But chief executive David Harrington admits the road to achieving B Corp certification shone a light on areas where there was still work for the operator to do. “B Corp wasn’t something that needed a lot of persuasion [within the business], even though it has cost money, time and investment,” he tells TTG. “There wasn’t that stretch to get people onside.
“My reason for pushing for B Corp was to have the certification and be transparent with third parties about what we’re doing. It’s important to be part of a number of businesses trying to move things forward on inclusivity, equity and the eco-economy – it’s what we’re all striving to do.”
Harrington reveals he raised B Corp certification as an ambition with HF’s senior team two years ago, and a working party was convened. HF quickly established it could demonstrate solid practice in many of the areas scrutinised by the B Corp process, but one shortfall was how – and the extent to which – the business was monitoring its carbon footprint, at which point it turned to carbon consultancy ecollective for advice.
“They helped us create our pledges, processes and priorities. At our last carbon footprint review, there were at least 100 ideas for how to improve it,” says Harrington, proudly. HF eventually achieved a B Corp score of just under 85, with 80-plus required for certification.
HF has committed to some hefty targets, including a continuous effort to reduce waste from the network of country houses it owns by at least 50%. “There’s quite a drive to improve that, such as by encouraging our customers to recycle a lot of their personal waste,” says Harrington.
Through its work with ecollective, Harrington says HF will prioritise highlighting the carbon footprint of each holiday “to help customers make their own choice of what they wish to do”.
HF already has its transport-free Tread Lightly holiday programme, featuring tours starting and ending at one of its country houses, but Harrington is keen to offer holidays with a reduced footprint in and outside the UK, including rail-based breaks that encourage “more discovery using the train”.
Personal journey
He says customers’ expectations, and the speed with which they hold providers to account, was always a consideration in terms of sustainability issues. “You open yourself up to more forensic interrogation of everything you do.”
Harrington is not scared of this scrutiny though, stressing certifications like B Corp will – in time – highlight best practice that will then filter through to the rest of the industry. The operator has now joined Travel By B Corp to be part of the community to share learnings and communicate with other travel specialists.
“I hope that when we start networking with other B Corps, we’ll all share best practice and help each other on what is an important journey that everyone is going on in the next few years,” he says.
