Stacy Ruiz
Case Western Reserve University - Weatherhead School of Management
Chris Laszlo
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Valuing relationships and wanting to better the world has led Emmy's Organics to produce a simple, yet unique product. The need for a healthy snack that adhered to specific dietary needs has grown into something much bigger that is providing a model to other corporations on how they can be a sustainable and responsible company.
Emmy's Organics' success is not only attributed to its product - organic, non-GMO, coconut cookies - but to its employees. Although the company employs 13 people at its headquarters in Ithaca, New York, it has grown tremendously since it's founding in 2009.
Co-founder Samantha Abrams said her greatest innovation is "Our culture. Without our employees, we would not be where we are." Emmy's prides itself on providing its employees with a great work environment, great benefits and a sense of community. Emmy's encourages its employees to take advantage of volunteer opportunities and give back to the community and has plans to further develop its connection with the community.
Emmy's inspiration to give back to the community and support its employees stems from the founders' belief that without great employees, the company cannot achieve success. Emmy's was founded in a small kitchen in Ithaca, NY, simply due to need. The co-founders wanted a snack that would adhere to strict dietary needs and were unable to find anything that would meet that need. Products were either full of processed ingredients or they simply did not taste good. Emmy's wanted its cookies to be delicious and use all natural, non-gmo ingredients. In the eight years since its founding, Emmy's has enjoyed tremendous success and can now be found in retailers such as Starbucks, Walmart, CVS and national and regional grocery stores. Emmy's has plans to further expand it's distribution channels and develop new products and partnerships.
Abrams is very excited about a new partnership working with different non-profit organizations within the community. While the logistics are being worked out, the partnership will "promote employee involvement within the community that we call home."
The overall impact of Emmy's pertains model is happy employees. These employees are producing a great product and are enthusiastic about what they do, because of Emmy's culture. The company's small operation and work force could be a constraint for any other firm of similar size in the same industry. But because of the company culture and dedicated employees, Emmy's has continued to grow and is a great example of how a small organization that does not skim on quality ingredients can create a great product and still be socially and environmentally responsible.
Emmy's encourages its employees to have ownership over their jobs. Having ownership over their jobs. The end result is they take pride in their work and strive to do the best they can in order to help Emmy's continue to grow and develop.
Emmy's support of its employees has helped it gain B - Corp certification, something that fewer than 3,000 companies achieve. Being certified as a B - Corp was not an easy or quick process. Emmy's had to to meet certain performance and legal requirements, as well as capital resources, which for a small company was a huge burden for a small company. "We went through the process of being certified as a B - Corp because it was important for us to show our customers that we truly care about our values. The process was not easy and we achieved the certification due to the tremendous efforts put forth from our employees," Abrams explained. "Now we are able to show that we are B- Corp certified on our packaging and website. We have gotten such great feedback from our customers. In the end, the process was very much worth it." Another benefit, Abrams noted, is that the certification has helped them to attract new talent.
Emmy's company culture focuses on helping its employees help their communities. Emmy's allows its employees to take days off from work and volunteer in their communities. These hours are all paid and employees are very much encouraged by the founders to take advantage of this benefit. Emmy's has future plans to partner up with various nonprofits in different communities in order to further encourage its ethos of giving back.
Emmy's Cookies main ingredient is coconut. When sourcing this raw material, Abrams wanted to ensure that its suppliers shared the same values and were up to its quality standards. To ensure a great supply and a great relationship, the co-founders take trips to coconut farm in Sri Lanka which provide the coconuts used in Emmy's. If a supplier is having trouble being fair trade or paying fair wages, Emmy's steps in and helps those farms to ensure the supplier's values match those of Emmy's.
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Samantha Abrams, Co-Founder
