Good On You’s brand rating system [PDF] distinguishes between large and small brands. A brand is classified as large or small based on its annual turnover or that of its parent company using the definition set out by the European Commission.
The size classifications help determine the issues that each brand is expected to address. Many issues are the same for the large and small brand methodologies, but the issues will be weighted proportionally.
Small brands methodology
The standards for Good On You’s small brand methodology remain rigorous. But the assessment is also relative to these brands’ overall impacts and what’s considered best practice for brands that have access to fewer resources and have less influence on the supply chain.
The methodology has also been designed to reflect that there are different types of small brands, with pathways for each type to achieve high scores on a range of issues. While small brands of different types will still be asked to answer a wide range of questions on key issues, brands don’t need to do everything to achieve a high score on many of these issues, as the methodology takes into account the nuances of different types of brands and the limitations many small brands face.
Large brands methodology
Large brands have more influence, resources, and control over their supply chain. This is reflected in Good On You’s methodology for large brands, which expects them to address a wider range of sustainability issues—including deforestation, biodiversity, and climate change targets—and to respond to more data points within some issues.
Good On You also expects large brands to have proportionately more comprehensive public disclosure, reflecting the greater number of data points factored into a large brand’s rating.