Q&A: What is the business value of “Doing Good”? Part 2 – DaddyKate beats the market 10 years in a row.
In the previous FAQ piece – https://www.linkedin.com/pulse/faq-series-what-business-value-doing-good-whom-really-nick-alf6e/ – I made the case that Doing Good Works is not naïve idealism, but a source of hard business value. Today I want to make that tangible with one case I’ve been following closely for years: my friends at DaddyKate.
Doing Good Works FAQ Series
By Nick Van Langendonck, driving force Unbossers Network
Q: Hi Nick, What is the business value of “Doing Good” — and for whom, really? Greetings, H.
A: Hi H,
Here’s a real example. Did you know the Belgian graphic industry has shrunk by almost 30% over the past fifteen years — from over €3.1 billion in 2008 to €2.29 billion in 2024 (source: Febelgra)?
- A steady decline up to 2019 (CAGR ≈ −2.1%)
- A dramatic −28% drop in 2020 due to COVID
- A brief recovery in 2022
- Another −4.94% fall in 2023
- And only +0.84% growth in 2024
In short: this is an industry in structural decline.
1. But there are exceptions.
DADDY KATE , a family business from Brussels, chose a radically different path. While the market shrank, they grew by a factor of 5. Today they are an international multi-site player with €30 million revenue and 125 employees. How? Not by cutting costs harder, but by making deliberate choices:
- Investing in innovation and automation
- A radical focus on customer value
- Transparency and participatory leadership
- A long-term compass: keeping the company healthy for the next generation
2. What stands out here: their success is not despite Doing Good Works, but because of it.
They even consciously ended relationships with clients worth €3–4 million in turnover because they didn’t fit with their values and strategy. Transparency — including sharing financial results and investment decisions with all employees — created ownership and engagement. Their ultimate goal? Not a quick exit, but a healthy family business for the next hundred years.
While the industry has been stuck in a “race to the bottom,” they built an ark that weathers storms. And that is precisely the essence of my argument: Doing Good Works not only benefits society, it is also the most robust business strategy there is.
Conclusion
Doing Good really Works!
Ready to put in practice?
Unbossers Network developed the Doing Good Works Company Audit — the quality label for organizations that combine profit with doing Good and want to make that visible in all their core processes.
✅ A mirror for your teams
✅ A clear framework rooted in seven timeless virtues
✅ A credible signal to customers, partners, and talent
Curious to find out where your company stands? 👉 Learn more on www.unbossers.com.
We’d love to hear how this resonates with you and what it looks like in your own work environment. And of course, you’re warmly invited to send me your own question or join one of our Long Table Dinners, where we gather around meaningful conversations like this with peers from diverse backgrounds.
👉 Join us at our next dinner party
With gratitude.
Doing Good Works
Nick & Unbossers Network
