The green carpet treatment

Why sustainability is crucial in luxury branding

Luxury means indulgence, no corners cut, more is more. Sustainability is all about sacrifice, compromise, living with less. Or is it?

Viewed through this dichotomy, it’s easy to see how a luxury brand’s eco credentials can end up playing second fiddle to the plusher elements of the experience.

But all this has changed. With conscious consumerism now front of mind, sustainability is seen as central to many brand’s success – whether premium or everyday.

More than a gimmick

While sustainable used to mean “worthy” (read “a bit better for the planet, a bit worse for you”) today it often denotes a return to tradition.

This might look like small-scale production by skilled craftspeople, the use of natural materials, or longevity as a core design principle.

On our recent team away day to visit The Newt in Somerset, we noticed they do a great job of aligning this in the way they communicate their value. Their brand voice roots luxury in heritage and land stewardship. Reverence for their immediate environment is conveyed across all copy. 

Here’s one nice example we found on their website –

“Hadspen and the Farmyard nestle quietly amongst orchards, lakes, farmland and woodland that reflect the love lavished upon them over the past 300 years. As its latest custodians, we care for the land that feeds us - providing home comforts and homegrown luxuries, with rooms and experiences as unique as our guests.”

The respect for tradition and the position of the business as merely the “latest custodians” centre the land, while the juxtaposition of “home comforts and homegrown luxuries” draws a definitive line between small-scale production and up-scale experience. 

Stella McCartney is another example of a brand built on the idea that luxury and sustainability aren’t opposites, but synonyms. From refusing to use leather or fur to pioneering bio-based fabrics, her collections communicate exclusivity and desirability through innovation and ethics. Her storytelling often frames sustainability as the defining feature of modern luxury.

The “feed good” intersection

Ultimately, brands that nail the sweet spot – where sustainability and a high end experience intersect – are able to communicate the “feel good” aspects of both. One doesn’t need to detract from the other and neither need to be overhyped.

Of course, this can take more than a tone of voice refresh or new brand narrative, it is a paradigm shift – from eco credentials being a “bolt on” to the source of the luxury itself. 

As a B Corp certified agency, we know all about the hard graft that goes into making a business a legitimate force for good. If sustainability is presented as a token gesture, luxury brands are prime targets for  greenwashing accusations and the loss of affluent conscious consumers.

A focus on the areas where luxury and sustainability overlap (rarity, quality, natural beauty, heritage and longevity) keeps things feeling authentic, unique and – ultimately – ultra desirable.

Is sustainability championed within your brand voice?

We specialise in crafting narratives that do just this. 

Reach out – we’d love to discuss ways we can help.