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Sustainable luxury: from an Sustainable

practices in
oxymoron to a tautology – luxury
hospitality
the case of the Indian luxury
hospitality industry
Sonia Bharwani Received 29 January 2023
Revised 29 January 2023
VFS Global Academy, Mumbai, India, and Accepted 29 January 2023
David Mathews
Trident Bandra Kurla, Mumbai, India

Abstract
Purpose – In the context of heightened awareness and understanding of responsible tourism, it has become
increasingly imperative for luxury hotels to introspect on the impact of their operations on environmental and
social sustainability. This study aims at examining the prevalence and growth of sustainability practices in the
Indian luxury hotel segment as it increasingly competes on a global platform.
Design/methodology/approach – The research approach adopted in this paper is qualitative and emic.
Primary data is gathered for the study through semi-structured interviews with select luxury hotel general
managers from four hotel chains of Indian origin – ITC Luxury Hotels, Oberoi Hotels and Resorts, Taj Hotels
and Palaces and The Leela – to gain an insight into sustainability initiatives adopted in the Indian hospitality
industry. Secondary research data regarding the eco-friendly, green measures implemented in these hotels is
collected primarily from the websites of the respective hotel chains and supplemented by review of academic
literature, media articles, industry reports and company press releases.
Findings – The findings of the study reveal that Indian luxury hotel brands are increasingly adopting green
products and integrating innovative sustainability practices in their day-to-day operations. However, several of
these initiatives are in the non-customer-facing domains such as the engineering and back-of-the-house
operations. Very few Indian hotel chains are building these sustainability initiatives into their core philosophy
and embedding it in the front-line customer service experience at their properties to reinforce the green image of
the hotels.
Originality/value – The paper also proposes the 6Cs Framework of Sustainability that can be utilised to
categorise the green sustainable practices adopted in responsible hotels in a simplistic manner under six broad
verticals. Practitioners, researchers and educationists in the hospitality industry would find the implications of
this study useful in the context of a post-pandemic world where sustainability is influencing consumer choices
across industries in today’s eco-conscious and enlightened business and marketing environment.
Keywords Hospitality, Sustainability, Luxury, Conscious consumerism, 6Cs sustainability framework
Paper type Research paper

Introduction
Times are changing, as is consumer decision-making. As the proportion of millennial and Gen
Z cohorts rise within the consumer base, conversations around sustainability and conscious
consumption are increasing in frequency and decibel levels. Bestowed with the sobriquet of
“Generation Green”, millennials and Gen Z are increasingly exhibiting pro-ecological and
pro-social consumer behaviour (Choudhary, 2020).
Together, millennials and Gen Z make up 54% of the world’s population with Gen Z
outnumbering the millennials in 2021 (Credit Suisse, 2022). These generational cohorts are on
the cusp of their peak spending years (Bona et al., 2020) and it is estimated that their share in
global consumer spending will increase from 48% in 2020 to 69% by 2040 (Credit Suisse,
2022). They feel more aligned with authentic, purpose-driven, transparent brands (Jain, 2019) Worldwide Hospitality and
Tourism Themes
and one of the key factors impacting their brand loyalty is their perception of an © Emerald Publishing Limited
1755-4217
organisation’s positive or negative impact on society (Deloitte, 2019). Further, within the DOI 10.1108/WHATT-01-2023-0013
WHATT luxury goods market, the millennials and Gen Z have become demographically dominant in
2021 accounting for 30% of the new customers since 2019 (D’Arpizio and Levato, 2022) and
going forward these younger generational cohorts are expected to account for 70% of global
luxury purchases (Bain & Co, 2021). Thus, Generation Green is an extremely valuable target
segment for discretionary spend-driven industries such as luxury travel and tourism.
Elkington (1994, 2004) first tabled the concept of Triple Bottom Line (TBL) in the
mid-1990s in an endeavour to go beyond the traditional accounting-based business system of
performance evaluation which focused only on the financial bottom line. The intention of the
TBL approach was to create a sustainability framework that measures the performance of an
organisation based on the trifecta of an organisation’s social, environmental and economic
impact, i.e. in terms of people, planet and profit. Thus, TBL is a conceptual framework that
allows companies to analyse their current performance and strategise their future business
through the lens of sustainability, thereby addressing the needs of the Generation Green
consumer. However, over the years, the connotation of the term profit has been criticised,
including by Elkington himself, as a rather narrow epithet defined in terms of financial gain –
the excess of the selling price of goods over their cost (Elkington, 2018). Profit has now come
to be replaced by the term prosperity which embraces a wider canvas of economic benefits
encompassing the concept of holistic economic well-being which allies better with Elkington’s
originally intended goals of the concept of TBL’s holistic impact on a broader swathe of
society (Kraaijenbrink, 2019).
With new-age consumers demonstrating an increased predilection for sustainable
practices and green products, the concepts of “Green Hotels” and “Responsible Luxury” are
gaining prominence. However, the term “Sustainable Luxury” has often been labelled an
oxymoron due to the incongruous and contradictory definitions of each of these words. The
Merriam-Webster Dictionary (n.d.) defines luxury as “a condition of abundance or great ease
and comfort: sumptuous environment” while sustainability refers to the judicious use of
natural resources so that the resource is not depleted and the environment is not permanently
damaged (Oxford Dictionary, n.d.). Authentic luxury is characterised by exceptional quality,
heritage, craftsmanship, unique aesthetics, hedonism and exclusivity (Kapferer and Michaut,
2014). Sustainability, on the other hand, is about altruism, austerity, pro-ecological behaviour
and social equity (P
erez Ibarra et al., 2020). From the consumption perspective, “luxury”
connotes superfluously conspicuous consumption by the niche elite while “sustainability” is
about socially conscious consumption which preserves resources. Thus, it has been perceived
by many that there is an inherent conflict between luxury and sustainability.
Luxury hotels are perceived to have a negative impact on the environment due to
excessive and superfluous consumption of non-recyclable goods, water and energy resources
and at the same time contribute to environmental pollution through greenhouse gas
emissions and production of large amounts of waste (Han et al., 2011; Robin et al., 2017). This
negative perception has compelled hotels to revisit their operations models and demonstrate
responsible behaviour by adopting ecologically sound practices related to energy and waste
management (Manaktola and Jauhari, 2007). With the fundamental realignment of business
processes and the tectonic shifts in global economic flows that the recent COVID-19 pandemic
has wrought, the practical and yet fundamentally well-intentioned direction that TBL
espouses seems even more relevant as organisations and economies seek to chart a new path
in a post-pandemic world where sustainability is influencing consumer choices across
industries in today’s eco-conscious and enlightened business and marketing environment.
The global luxury hospitality market was valued at V206bn in 2019 and had the third
largest market share in the global luxury goods industry (Bain & Co, 2019). The pandemic
disproportionately impacted the luxury hospitality experiences industry which fell by
between 55-65% to V85bn in 2020 and was expected to be the last to recover due to its
dependence on tourist flows (D’Arpizio et al., 2021; Bain & Co, 2020). However, while the
recovery was slow in 2021 due to continued restrictions on international travel, the luxury Sustainable
hospitality business has bounced back to V191bn and is expected to surpass pre-pandemic practices in
levels by the end of 2022 (Bain & Co, 2022).
While the pandemic severely impacted the hospitality sector and intrinsically altered its
luxury
DNA (Rivera, 2020), in every crisis, there is also an opportunity. COVID-19 has proven to be a hospitality
catalyst in the industry’s quest for business innovation as well as integration of new
technologies (Bharwani and Mathews, 2021; WTTC, 2021). The lockdowns and the resultant
reductions in the occupancy levels compelled hotels to prune back operational costs through
efficient use of resources and judicious control of energy and water costs. The guest
experience journey was also redesigned and restructured often to integrate contactless
technology at various tactile touch points to address the hygiene and safety concerns
(Bharwani and Mathews, 2021). With the closure of national borders, global supply chains
were disrupted, forcing hotels to adopt a localised procurement ethos resulting in better
opportunities for local social development and reduced emissions from transportation due to
shorter delivery distances.
A review of recent literature reveals that several researchers have emphasised the
importance of embracing sustainability practices in hospitality organisations to “reduce
costs, improve their image and prestige, increase customer satisfaction and improve
occupancy rates” (Elkhwesky et al., 2022, p. 1427; Calisto et al., 2021; Pereira et al., 2021).
In view of the increasing importance of sustainability as a key purchasing factor for
Generation Green, it is pertinent for hospitality organisations to explore ways in which the
already implemented initiatives can have their “outward-oriented” benefit facets highlighted
and communicated to the guest. Thus, for long-term prosperity, these sustainability
initiatives and their allied extensions and corollaries need to be viewed through the prism of
their becoming growth drivers for top-line revenue and market share acquisition in luxury
hotels.

Objectives of the study

This research aims at examining the prevalence and growth of sustainability practices in the
Indian luxury hospitality segment by studying how Indian luxury hotel chains have
embraced the “Green Hotel” concept and understanding economic, environmental and social
impact of the initiatives adopted. It further seeks to investigate the visibility of these practices
as part of the customer experience and perceptions from the viewpoint of general managers of
these hotels.
Most of the globally recognised sustainability criteria lists have been developed by the
industry for the industry to serve as road maps for a progressive sustainability journey for
hospitality and tourism organisations. “Consumers often face a proliferation of competing
sustainability standards” (Claar et al., 2021). Hence, there is a need for an easy-to-understand
analytical framework that allows customers, shareholders or society at large, to both
understand and compare the sustainability practices adopted in hotels. Thus, this research
also aims at proposing a simple strategic framework – named the 6Cs Framework of
Sustainability. This framework can be utilised to categorise the green sustainable practices
adopted in responsible hotels in a simplistic manner under six broad verticals.

Research methodology
The research approach adopted in this paper is qualitative and emic. The preliminary step
involved identifying a basket of Indian hotel chains operating in India that could be
considered for capturing data on eco-friendly and green practices because of their
commitment to sustainability. These included four luxury hotel chains of Indian origin–ITC
WHATT Luxury Hotels, Oberoi Hotels and Resorts, The Leela and Indian Hotels Company Limited
(IHCL) which operates Taj Hotels and Palaces
Primary data was gathered for the study through qualitative, semi-structured interviews
with select luxury hotel general managers from these chains to gain an insight into
sustainability initiatives adopted in the Indian hospitality industry. Secondary research data
regarding the eco-friendly, green measures implemented in these hotels was collected
primarily from the websites of the respective hotel chains and supplemented by review of
academic literature, media articles, industry reports and company press releases. The
sustainability initiatives adopted by each hotel chain were then categorised under verticals of
the proposed 6Cs Framework. This allowed for ease of understanding and comparison of the
sustainability commitment of the four hotel chains studied.

Conceptual model – the 6Cs framework of sustainability

Today, there exists a plethora of sustainability certifications, ratings, standards and criteria
for evaluating and endorsing the commitment of hospitality organisations to responsible
tourism. The base metrics for evaluation vary and are often either prescriptive and detailed or
anecdotally evaluative of existing practices. While very detailed, the focus of these
certifications and guidelines is more to assist organisations manage and achieve these goals,
than for ease of end-consumer comprehension of evidenced contribution. For example, the
Global Sustainable Tourism Council® (GSTC) is an independent organisation that has put
forth global standards for sustainability in tourism. The GSTC Industry Criteria (Global
Sustainability Tourism Council, 2016) serves as a basic guideline for hospitality and tourism
businesses globally to become more sustainable. The criteria are divided under four main
verticals: Sustainability planning and management, Socio-economic impact, Cultural impact
and Environmental impact (Global Sustainability Tourism Council, 2016). World Travel and
Tourism Council (2022) has also recently introduced “Hotel Sustainability Basics”, at its
Global Summit in April 2022, with the aim of raising the base level of sustainability across the
hospitality industry over the next three years. A baseline of 12 positive actions is prescribed
for hotels as a minimum to drive responsible tourism and to embark on the pathway to net-
zero environmental impact as they progress along their hospitality sustainability journey.
The 12 criteria are grouped into three broad areas of Efficiency, People and Planet (World
Travel and Tourism Council, 2022) which align with Elkington’s (2018) TBL.
The 11th Sustainability Roundtable conducted by the Centre of Hospitality Research at
Cornell University discussed sustainability as a revenue driver in addition to being a cost
saver and a “responsible organisation” moniker (Claar et al., 2021). Some key observations of
the Roundtable were the need for a guest to have increased assistance and transparency at the
time of their search and booking decision crossroads with regard to the sustainability of their
accommodation choices. The overarching pre-eminence accorded to sustainability and its
allied practices as a pivotal influencer in the accommodation selection decisions (IHG, 2021)
makes a compelling commercial case for any business to share their achievements on this
front with their customers or guests in a manner that is both instantaneously comprehensible
by the end customer and is open to easy cross-comparison of alternative options.
While the TBL framework espoused by WTTC’s Hotel Sustainability Basics (2022) and
the GSTC Industry Criteria (2016) are fairly detailed and prescriptive road maps for
organisations, a simpler and more colloquial set of evaluation criteria is needed. This will help
hospitality organisations’ leadership to clearly communicate their commitments and relative
levels of increasing contribution to the “sustainability quotient” to their target customer
audiences in a manner that could actively influence buying decisions.
The authors propose the 6Cs Framework of Sustainability as a conceptual model which
categorises the green sustainable practices and initiatives adopted in pro-environmental
hotels under six verticals – Conservation, Circularity, Carbon Clean, Commerce, Sustainable
Culture and Community. The aim is to present the organisation’s strategic leaders and its practices in
consumers with a framework of distinct yet interrelated verticals – all of which contribute
meaningfully to sustainability. What differentiates them is the area of the organisation’s
luxury
remit they impact, and the ambit of incidence their outcomes influence – the employee, local hospitality
community, shareholder, environment, economy, trade flows, etc. The model is
diagrammatically presented in Figure 1.
Conservation refers to the planned management and deployment of natural resources
to prevent their exploitation, destruction or neglect. In the context of green practices adopted,
this would include sustainable construction, and water and energy conservation measures
deployed within the hotel, both in customer-facing operations and at the backend. In addition,
contribution of the hotel in protecting and conserving its surrounding environment including
wildlife habitat and forest cover would also fall within this vertical.
Circularity describes processes which are designed to allow biological or technical
recycling, reuse or repurposing of products and resources in a hotel. This vertical includes
waste and garbage management, rainwater and greywater harvesting, Sewage Treatment
Plant (STP) management, plastic downcycling and recycling and so on.
Carbon Clean refers to initiatives to reduce the hotel’s carbon footprint, i.e. the total
amount of greenhouse gas emissions. Green activities and sustainable processes deployed by
the hotel for its operations with minimal or zero carbon footprint, as well as the use of carbon
clean resources and eco-friendly end-of-life disposal of materials used in the hotel, are
included under this head.
Commerce includes all activities that help in greening the supply chain by creating a
cascade of sustainable, local and ethical sourcing practices and using fair-trade suppliers.
This category also includes optimal inventory management, low supplier carbon footprint,
use of eco-friendly logistics networks and last-mile connectivity.
Culture includes sustainability efforts to protect, safeguard and nurture the local culture
and natural heritage of the ecosystem around the hotel by implementing and supporting
culture conservation programmes, maintaining local monuments and heritage sites and
showcasing and encouraging regional traditions and folk arts and crafts.
Community refers to initiatives that foster social inclusion and promote welfare,
upliftment and harmony of the community around the hotel by implementing local
recruiting, skills training and youth apprenticeship programmes and partnering with
regional NGOs to provide healthcare, education and food resources to the surrounding
community.

Figure 1.
The 6Cs framework of
sustainability
WHATT Findings of the study
Data regarding the sustainability-related initiatives deployed by the top four Indian luxury
hotel chains – ITC Luxury Hotels, Oberoi Hotels and Resorts, Taj Hotels and Palaces (IHCL)
and The Leela – was collated by visiting their websites, analysing their corporate
sustainability reports and from media articles and corporate press releases regarding the
sustainability measures adopted by them. Of the four hotel chains the Taj Hotels and Palaces
and the ITC Luxury Hotels belong to larger conglomerates. Thus, both ITC Hotels and IHCL
publish annual sustainability reports to share their sustainability and CSR initiatives with
their stakeholders (IHCL, 2020; ITC, 2020). The data collected from secondary sources was
then corroborated through semi-structured interviews with general managers from each of
the four hotel chains.
The ITC Luxury Hotels belongs to the ITC Group which is a large conglomerate and
has its presence across several diversified industries including FMCG, hotels, agri-
business, tobacco, etc. The ITC Group’s sustainibility-centric TBL approach is aligned
with its commitment towards the UN’s Sustainable Developmemt Goals (SDGs)
(Fernandes, 2021; ITC, 2021). It’s hotel division mirrors the approach adopted by the
parent group. More than a decade ago, ITC pioneered the concept of Responsible Luxury
in the Indian hospitality sector by adopting a strategic business model to deliver the best-
in-class luxury experiences while simultaneously creating a positive environmental and
social impact (WBCSD, 2019). All 14 ITC Luxury Collection Hotels are certified with a
Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design (LEED) Platinum rating for globally
recognised planet positive endeavours with ITC Windsor, Bangalore being the first hotel
in the world to receive a LEED Zero Carbon certification in April 2021 (Outlook
Traveller, 2021).
The IHCL is the umbrella hospitality company which manages the Taj Hotels and Palace
and is part of the iconic Tata Group. Its rich heritage has resulted in corporate social
responsibility, sustainability and community service being ingrained in the DNA of the
company. The luxury chain champions’ capacity-building through several skilling and
reskilling programmes leverages their business value chains to support local arts and
crafts, and works persistently towards energy, water and environmental conservation
(IHCL, 2021). 78 IHCL hotels have received sustainability certification from EarthCheck, the
world’s leading scientific benchmarking, certification and business advisory group for the
tourism and travel industry with 47 hotels boasting of a platinum certification (IHCL, 2021).
Globally, IHCL has the highest number of platinum- and gold-certified hotels (EarthCheck,
2020; Chakraborty, 2021).
Sustainability is at the core of the ethos at Oberoi Hotels and Resorts. The premier
hotel group has been consistently engaged in endeavours to be ecologically responsible
and socially conscious through various sustainability-related initiatives which help
bolster its energy and water conservation efforts and reduce the group’s overall carbon
footprint (Oberoi Hotels, 2021). IHG, 2021, The Oberoi Group signed a Memorandum of
Understanding with Energy Efficiency Services Limited (EESL), a joint venture of four
Public Sector Undertakings (PSUs) under the Ministry of Power for creating clean
energy systems through its Building Energy Efficiency Programme (BEEP)
(Haider, 2021).
From its inception, The Leela Hotels, Palaces and Resorts has adopted green construction
standards and an ecologically conscious stance towards the surrounding environment of its
hotels, thereby earning the prestigious Platinum LEED certification from the US Green
Building Council for its hotels in New Delhi and Chennai (Facts, 2012). Through its various
green initiatives, this luxury hotel chain has also contributed to energy conservation to tackle
climate change and supported SDGs by collaborating with NGOs to positively impact the
community (The Leela, 2021).
Data analysis Sustainable
In an attempt to offer an easily comparable analysis of the sustainability initiatives at the four practices in
hotel chains, the findings regarding the sustainability initiatives of each hotel company were
detailed, categorised and tabulated under each of the verticals of the 6Cs Framework of
luxury
Sustainability discussed earlier. This detailed categorised data is included in Appendix 1. hospitality
To further facilitate a meaningful comparative evaluation of the overall span and
perceived impact of these categorised initiatives, a comparative rating table was created. The
simple range used for each dimension was one tick for the first one or two initiatives, a second
tick for three to four initiatives and a third tick indicating the existence of five or more
declared initiatives by a hotel company in the concerned dimension. Figure 2 uses this rating
scale to summarise the data from Appendix 1.
The analysis of the data reveals that all the four Indian luxury hotel chains studied are
increasingly adopting green products and integrating sustainability practices in their day-to-
day operations. ITC Hotels ranks the highest in terms of the number of diverse green
practices adopted followed very closely by the IHCL-Taj Hotels and Palaces. ITC Hotels has
the maximum of three ticks for Community vertical even though it individually drives only a
few initiatives listed under this head, as the ITC conglomerate as a whole participates in
community development and welfare programmes rather than just ITC Hotels.
During the course of the semi-structured interviews with general managers, queries were
directed to ascertain the level of emphasis in each of the hotel chains on communicating the
sustainability initiatives to their customers and also determining the green practices which
were customer-facing or customer-involving. ITC Luxury Hotels were the most evolved in
engaging with their guests on sustainability and overtly communicating their “green”
orientation and initiatives. Firstly, the ITC Luxury Hotels’ logo itself has Responsible Luxury
as a tag line. Further, the company clearly communicates its commitment to sustainability
and green practices throughout its hotel website and also publishes an annual sustainability
report. The luxury chain has elevated their “green” image further by actively engaging with
their guests during their hotel stay by showcasing their sustainability initiatives onsite. ITC
hotels have a clearly defined strategy to specifically publicise and actively involve their
customers in their sustainability activities.
The hotels have employees designated as Responsible Luxury Associates (RLAs)
engaging with guests by offering them several on-property interaction opportunities such as
Eco-Tours of the hotel property which provide an evidential interface between the back-of-
the-house sustainability processes and guests’ interests. Guest visits to the S
unyaAqua

Figure 2.
Comparative rating
table of sustainability
initiatives
WHATT showcase the in-house, zero-carbon footprint water bottling plant within ITC hotels which
uses international filtration technology and recyclable glass bottle packaging. Guests are also
offered sustainability-related green experiences within the local ecosystem which drive
community and cultural engagement. An additional initiative with heightens guest
engagement on the sustainability front is the chain’s loyalty programme Club ITC.
Members earn “green points” for their spends and as part of the “Green at Heart” initiative
can donate their accumulated points to Mission Sunhera Kal, a community development
initiative by ITC for bettering rural communities by securing their livelihoods.
IHCL-Taj Hotels and Palaces, too, has numerous initiatives under each of the six
verticals. As a part of the Tata conglomerate, it has a number of corporate-mandated
environmental best practices and local community skill development initiatives (Taj Tata
Strive) and local craft support initiatives. IHCL’s commitment to sustainability is evident
with the launch of Paathya in March 2022 (IHCL, 2022). Paathya which means “path” in
Sanskrit is an umbrella brand for the sustainability initiatives at IHCL and is expected to
play a catalytic role in driving its social impact projects. IHCL contributes strongly in the
Community domain through several projects related to capacity-building by strategic
reskilling and livelihood creation using the inclusive tourism model. IHCL also leads in the
Culture domain with several projects aimed at preserving the local heritage and culture
around the different Taj hotels. Local culture, especially in their resort destinations, is also
presented and shared with guests through curated interactions. The focus is
responsibility as an organisation and mainly cultural immersion experiences for their
guests.
While Oberoi Hotels and Resorts is next with a strong focus on Carbon Clean and
Circularity initiatives, it has limited initiatives under the Commerce vertical. Several of the
sustainability initiatives at the Oberoi Group are in the non-customer-facing domains such as
the engineering and back-of-the-house operations, being constructed around the twin
imperatives of sustainability and cost rationalisation. Key examples include 100% renewable
power for some properties, multi-stream recycling and local cultivation among others.
However, there was minimal structuring of these initiatives as guest interface experiences.
Their community support initiatives such as using low carbon footprint local materials and
traditional crafts in the construction and interior decoration of their resorts and hotels and
support of the local craft schools tend to be done more in the form of a quiet responsible
partnership rather than a trumpeted achievement for guest consumption.
The Leela Hotels, Palaces and Resorts has several initiatives in the domain of Circularity.
It also engages in several community development initiatives and therefore contributes
extensively under the Community vertical. The group has focused on obtaining a fair number
of certifications and tends to display them fairly overtly. However, from a perusal of guest
comments on public platforms pertaining to this aspect of their offering, there seemed to be
room for them to create meaningful customer-level discernible links of the real-time processes
that led to the certifications.
An important fact came to the fore in the semi-structured interviews with all four hotel
companies. All their unit leadership were both cognizant of the importance of sustainability
initiatives and committed to implementing them. However, what emerged was a clear
divergence in the strategies adopted for creating customer awareness and involvement in
these activities.

Managerial implications
The findings of the study reveal that Indian luxury hotel brands are increasingly adopting
green products and integrating innovative sustainability practices in their day-to-day
operations. However, several of these initiatives are in the non-customer-facing domains such
as the engineering and back-of-the-house operations. Thus, while the customer may be aware Sustainable
of the eco-friendly practices of the hotels at a corporate level, only limited hotel chains are practices in
building these sustainability initiatives into the front-line customer service experience at their
properties to reinforce the green image of the hotels. Sustainability can, in fact, complement
luxury
luxury with initiatives such as organic farm-to-fork food sourcing, procuring eco-friendly hospitality
guest amenities and employing local artisans for hotel d
ecor and guest giveaways thus
creating employment in local communities. Luxury is increasingly based on provenance and
storytelling (Donze and Wubs, 2019) like where things come from, who made them and how
they were created, and sustainability often supports this.
Millennials and Gen Z, who will form a large proportion of the target market for luxury
hotels in the near future (Credit Suisse, 2022), value brand experience more than the actual
product or service as they are experientially driven (Deloitte, 2019). They feel more aligned
with authentic, purpose-driven, transparent brands (Jain, 2019). They also rated climate
change and protection of the environment as their primary concern in the pre-pandemic
survey with this concern only increasing in the post-pandemic world (Deloitte, 2020). Further,
one of the key factors impacting their brand loyalty is their perception of an organisation’s
positive or negative impact on society (Deloitte, 2019). While a global study by IHCL (2022)
revealed that 82% of travellers stated that they were more inclined to choose a hotel brand
that operates responsibly, this percentage was higher at 88% for Indian travellers who
showed a proclivity for sustainable accommodation (Booking.com, 2022).
All these factors, accentuated by The Global Sustainability Study (2021) findings that
42% of millennials and 39% of Gen Z are willing to spend more on a product if it comes from a
sustainable brand (Simon-Kucher and Partners, 2021), make a strong case for ecologically
and socially responsible luxury hotels with a sustainability focus.
Sustainable practices which are explicitly communicated and built into the customer
service experiences at luxury hotels can serve as a useful tool for reverse marketing. Reverse
marketing builds a brand’s reputation and image in the eyes of the consumer, motivating
them to seek out a brand or a product or a service of their own accord rather than being
persuaded through paid marketing communications (Leenders and Blenkhorn, 1988).
Further, with the increasing predilection for sustainability, luxury hotel chains can look at
launching sub-brands catering to the target segment of the millennials and Gen Z – the
Generation Green – with a focus on including sustainability elements in the customer
experience.
Luxury hotels which reinforce their adoption of innovative green practices by overtly
sharing this information with their guests through experiential initiatives such as eco-tours
of the property or through customer participation or engagement in sustainable activities
have the opportunity to use the sustainability card as a source of competitive advantage
and create an eco-friendly, responsible image in the minds of their customers. This would
facilitate a shift in the perception of the luxury hospitality industry from a resource guzzler
with a heavy carbon footprint encouraging ostentation and superfluous consumption, to a
pro-ecological and pro-social industry driving conscious consumerism by prioritising
environmental sustainability and putting people ahead of profits. In doing so, the luxury
hotel industry would do itself an immeasurable service by helping move the needle of
consumer perception of the term “sustainable luxury” quite definitively from being
regarded as an oxymoron in the direction of being considered a self-evident and undeniable
tautology.

Limitations and future research directions

The main limitation of the study lies in its limited sample size focused only on four of the top
hotel chains operating in India in the narrow segment of luxury hospitality. Future studies
WHATT can be carried out to apply the proposed 6Cs Framework of Sustainability for analysing the
relative positive impact a sustainability measure under each head has on increasing customer
satisfaction. Quantitative research could also be carried out with a larger sample of
respondents from the Generation Green cohort in the context of Sustainable Luxury Hotels to
further understand their buying behaviour in the context of conscious consumerism.

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Corresponding author
Sonia Bharwani can be contacted at: sbharwaniphd@gmail.com
Dimension Oberoi
Conservation Through diverse projects for turtle
conservation and coral reef restoration, hotel
guests are given the opportunity to participate
in preserving the natural beauty of the
locations they visit
Water Conservation infrared sensors on taps
and urinals, low water consumption cisterns,
Area-wise metering, state-of-the-art machines
in the hotels’ laundries and kitchens
Individual lighting and temperature control
and electronic dimmers in guest rooms
Vapour Absorption Chillers to prevent ozone
depletion
Table A1.
initiatives categorised
Sustainability
by 6Cs dimensions
Leela
Safeguards biodiversity by maintaining and
conserving flora and fauna in and around the
hotels
Supports the United Nations Environment
Programme’s (UNEP) Billion Tree Campaign
by earmarking 30% of hotel grounds as
“green haven” where it is populated with rare
trees and foliage
ITC
ITC Kohenur Hyderabad is constructed at a
specific alignment to optimise its interaction with
the sun. This maintains the correct balance of
sunshine and shade during different times of the
day, enabling effective cooling
ITC Gardenia, Bangalore’s Lotus Pavilion, has
sloping roofs covered with a lawn of fresh green
grass aptly referred to as a “Living Room with a
Living Roof”
Energy conservation through a system that
optimises heating, ventilation and air
conditioning (HVAC) when the guest is out of
the room
ITC Rajputana has 50% of its area with outdoor
view which ensures maximum daylight use
ITC Grand Bharat has energy-efficient building
envelope design to reduce solar gains
Clean Air initiative for maintenance of indoor air
quality at PM 2.5 level better than WHO safe
standard limits
Taj
Works with forest officials, local authorities
and communities to ensure wildlife habitat
conservation in various areas such as Coorg, Appendix
Andamans, Jaipur, etc.
Partnered with IFC to put in place energy-
efficient installations such as LED lighting,
Variable Frequency Drives (VFDs)on motors,
insulation of hot water lines and upgrading
the infrastructure of cooling towers to
contribute to energy conservation and
efficiency
Each hotel is given customised annual targets
for reducing specific water consumption,
energy consumption and emissions. These
targets range between 2 and 7% improvement
in efficiency
Installation of aerators, upgradation of STP
and use of STP recycled water in cooling
tower, and operating the chillers under
optimal condition has helped in water
conservation
(continued )
luxury
practices in
hospitality
Sustainable
 Table A1.
Dimension Oberoi
Circularity Rainwater Harvesting Systems (RHS)
Treated effluent water from the STPs used for
irrigating gardens and for cooling towers
Treated waste from STPs used as natural
fertilisers for gardens and lawns
Waste segregation – Wet garbage is
refrigerated to delay spoilage and sent to
piggeries, while dry garbage such as
aluminium, paper and plastic are segregated
and sold for recycling
Cogeneration system recovers heat from the
exhaust gases of the generators and uses it to
generate steam, which in turn provides hot
water and air conditioning
Recyclable cloth bags for newspapers and
laundry
Printed stationery is reused as notepads,
facsimile printouts and posters for internal use
Business kits and greeting cards are made of
recycled paper
Leela
RHS to recharge site aquifer through recharge
pits
Recycles wastewater for gardening
Installed an organic waste composter which
converts the organic waste to manure for
gardening
Wet waste sent to piggeries
Used engine oil is used for lubricating the
wheels of hand carts and trolleys
Plastic bottles recycled into T-shirts for
associates, laundry bags, aprons for kitchen
and bathroom slippers
ITC
ITC Hotels engage in rainwater harvesting
100% of wastewater is either treated or recycled
for flushing, cooling tower and landscaping
In-house organic waste convertor machine
converts food waste into manure for gardening
Over 99% of solid waste is either reused or
recycled
WHATT
Taj
Protects onsite groundwater sources through
rainwater harvesting and recharge
Recycles STP water in cooling towers
Has set up biogas plant in some hotels to
optimise the utilisation of wet waste and other
organic materials by converting biomasses
into energy and valuable bio-fertilisers
Taj Andaman has a waste disposal system to
convert wet waste to gas and compost
Makes biodiesel from waste cooking oil
Private mini-bar items like nuts have glass
packaging, which are reused
(continued )
Dimension Oberoi
Carbon Clean Building Energy Efficiency Programme
(BEEP) for clean energy systems
100% electricity for Gurgaon hotels generated
by solar power plants equipped with
Polycrystalline technology
No single-use plastic used in hotels
Bathroom amenities provided to guests are
made of natural, botanical extracts and Indian
herbs
Setting up in-house glass water bottling plant
in some hotels
Biodegradable cleaning agents and washing
detergents
Halon-free fire extinguishers
Energy-efficient and low emissions Trane
CenTraVac chillers in air-conditioning
systems
Table A1.
Leela
Established windmills in Karnataka as an
alternative power source
Transitioning to LED lighting and installing
solar power panels
Radiation Harmonisation is a patented
specialised technology proven to have the
capability to nullify the harmful effects of
both geopathic radiations and man-made
radiations
Some herbs, spices, vegetables and fruits are
grown in-house
ITC
More than 60% of total electrical energy demand is
met through renewable energy sources, i.e. wind
and solar
ITC Grand Chola meets 100% of its electrical
energy demand through self-owned wind farms
Discontinued single-use plastic – replacing plastic
with wooden cocktail stirrers, bamboo
toothbrushes, glass bottles, bamboo combs and
wooden cutlery
The Spa Room dividers are created with the trunks
of bamboo trees, while the walls are covered with
sustainable fabrics made of jute, hemp and linen
S

unyaAqua is zero carbon footprint water bottled
within each hotel using international filtration
technology and packaged in recyclable glass
bottles
ITC Grand Bharat encourages guests to explore
the retreat environs using a Segway – a battery-
powered, self-balancing, electric vehicle which can
be used as a personal transport device. ITC Goa
offers cycles to explore the environs
Special breakfast creations that make the meal
healthy and wholesome while the process protects
the planet
Taj
24% of IHCL’s energy is procured from
renewable energy sources, wind and solar,
reducing carbon footprint by 18%. Taj Lands’
End and Taj Wellington Mews get
approximately 60% energy from green source
Zero Single-Use Plastic initiative is being
implemented across several hotels banning
plastic straws and plastic disposable cutlery
and replacing them with paper/papaya stem
straws and wooden disposable cutlery
Shift to biodegradable toothbrushes and
earplugs, jute bags, cotton laundry bags,
bamboo chopsticks and non-plastic
packaging for tea and coffee amenities
In-house glass bottling units set up in seven
hotels to eliminate plastic bottle consumption
on property
All plastic wrappers for in-room dry amenities
in Taj hotels across the country have been
replaced with oxo-biodegradable wrapping
and refillable ceramic dispensers are used to
avoid using plastic packaging materials for
liquid soaps and shampoos
(continued )
luxury
practices in
hospitality
Sustainable
 Table A1.
Dimension Oberoi
Commerce Responsible purchasing methods to include
sourcing locally produced goods and using
suppliers that maintain ethical practices
Lower carbon footprint through consolidated
shipments reduced stock inventories and
optimised logistics by serving the hotel needs
through regional hubs
Leela
Commitment to responsible practices in
procurement activity by working towards
greening of supply chains
ITC
More than 30% of edible ingredients are procured
locally, approximately 50% of stationery is either
locally sourced or is FSC® certified and 20% of
materials used in new hotels are sourced from the
region
Through the Choose Wisely programme, under the
guidance of WWF-India and Central Marine
Fisheries Research Institute, all domestic species
that are endangered have been entirely omitted
from the menu
A guest in ITC restaurant can choose seafood
options from the menu that are ranked using a
sustainability traffic light system
Greening the Supply Chain – ITC has prepared a
handbook to help small and medium enterprises to
adopt cleaner and greener production practices
More than 65% of ongoing consumables used at
ITC Mughal are either local or recycled. Low
Volatile Organic Compounds paints and Forest
Stewardship Council certified wood are used for
refurbishments and renovations
WHATT
Taj
Currently, four products – Tulsi welcome
maalas, tea light candles, chef aprons and Jiva
Spa merchandise carry bags are being co-
developed with enterprises supporting
differently abled young adults and tribal
women
Implements a unified warehousing and
distribution management system to improve
supply chain efficiency
Lower carbon footprint through consolidated
shipments reduced stock inventories and
optimised logistics by serving the hotel needs
through regional hubs
IHCL also offers opportunities to micro-
enterprises and for-impact organisations to
supply products to its hotels and restaurants –
as a part of its supplier diversity and inclusion
initiatives
(continued )
Dimension Oberoi
Culture Encourages guests to visit the unique Mewar
School of Art which is renowned for its
tradition of miniature painting
The Oberoi Vilas properties in Rajasthan
support the traditional artisans by creating
engaging guest experiences to participate in
art and craft workshops showcasing Thekri
glass inlay work, Lac (resin) bangles, block
printing with fruit and vegetable dyes, etc.
Artistes from the local music gharanas are
invited to showcase their talent as part of the
cultural interactions and entertainment
The Oberoi Vanyavilas supports unique local
talent like soot artists who use sustainable
material like charcoal to create soot paintings
of Ranthambhore’s tigers
Table A1.
Leela
Encourages guest visits to tourists places
such as Surajkund Mela which showcase the
talent of local Indian craftsmen and
traditional artists
ITC
Local Love is a selection of indigenous flavours
from a locale or region, compiled by the hotels’
“Food Sherpas” (Chefs)
ITC Goa offers cultural experiences such as a live
session on local Poi bread making at the quaint
village of Betalbatim, a visit to the famed fish
market at Margao as well as a sailing and crab
catching trip on river Sal
ITC Hotels offers quality entertainment and
theatrical experiences through WelcomTheatre
which showcases the best of Indian theatre
productions, especially at the experimental stage
ITC Goa conducts mixology workshops for guests
using local spirits and spices to craft Feni- and
Kokum-infused cocktails. It also offers guests the
opportunity to experience a typical Goan Hindu
meal served in mud pits and banana leaves
ITC Hotels is dedicated to the cause of nurturing
art in India through its WelcomArt forum and by
employing local artisans
Taj
IHCL’s Coorg Culture Conservatory
programme along with leading Coorgis and
historians documents the culture and heritage
of the region
Taj Bengal, Kolkata and Vivanta Guwahati
have been involved in promoting the culinary
heritage of native tribes from different parts of
the country in association with Samvaad – an
annual platform for native communities
Partnered with the National Railway Museum
in Delhi to beautify their mural walls enabled
better landscaping, regular cleanliness and
maintenance of the museum
Involved in creating audiovisual and digital
experiences and improving the quality and
skills of museum guides and tourism
personnel in association with Sahapedia – an
open online resource of Indian heritage
Taj Mumbai has helped with traffic
management, restoration of heritage lamp
posts and upkeep of the Gateway of India
(continued )
luxury
practices in
hospitality
Sustainable
 Table A1.
Dimension Oberoi
Community Soaps are recycled and given to charity
The Oberoi Group through its Project
Saksham has partnered with SOS Children’s
Village India to provide family-based care for
parentless, homeless or abandoned children
and higher education to underprivileged youth
During the pandemic, the Oberoi Hotels
distributed healthy packed meals every day
across cities to various government agency
staff, local NGOs like Shanti Avedna Sadan
and Missionaries of Charity, and local
healthcare workers
Dhonk is an organisation that provides craft
training and employment opportunities to ex-
poachers’ families, tribal communities and
villagers living around Ranthambhore
National Park
The Oberoi Vanyavilas supports the venture
by displaying its products at the hotel every
Tuesday, Thursday and Sunday
Partner with NGOs like Mann and Pallavanjali
to offer inclusive on-the-job skills training
opportunities for young people with learning
disabilities
Leela
Soap for Hope – Used soap from hotel guest
amenities recycled by Diversy and distributed
in underprivileged community
National Apprenticeship Promotion Scheme
(NAPS) provides an opportunity for young
apprentices by offering on-the-job hospitality
skills training
Partnered with Shanti Avedna Sadan, India’s
first Hospice, an institution that takes care of
the advanced terminally ill cancer patients
and provides them with outmoded linen,
slippers, towels and napkins
Collaborated with Prabhat, an NGO
employing young adults with mental
handicap and other disabilities to recycle used
flowers into safe holi colours and dyes, which
are sold for a profit
80% of staff at the hotel are locally recruited,
and the hotel uses local guides for its tours of
the city
A children’s choir is invited every year to the
hotel during Christmas from Father Agnes
School which houses nearly 250
underprivileged children. These children
enjoy the hotels’ hospitality and get an
excellent platform to showcase their talent
while spreading the festive cheer
Unclaimed guest lost and found items and
outmoded staff uniforms are donated to the
Earth Saviour Foundation which undertakes
disaster relief, humanitarian aid and
community development in India
ITC
Club ITC – The “Green at Heart” loyalty
programme enables guests to donate their
accumulated “Green Points” to Mission Sunehra
Kal. The mission is a unique social investment
initiative by ITC that empowers the development
of rural communities by securing their livelihoods
In redeploying ex-servicemen, ITC Hotels assists
the national effort by offering a platform for their
rehabilitation into productive civilian life through
WelcomJawan
Seven ITC Hotels aided the local communities with
food distribution drives as well as converted their
properties into quarantine facilities during the
pandemic
WHATT
Taj
Collaborates with the weaving community of
Varanasi to create gorgeous Banarasi silk
sarees for the front office and housekeeping
staff of the luxury and palace properties. Taj is
also helping the women from the weaving
community to break through the glass ceiling
and enter the weaving profession through a
Female Weavers’ Training programme
14 Taj-Tata Strive Skill Training Centres
conduct skill-building programmes in the
hospitality and tourism industry for
underprivileged and school dropout youth
During the COVID pandemic, 12 hotels
accommodated hospital workers so that they
cut down on commute time, rested close to
their place of work and avoided spreading the
contagion amongst their family members
The Taj Public Service Welfare Trust
(TPSWT) provided three million meals during
COVID-19 to health workers, police personnel
and migrant workers who were stuck and
residing in Mumbai during lockdown
TPSWT provided 30 ventilators to hospitals
in Mumbai during the pandemic
Hospitality Benevolent Fund through the “Taj
For Family” project under the umbrella of
TPSWT aims to financially support workers
adversely impacted by the pandemic
Taj Safaris supports the training of Pardhis, a
“hunting tribe” in Madhya Pradesh to
leverage their natural tracking talent to offer
an immersive and interactive wilderness
experience to the travellers