Eco-Luxury is balancing both ecological concerns and luxury level service, products or amenities at the same time. In sectors, such as hospitality, often ecological is interpreted as minimalist such as dirt floors, cold showers or no electricity. Luxury is often associated with oppulance and abundance that can often come from ecological degredation and waste. But this is not necessarily the case. Eco-luxury in hospitality attempts to blend both ecological concerns and with environmental concerns. In the case above, you don't have to have dirt floors, many sustainable produced and harvested materials can be used to create luxurious finishes that don't involve harmful extration of natural materials. Hot showers can easily come from hot water heated by the sun and electricity from sustainable and renewable resources such as wind and solar power. The key to eco-luxury is in defining a new category in which the luxury component isn't limited by traditional definitions. In hospitality, luxury is often associated with marble floors in the bathroom, Au plated fixtures, well-stocked mini-bars, flat panel TV's and iStations, etc. in everyroom. Eco-Luxury might define that differently with organic sheets and towels, locally sourced fixtures and finishes, a well stocked common refrigerator, NO TV and plenty of organic fruits and vegetables grown locally available for guests, etc. The same attention to detail in design would apply to other industries often associated with luxury that can effectively develop and deploy eco-luxe products and services. Take the design, apparel and accessories industry. Examples such as a pocketbook/purse made from used firehoses (one hole ruins 30 meters of rubber that would normally end up in landfill) can be converted in a luxury accessory. Many such examples exist using either recycled materials or by work situations that involve a social impact. In all cases, the final product or service is one that defines a new category, one that is at the same time minimizing its impact on the ecology (or better yet, creating a posstive imapact) while at the same time providing a luxurious experience for the consumer.
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