Have you noticed that there has been a dramatic shift in people's priorities over the last 12 months? But as things begin to ease out of the third lockdown and into a 'new normal', how are we going to maintain habits and rebuild our businesses so they are fit for the unknown future? Here Sara Osterholzer, co-founder of The Good Business Club, shares some insights on the small business movement to Build Back Better and how to get involved.

The second edition of our Build Back Better series focuses on empathy led marketing and how, by putting people first and understanding their needs, you can cut through the noise and offer value.

Like so many other business owners, my entrepreneurial journey since the start of the pandemic has been unpredictable, with plenty of twists and turns to navigate along the way.

Winning any award is nice, but it means so much more when that award reflects a mission you’ve intentionally set out to accomplish. For our team at Plux X Brighton, that’s what it meant to pick up the prize for Best In-House Workplace Mental Health Awareness Initiative at the inaugural Company Culture Awards in April. The building is also on track to become the first in South East England to achieve WELL Platinum accreditation from Wellspace, global benchmark setters for wellbeing at work.

I founded Just Helpers after seeing first-hand the exploitation which migrant workers – and particularly women – were experiencing in our cities. I wanted to offer an alternative – a cleaning business which paid fairly, offered decent working conditions and developed potential in our people.

Our new-found, post-pandemic ability to work from home has certainly brought benefits for many of us. No more long commute, no more interruptions at your desk and the ability to work from anywhere...

Let’s face it, “business as usual” is killing us. Short-term thinking, corporate greed, mass consumption, and endless extraction and exploitation in the pursuit of profit has put us on a fast-track to climate breakdown and human misery.