Since opening in May 2022, Inhabit, Queen’s Gardens, the second Inhabit location in west London, has steadily built on the brand’s deep emphasis on sustainability, monitoring its supply chain, continually improving its environmental footprint, and creating tangible social impact, leading first to Green Key certification in May 2023, and now recognition by B Corp™.
The hotel has been through a rigorous process to assess its operations and business model across the five impact areas, Customers, Community, Environment, Workers and Governance and has received verified scores on its B Impact Assessment.
“This recognition of Inhabit, Queen’s Gardens by B Corp™ reflects our steadfast commitment to sustainable practices and social responsibility. We are committed to continuous improvement of our sustainability strategy, practices, and reporting. Over the last year, we have re-certified our hotels to Green Key standards, improved our environmental data collection methods, expanded our carbon footprint calculations, and continued and created new partnerships with some amazing social enterprises.” comments Vera Bruntink, Sustainability Manager, Inhabit Hotels.
Samantha van Exter, Head of Hotels, Montcalm Collection continues – “Sustainability is a journey, not a destination, and we recognise that we still have a long way to go, but we believe we have created a solid foundation to improve upon even further in the coming years. In achieving this milestone for our brand, we extend an invitation to our guests, partners, and community to embark on a conscious journey with us.”
“We cherish our planet and believe that hospitality should be a force for good. Together let’s nurture a more responsible and meaningful hospitality experience that not only values the comfort of our guests but also cares for the well-being of our planet, ensuring a sustainable legacy for future generations.” adds Nadira Lalji, co-founder, Inhabit Hotels.
Mindfully designed for the modern traveller, everything at Inhabit, Queen’s Gardens has been considered with a genuine commitment to environmental initiatives and meaningful community partnerships, from the ground up. Eco-friendly and upcycled materials abound, in elements such as the terrazzo mantelpiece in the lobby, made by social enterprise Granby Workshop. As a zero waste to landfill hotel, Inhabit, Queen’s Gardens works with Globechain, an award-winning British marketplace that redistributes unwanted items by connecting corporations to charities and families. Through this platform, Inhabit, Queen’s Gardens has diverted 1,891 items thus far from going to landfill, equivalent to 16,371 kg and over 13.8 tonnes of CO2e. This builds on a partnership at Inhabit, Southwick Street, where 273 items equivalent to 4408 kg were diverted in 2018-2019.
Inhabit actively seeks out social enterprises, fellow B Corp™ businesses and small, socially-conscious suppliers with refill systems, those without plastic packaging and those using net-zero transportation. Suite mini bars are stocked by Social Supermarket, whose snacks and drinks are all ethically made by social enterprises. Furniture and furnishings are made by brands including London furniture makers Goldfinger and ethical homewares label Kalinko. In showcasing these products and businesses, Inhabit aims to create positive change by inspiring guests, employees, suppliers, contractors and partners to reconsider their purchasing decisions and processes, for wider impact.
Guests can dine at Yeotown at Inhabit, the plant-centric, meat-free restaurant, and unwind with a variety of yoga and fitness classes, spa treatments, Hyde Park mindfulness walks and workshops in the blissful spa and wellness centre, Inhale at Inhabit, which features Fair Trade and Certified Organic products. To ensure that the indoor air quality at Inhabit is consistently strong, HEPA air filtration systems have been installed in addition to air purifiers by partner IQAir. Still water dispensers sit on each floor, where guests can refill the glass bottles that are available in their rooms. These water stations, as well as doing away with plastic bottles, are supplied by BELU, a social enterprise that invests its profit into saving carbon emissions from entering the atmosphere, championing a circular economy, and in ending water poverty.
A host of workshops and talks led by guest practitioners, makers and authors nurtures personal growth. With the understanding that our outlook fundamentally impacts all areas of life, Inhabit has this year forged a new partnership with contemporary mental health service Self Space to facilitate inspiring talks and workshops that focus on both enhancing and maintaining mental health awareness as well as, ultimately, well-being.
Inhabit Hotels is part of Montcalm Collection. The upcoming opening of Montcalm Marble Arch later this year and Montcalm Brewery in 2025 will further build on the sustainability best practices and partnerships achieved by the Inhabit brand.
The full impact report as well as B Corp™ Impact scores can be found on www.inhabithotels.com.
