that many business owners and individuals feel that ‘doing good’ with their business is just out of reach. The Good Stream is here to dispel that myth, inspire progress and to create a legacy for future business generations. As Jonas Salk said, “Our greatest responsibility is to be good ancestors.”
Double Retail’s journey to B-Corp
Early in 2020 Matt gave a talk on Double’s journey to B-Corp certification. The talk was organised by The Future Economy Network and hosted by Triodos Bank in Bristol, UK.
If you have 15 minutes take a look.
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