CSR - What, how and why we take it

No matter if it's professional or private, everyday life - taking responsibility is key. As a business, Corporate Social Responsibility is essential. One always hear the words, "no one can do everything, but everybody can do something," and as a business, our capability to do something is much higher. And the reason for taking your social responsibility isn't about wanting to sustain an image, a brand or out of guilt - it's gratitude. To pay back to those that have helped us get to where we are today, and to help them reach higher.

Corporate Social Responsibility, or CSR for short, is the actions of doing something further good that is not necessarily in the firms best interest. By taking the responsibility, you strengthen the company's ethical standards and inspire consumers, employees, suppliers, and many others to do good.

Some like to argue that CSR is a distraction, a contradiction to the economic backbone that is running a business. Personally, I think it's up to every business owner and manager to decide what they want to do and to stand for what they believe. But also personally, I know I wouldn't want to run this business without taking my responsibility.

Our thoughts of CSR

The way I see it responsibility is everything, and it isn't just about collaborations or donating money to organizations. We've sponsored Europe's biggest wrestling contests for kids and youths for years. We're making pink and blue gloves in favor of breast cancer research and prostate cancer research. However, our most significant project, which is constant, is making sure all our partners and suppliers have safe working environments for employees, values human rights and the environmental impact of producing our products.

We're a Swedish company, and our standards, ethical and moral views will follow us wherever we are in the world. We work internationally with countries that don't share the same awareness to safety. Therefore the work with our chain of production might be the most important. It truly is like a circle where everything goes around, comes around. I believe my kind of thinking is very Swedish. My perception of what Swedish social culture is is to stay grounded, be humble, take care of those around you and give back to the country and people for how far they've got you to go.

Written by: Michael Cederkvist, CEO of Soft Touch.