In 2017 I co-launched a new collection of eco-luxury hotels. The goal was to help regenerative hoteliers benefit from economies of scale, and for travelers to find them.
In six months we went from "let's do this" to hosting an in-person convening. The network has since grown to about 40 properties worldwide.
Why I Left Eco-Luxury Resorts for the Urban Built Environment
Inaugural Regenerative Resorts Convening at Playa Viva Resort, Juluchuca, Mexico, November 2017. The collection has since grown into Regenerative Travel.
What is a regenerative resort?
To be considered regenerative, our criteria revolved around being a responsible steward and taking restorative action.
Regeneration is required to achieve true sustainability.
We analyzed each property’s social and environmental activities before inviting them to be a member.
While many hotels were calling themselves eco or green, very few acted responsibly in their ecosystem with considerations to water, soil, air, wildlife, and humans. One might do less bad, but that isn’t sustainable.
Typically, hotels by their very existence are destructive from real estate development and the nature of tourism being transient, thus resulting in waste.
When I met my partner and impact investor, we’d both been building lists of authentic eco-hotels around the world. I was blogging about hotel practices and leveraging social media to crowdsource information while building a target audience. He had been meeting with industry leaders to discuss a viable business model since he owned a regenerative resort of his own, and was looking to help his guests answer a simple question, “Can you recommend another hotel like yours?”
What we built
We created a new brand, built an engaged online community, identified hotels we wanted to join us, and produced a five-day convening (“think tank”) for like-minded hoteliers. Regenerative Resorts also ran as a hotel marketing agency for eco-resorts.
Owners in this category felt isolated. They were each solving the same problems alone–from sourcing to staffing to attracting customers to travel to them.
Our sessions covered operations, sales & marketing. But true to our style, we hosted it "in the field" (corporate hotel ballrooms I'm looking at you!)
Owners shared goods they grew and produced on their land while telling stories of the local farmers and artisans they partner with. True impact in action.
Building an online presence and creating proof of demand before reaching out to any hotelier was a quick process. I was used to launching brands and growing social media communities through former clients and entrepreneurial projects.
We promoted the new collection, Regenerative Resorts, at trade shows,
at industry-aligned events,
and in print media – wherever the customer was.
Good humans committed to uplifting the environmental and social needs of where their hotels resided.
Longing for a sustainable lifestyle
What I noticed from guests, and from myself, was how difficult it was to hold on to these aspirational values back home, wherever home was.
People would save up all year for their one week vacation at a regenerative resort, immersed in lush nature, healthy food, and slowing down. They’d leave feeling restored and inspired.
Then they’d go back to their real lives.
Ironically, my days were filled with screentime of jungles, islands, and mountains. Meanwhile I lived in Los Angeles, one of the most resourced cities in the world, and could not recommend a single hotel that met my values.
To be clear, I’m not knocking hotels in rural landscapes – they’re needed and I’m still a customer. But ultimately, Regenerative Resorts was a vacation brand and I wanted to build a lifestyle one. So I left to pursue how.
Learning the other half of the business
I knew this road would be harder. It is easier to attract people to destinations that look like paradise. However there is no urban regenerative hotel in my city, which means someone has to build one.
Most first-time hoteliers seem to have a background in real estate or capital from family & friends, neither of which is my path.
I knew experiential hospitality, tourism, sustainability, marketing and sales. I had to go learn the commercial development side to understand how buildings actually get financed, entitled and delivered, so I spent the next four years at a sustainable building consultancy. You can find the rest of my background on the About page.
goldenco is where both regenerative values and urban development converge.
A neighborhood hotel and third place where participation is the amenity, in a city where both tourists and locals come together any day of the week.
I'm in pre-development on the first one. If any of this resonates, I'd love to hear from you.
— Jennifer