Operations
reputation. The house is set on 438 acres of land, including an on-site market garden and an organic farm. The garden is biodynamic, meaning the fruit and veg are grown according to the rhythms of nature, including the cycles of the moon. This results in healthier, tastier food with better yields and soil that regenerates itself over time. “When our current owner, Dr Gerald Chan, purchased the property, he felt a deep responsibility to nurture it and bring it back to life,” says Brooke. “It’s not just a here and now project – it’s something that will continue over the next 100 years – and with that in mind, there needed to be a sustainable business model in place. That includes stewardship of the land and honouring our responsibility to look after it in the right way.”
Most of the produce served in the restaurant has its provenance in the garden or the farm. In other words, guests can be assured it has been sourced responsibly and that food miles have been minimised. They can avoid the sense, so prevalent in today’s world, that what we consume is disconnected from where it came from. “A lot of guests will come to us because they have a genuine appreciation of nature,” says Brooke. “They see the way we are nurturing the natural world around us and harnessing its energy in order to produce our own food. That becomes not a selling point, but a significant feature of the experience.” He adds that guest engagement can happen across multiple touchpoints. They might end up speaking to the market farmer about the principles of biodynamic farming, or watch the florist arrange flowers she picked from the grounds. Or they might spot locally sourced ingredients used in the spa products or the bar.
“The bar team will go foraging in the woods, and they will collect all kinds of ingredients that they use to make homemade cordials and gins,” says Brooke. “These beverages are sold with a real story behind them.”
Connecting to nature
Not every hotel will have the luxury of having its own farm or on-site woodland. However, that does not mean they cannot think carefully about their supply chain, and where their products actually come from. A sense of connectedness to nature can be a huge draw for guests. Likewise with their day-to-day operations. While cutting emissions and reducing waste may not be the most glamorous of a hotel’s activities, they are critical aspects of responsible tourism. They are also firmly on guests’ radar, perhaps more so than any of the flashier features that might be used to capture their attention.
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“Sustainability is the new digital. Either we embrace it and become more competitive, or we don’t and fall behind. There is no in-between,” says Poirson. Brooke adds that while the term sustainability is widely used these days, it needs to be backed up with concrete action. “The key for us [is] in doing things rather than just talking about it,” he says. “Sustainability actually involves a very intense and thorough process, and while a lot of people are talking about it, not many people are actually doing something about it.” ●
Above: Kevin Brooke, general manager of Heckfield Place.
Below: The idyllic pleasure grounds at Heckfield Place are surrounded by biodynamic gardens.
Heckfield Place
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