Brøchner Hotel’s new sustainability strategy places responsibility on the hotels, not the guests

Running hotels with great care and attention has always been part of Brøchner Hotels. That means placing responsibility on the hotels, not the guests. As a result, the boutique hotel chain is launching a new sustainability strategy where they commit themselves to a range of sustainable actions within three primary focus areas that are not just about climate.

The fast-growing boutique hotel chain has fueled the business and life philosophy of running hotels "with great care and attention". Brøchner Hotels is ready with a new sustainability strategy that places responsibility on the boutique hotel chain rather than on the guests. The new strategy includes several concrete initiatives, all of which will be launched from this year.

"Running hotels with great care and attention is about taking responsibility. But the responsibility lies with us, not the guests. If you have stayed at a hotel, you can probably recognize reminders about avoiding changing towels, saving water, etc. For us, it is not the guests' responsibility to make the choices, it is ours. Sustainability is about making better choices for us, thus allowing the guests to do the same. If we are to make a real difference, it's about looking at what we do, rather than reminding the guests of what they can do, says CEO at Brøchner Hotels, Nickolas Krabbe Bjerg.

In their new sustainability strategy, Brøchner Hotels has three focus areas that are linked to the company's values; responsibility, passion and care. The focus areas are titled: Product, People, and Planet, and are connected to three of the Sustainable Development Goals by UN. Product and Planet involve initiatives that are launched with the climate in mind and how Brøchner Hotels takes responsibility for this. Product includes, among other things, that all Brøchner hotels' electricity consumption is covered by 100% renewable wind energy produced by Danish wind power. And by 2025, Brøchner Hotels also aims to reduce its electricity, water and heat consumption by a total of 5-7%.

"The climate agenda has always been important to us. Planet is therefore naturally an area that we put effort into. Among other things, we commit to phasing out all disposable plastics and packaging by 2022. And we have worked intensely with reducing food waste from our breakfast concept 'Good Morning. It's Organic!', and will continue to develop even more in the coming years," says Nicolas Krabbe Bjerg.

The focus area also includes offering a breakfast concept with a maximum of 10% meat. In addition, it involves a Supplier Code of Conduct, which obliges all suppliers to meet a wide range of sustainability requirements.

Sustainability is more than climate

With the new sustainability strategy, Brøchner Hotels also challenges the notion that sustainable initiatives are entirely about climate.

"For us, it's important that sustainability is not just about the climate, and you will never see us buying CO2 quotas or going into similar initiatives where we buy ourselves into a 'solution'. Our focus on sustainability involves both environmental, social and economic sustainability measures, as reflected in UN's goals. For us, it is central to our work that we include all these aspects in our actions," explains Nickolas Krabbe Bjerg.

As a result, people have an equal focus in the boutique hotel chain's sustainability strategy. In the focus area People, Brøchner Hotels has chosen to reach out to those in need of a helping hand. This has led to a collaboration with a shelter in Copenhagen where surplus products from Brøchner's hotels are donated to vulnerable and homeless citizens. Moreover, they will collect clothes from the local community twice a year at their hotels and following donate the clothes to the city's shelters.

In addition, the boutique hotel is launching Brøchner Alumni, a network for former and existing employees that makes it possible to stay part of the Brøchner community even though you are no longer on the payroll.

"It's important to us that social responsibility is put as high on the agenda as our efforts on climate. It's a common misunderstanding that sustainability is only about climate awareness. We must not forget the people and the local area," says CEO Nicolas Krabbe Bjerg.

All initiatives in the new sustainability strategy will be launched during 2020, but Brøchner Hotels is working with the initiatives continuously towards 2025.    

'Good Morning. It's Organic!' is Brøchner Hotels' breakfast concept where 90-100% of the breakfast is organic.

PR & Communications Manager

Sofie Kragh Ingvorsen

Press@brochner-hotels.dk 

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