Growing Green – Funding, Investment and Finance in Eco-Hospitality: A Review

From advice on how to raise funds for eco-ventures to tips on how to pitch to investors, the organisers of The Glamping Show and International Glamping Business, in association with Eco Hotel Investment Summit bring out a timely report on the many possibilities to finance eco-businesses.

Finding and securing funds can look like an obstacle course for any entrepreneur, even more so in challenging economic times. However, inventive funding and financing solutions are required now and in the coming years. For eco-entrepreneurs in hospitality, finding sources of funding and financing is important to ensure a positive outcome which is often based on a blended value creation of economic, social and environmental performance.

So, where should you go to find funding for your hospitality project? It is with this guiding question that organisers of The Glamping Show and International Glamping Business, in association with Eco Hotel Investment Summit developed the 30 pages investment report Growing Green - Funding, Investment and Finance in Eco-Hospitality.

The report starts by shortly explaining that the shift towards sustainability taking place across many sectors (and hospitality in particular) has also impacted the world of finance with a multitude of funding opportunities particularly tailored to eco projects. The need for raising funds is often driven by the stage of business development the entrepreneur is in:

1. Seed: Funding to bring the eco-project to the market
2. Early: Funding to support early growth of the eco-project
3. Growth: Funding to replicate the eco-project or expand in alternative products

The key benefit of the report is that it tackles those 3 areas respectively: whatever the amount needed (e.g. the funding of small-scale glamping project or financing of a 50-room eco-resort expansion) a multitude of options are described with supporting examples and best practice cases. Both, traditional paths to financing such as institutional lending (e.g. green loans), and non-traditional methods such as P2P lending are clearly explained. An additional distinction made is between equity and non-equity funding which are of particular relevance depending on the funding stages the entrepreneurs is in. This is also explained in a separate section on 'Funding Stages' with recommendations of funding types for each stage along the start-up path.

The report also provides a section on 'What to Consider When Pitching Investors' with tips and tactics to gain attention and obtain interest for an eco-hotel project.

Overall, this is a concise guidebook for anyone trying to navigate the murky waters of funding a new venture or providing finance to grow an established business.

The Glamping/Eco Hotel Investment Report is available as PDF download (Following link for cost and download information: Growing Green - Funding, Investment and Finance in Eco-Hospitality) and also includes a free pass to the Eco Hotel Investment Summit and subsequent recordings.