Find out how we support Luxury Cottages to be pioneers in the responsible travel industry.
Luxury Cottages represent over 350+ high-end holiday homes across the UK. From beautifully restored country houses to luxury lodges with hot tubs, only the best make it into their collection. The team are based nationally. Led by CEO Alistair Malins, the company certified BCorp in December 2023. Alistair is passionate about the idea of using business as a force for good, and the scope of change possible with positive thinking, innovation and collaboration.
The challenges facing Luxury Cottages
1. Innovation and Potential
BCorp is the start point for Luxury Cottages work to push for change in tourism. CEO Alistair is pushing for collaboration and partnerships that really drive and advocate for collective leadership across B Corp certified tourism companies.
2. Regulation drivers
The push and pull of change in tourism is particularly powerful. As a global industry with high carbon emissions there are multiple broad and sweeping changes happening – but particularly from regulatory change – coming from the EU and expected in 2025 in the UK. As a growing company, savvy to the need for future-proofing, preparation is key.
3. Resilience: supporting key suppliers & home owners
Sustainability is usually a misunderstood opportunity for owners. When approached with more nuance, it is a compelling business value proposition to owners. But this needs explaining to get engagement. LC needed help with this to move the dial.
The coach approach
Collective problem solving across competitors
Collaboration is key to solving systemic and ingrained problems at scale.
LC already had a project, “A Sustainable Practice Manual” to help their owners engage in change, but it wasn’t getting the results the team wanted.
We helped rethink the process, work with collaborators and those united to fight for a healthy industry.
Reviewing the LC BCorp certification
There were several areas where the brand could improve:
- support owners to engage with sustainable practices
- build a credible Responsible Tourism collection
- understand evolving regulatory landscapes
- develop Impact Reporting frameworks
- prepare the company for recertification
The work is set over a year, and divided into specific project delivery, ongoing open discussion, and strategic business advice.
Steps forward
Gathering and Sharing Best Practice
Collaboration starts on the Sustainable Practice Guide v2. Leading ethically-driven travel companies donate their “Green IP” to the broad education programme to help all agencies/property-management and home-owners.
Credibility and Trust points
- LC choose Sustonica, the worlds first STR certification company to partner with their suppliers to independently verify owners work on sustainability, reducing greenwash and liability risk.
- Partnership and discounts with Voltshare enable 30%+ of the LC owners to install EV Chargers – the most successful organic SEO results page on their website.
View the collection here.
What Next?
The 2nd version of the Luxury Cottages Sustainable Practice Guide is coming soon.
Watch for carbon holiday-home trip labelling coming soon on the LC houses.
View the Luxury Cottages website here.
