This study is the first in a wider research programme aiming for more understanding of sustainable business models in the Tourism and Recreation (T&R) industry. By analysing ten cases in the region of Zeeland in the Netherlands, it describes archetypes, patterns of business models, that are typically applied by the accommodation and restaurant industry. Archetypes offer inspiration for those (re)designing their business models and are important to accelerate sustainability. The findings reveal ten archetypes, of which two were not identified before. The archetypes fit within seven overarching themes. These themes explain how T&R businesses take the first steps towards a more holistic type of hospitality in which a wide responsibility is taken for the people and nature surrounding their businesses.
Keywords: business models, archetypes, hospitality, sustainability, value proposition
INTRODUCTION
Constantly growing consumption levels are exhausting natural resources. Rising demand also poses substantial challenges for the Tourism and Recreation (T&R) industry: the increased use of space and resources creates a high pressure on nature and society (Battistella et al., 2018; Moscardo et al., 2013). Therefore, to remain futureproof, tourism businesses will have to consider sustainability as part of their business model (Rajah, De Fauconberg and Woeffray, 2021). This means they will have to go beyond mere financial interests and adapt their activities, collaborations, and revenue models in order to generate positive social and ecological values as well (Lüdeke-Freund et al., 2018).
Although T&R lags behind in terms of reporting on their sustainability activities (Turner and Freiermuth, 2017), the industry appears well aware of the wide range of economic, social, and ecological impacts it is generating (Klijs et al., 2021). This broad sense of responsibility is also apparent in the sustainability actions of tourism businesses. Examples of this can be seen in Zeeland. In this region, T&R is deeply embedded in society. It accounts for 9.2% of the total employment and contributes importantly to the success of other industries (Korteweg Maris et al., 2020). Sustainability efforts of T&R in Zeeland include activities such as the construction of circular holiday accommodations and waste management (see e.g. Balkenende, 2021; Interreg 2 Seas, n.d.). However, despite this first sustainability wave, for many individual businesses in the tourism industry it is still not easy to adapt their business model and to embed societal value in their business model (Mihalič, Cvelbar and Cvelbar, 2012).
Inspiration for sustainable business models can be found in business model literature, more specifically in the archetypes for sustainability. Such archetypes describe typical patterns, sets of basic components for a sustainable business model. These archetypes are valuable because they offer a shared language for the actors within a region or industry to start a dialogue about sustainable solutions. Archetypes illustrate the range of action perspectives and others can use them as guidance in the design of new business models (Lüdeke-Freund et al., 2018). In this way, archetypes accelerate sustainability improvements and reduce implementation risks. The current literature offers generic archetypes, mostly based on observations within manufacturing industries (e.g. Bocken et al., 2014, 2019; Jonker, Faber and Haaker, 2021; Pieroni, McAloone and Pigosso, 2020). It does not offer a description of archetypes of sustainable business models in the tourism industry. This study fills that gap and thereby responds to calls for research on industry-specific archetypes (Pieroni, McAloone and Pigosso, 2020).
This study is the first in a wider research programme aiming for more understanding of sustainable business models in the T&R industry. It targets a description of archetypes relevant for the accommodation and restaurant industry. To provide a sufficiently detailed answer, a qualitative, explorative case study research approach was deemed appropriate (Yin, 2014). A total of ten cases were investigated by inspecting website and company material, and by performing additional semi-structured interviews with owners or appointed representatives of the ten case companies. The findings show that most of the T&R companies concentrate their sustainability activities on the internal organisation, in particular waste management, energy efficiency and the transition to renewable energy sources. A few companies explore options in the outside world and search for new partners, capable to provide sustainable supplies and assets. These efforts are summarised in two new archetypes: “Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks” and “Preserve the authentic landscape”. Overall, the observed archetypes fit within seven overarching themes, each with a characteristic set of underlying archetypes and revenue models. The themes are: Eco-Experience, Nature Restoration, Ownership for Mobility, Eco-Gastronomy, Producer of Public Goods, Value Retention of Buildings and Local Experiences. The findings contribute to literature by offering a business model language that is specific for the tourism industry, by enabling empirical follow-up research in other hospitality businesses, and by providing entrepreneurs, who seek to embed sustainability in their business models, with practical guidelines in the form of archetypes. This facilitates an acceleration of sustainability in the T&R industry.
The remainder of this paper is structured as follows. First, we will discuss the relevant theoretical concepts regarding archetypes of business models. This is followed by an overview of the research design. The next section will then present the results. The last section will discuss the wider implications and suggest avenues for further research.
LITERATURE REVIEW
A business model is a conceptual tool expressing the business logic of a company. It is a description of three building blocks: 1. The value proposition, which describes the value a company provides to one or more segments of customers; 2. Value creation & delivery, which describes how and by whom value is created, marketed and delivered; 3. The revenue model, which describes the mechanism for generating profitable and long-term revenue streams (Ostenwalder, 2004).
In essence, a business model is a solution for a business challenge. Traditionally, that challenge is related to a customer problem. However, the business model approach is increasingly used to design societal challenges (Ritala et al., 2018), in which case the focus in each building block broadens and actors and mechanisms for achieving economic, social and ecological returns are incorporated (Stubbs and Cocklin, 2008). Lüdeke-Freund (2018) describes a sustainable business model as "a business model that creates competitive advantages through superior customer value and that contributes to the sustainable development of the company and society. There are different ways to achieve such multiple values and, consequently, there are different sustainable business models, each relying on a unique configuration of activities and actors.
The literature has described typical configurations of companies' sustainability business models. Such patterns are also called archetypes. Archetypes summarise the key aspects of a business model and serve as practical examples for those (re)designing a sustainable business model. Thus, they are important tools for accelerating sustainability and reducing implementation risks. Table 1 summarises the archetypes currently available in extant literature. It includes extant work of Lüdeke-Freund et al. (2018), Jonker, Faber and Haaker (2021), Pieroni, McAloone and Pigosso (2020) and Bocken et al. (2014, 2019).
Table 1: Archetypes in the literature
Author
Background archetypes
Application area
Lüdeke-Freund et al. (2018)
Identifies eleven ‘pattern groups’ within 45 patterns of sustainable business models. The pattern groups are classified according to the problem they are trying to solve and the values they aim to realise: economic, social, and ecological.
Industry-wide
Jonker, Faber and Haaker (2021)
Seven circular business models based on a study of publications between 2014 and 2021. The business models are integrated into a Quick Scan that allows companies to take improvement steps towards the circular economy.
Circular economy, manufacturing industries
Pieroni, McAloone, and Pigosso (2020)
A total of twenty archetypes, based on a literature study of academic and practical literature. Archetypes describe strategies that relate to value chain partners (upward) and customers (downward).
Circular economy, manufacturing industries
Bocken et al. (2014, 2019)
Eight archetypes, later supplemented by a ninth. Each archetype is described based on the three elements in the business model: the value proposition, the value chain, and the revenue model.
Manufacturing industry and industry-wide
Source: Authors
Lüdeke-Freund et al. (2018) describes 45 sustainable business model patterns based on a review of 14 studies. Patterns were identified with the help of experts and based on the type of challenge that companies try to solve (economic, ecologic, or social challenges). The patterns were grouped in 11 higher order themes. Jonker, Faber and Haaker (2021) identified seven archetypes for the circular economy, based on companies’ position in the value chain, their motivations for circularity, and their circular strategy. Similarly, Pieroni, McAloone, and Pigosso (2020) identified business models for circularity. These authors took a different approach and identified 20 archetypes investigating companies’ upstream activity with value chain partners on one side and downstream activity with customers on the other. The eight archetypes in Bocken et al. (2014) were found to be the most cited (Pieroni, McAloone and Pigosso, 2020): “Maximise material productivity and energy efficiency”, “Closing resource loops”, “Substitute with renewables and natural processes”, “Deliver functionality rather than ownership”, “Adopt a stewardship role”, “Encourage sufficiency”, “Re-purpose for society/environment”, and “Develop scale up solutions”. These eight were supplemented in a later study by a ninth archetype (Bocken et al., 2019): “Inclusive value creation”. Definitions of all nine archetypes can be found in Appendix 3.
What becomes clear from Table 1 above is that the current literature mostly focuses on the manufacturing industry and does not offer archetypes of sustainable business models in the tourism industry.
Notwithstanding the significant impact that manufacturing industries have on our living environment, the positive impact of sustainability initiatives within tourism should not be underestimated. Other than T&R’s direct impact on land and resources, it intersects with many human practices and therefore plays an important role as a catalyst for increased well-being in a region (Battistella et al., 2018). Most of the available literature discussing T&R’s sustainability practices, focuses on practices at the level of the destination and do not zoom in on the company level (Mihalič, Cvelbar and Cvelbar, 2012). The scarcely available literature investigating business practices conclude on the state of readiness of T&R businesses for sustainability and identify barriers for adoption (e.g. Battistella et al., 2018; Mihalič, Cvelbar and Cvelbar, 2012). Therefore, at this point, it is fair to conclude that the various practical examples of T&R businesses integrating sustainability practices have not yet been translated into archetypes.
RESEARCH DESIGN
In this first explorative study, a start is made with the description of archetypes in the T&R industry. The choice for this type of tourism business was practical in nature and arose from the fact that sufficient research material was available. As this research was exploratory and looking at SMEs, a qualitative approach was appropriate (c.f. Balau et al, 2020) and a case study approach was selected. This allowed to study events as they happened, within their real-life. Moreover, it enabled multiple sources of data to be used, thus supporting the explorative nature of the research, and providing sufficient richness of data to match the complexity of the phenomenon being studied (Yin, 2014).
Sample
Following the guideline of Eisenhardt (1989) that 4-10 cases suffice to establish replication, ten cases were selected from a long list of potentially interesting businesses. Cases were nominated by five researchers of the HZ Research Centre for Coastal Tourism. Selection took place by means of four selection criteria: sustainability ambitions, core activities, geographical location, and engagement in sustainability projects in subsidy programmes, such as the Interreg “2 Zeeën” (2 Seas) programme FACET.
Data collection
Data collection took place in February-April 2023. To maximise validity (Goffin et al 2019), multiple methods of data collection were employed, including inspection of documents and actor interviews. The table in Appendix 1 shows the data that was collected for the ten cases.
In total 303 pages of documents were inspected. Documents included the companies’ website as well as company documents and publicly available documents, such as annual accounts. Ten exploratory interviews were added with company owners or appointed representatives.
A map of Zeeland showing the approximate locations of the ten cases studied is available in Appendix 6.
Data analysis
Data analysis was performed by a team of four researchers by making use of MAXQDA2022.
For the desk research, 77 claims referring to sustainability as found in the inspected documents were linked to one or more of the identified archetypes. From the interviews, out of 375 paraphrased quotes, 144 of these quotes were selected based on relevancy and linked to one or more of the same archetypes.
To ensure coding consistency, the team jointly developed decision rules to assign quotes to codes (see Appendix 2). In an iterative process, interpretations were checked and revised, thus ensuring a replication logic (Yin, 2014).
The quotes used in this paper were paraphrased and translated in English by the second author.
RESULTS
A comprehensive and a summary overview of the sustainability activities for each case study and their relationship to the ten archetypes can be found in Appendices 3 and 4, respectively.
The combination of data sources and analysis techniques offers a good first impression of the sustainable business models.
Table 2 below shows which of the ten archetypes were identified for each case. Most businesses display their sustainability ambitions as one of the many characteristics of their facilities within one of the submenus of the website. This is also the case for Case 5, that has been actively implementing nine out of the ten archetypes for years, and therefore can be considered one of the most sustainability-oriented companies in this study. Also, many businesses state what they are doing without linking it to a more fundamental vision or ambition. An example of such factual description of sustainability activities is this quote from Case 2: “Since the winter of 2018-2019 the parking for visitors is roofed in. On top of the indoor parking place are 372 solar panels placed. Now it is also possible to charge your electric car or bike”. Similarly, a bullet list with fourteen sustainability facts of Case 7 is only visible on one of the subpages. Overall, the companies’ communication gives the impression that sustainability practices have not developed yet in convincing value propositions.
Zooming in on the sustainability activities further uncovers a strong inward focus. Most activities are dedicated to waste management, energy efficiency and the transition to renewable energy sources, and are organised within the boundaries of current business models. All companies studied in this research are engaged to a greater or lesser extent in sustainability activities that concern "Maximise material and energy efficiency", "Closing resource loops" and "Substitute with renewables and natural processes". The high focus on ecological value seems to relate to the wish for tangible results, such as for example lower waste costs, less fresh water consumption and a second life for depreciated materials. As such, it appears that financial considerations are an important influence factor on the road to sustainability. The representative of Case 4 explains this as follows: “Sustainable business stands or falls with the budget you have available”.
Only few businesses take a next step and create value by starting new collaborations or by developing new value propositions. Such new collaborations are importantly driven by the wish to offer customers healthy food that is produced by regional farmers and to enforce ties with the local community. Examples of such more extensive activities are especially found at Case 5: “With the oldest organic farm in the Netherlands in your village, alongside other local suppliers supplying so many wonderful products, as an entrepreneur you can't help but at least try to connect with those people”, and Case 9: “I want to work as much as possible with local people, with the crops that grow and flourish around us. I want to see that authenticity, that local origin of the products, on the plate”. The latter moreover pays special attention in training the shop employees to tell customers the story behind the products on the shelves. This observation gives rise a first new archetype: “Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks”. A second new archetype coined “Preserve the authentic landscape” is observed in eight cases. There is clearly a trend among T&R entrepreneurs whereby they explicitly consider the landscape within which they operate when expanding or shaping their business. Unlike before, the business is being adapted to the authentic landscape rather than intervening in the landscape to serve commercial business interests.
Entrepreneurs that adopt a stewardship role, do so within the realm of their personal interests: renewable energy, biodiversity, healthy lifestyle, etc. Only those for whom their stewardship role is turning into a life vision express this extensively on their websites. The owners of Case 1, for example, are passionate about caring for the long-term health of their guests and the biodiversity of the natural environment in which they are accommodated. And the owners of Case 8 strive to create a special added value precisely by doing less: minimal outdoor lighting to not interfere with the night scenery, and no Wi-Fi because they believe it compromises the healthy reflection that a holiday can hold.
Table 2: Overview of Ambitions in relation to identified Archetypes
Overall, the observed archetypes fit within seven overarching themes, each with a characteristic set of underlying archetypes and revenue models. The themes are presented in Table 3. They are: Eco-Experience, Nature Restoration, Ownership for Mobility, Eco-Gastronomy, Producer of Public Goods, Value Retention of Buildings, and Local Experiences. Each theme is explained in more detail and associated with the nine archetypes. Column four zooms in on the revenue models. The last two columns show in which cases the theme was observed and give a more in-depth example. The theme Eco-experience was observed in four cases and builds on the patterns “Adopt a stewardship role”, “Re-purpose for society/environment” and “Preserve the authentic landscape”. In this theme guests are offered a unique nature-based experience, thereby addressing guests’ need to regain a connection with nature. This value proposition is most clearly communicated by Case 1. It stresses the peaceful green location and history with nature-based industry, as well as its partnerships with other providers of an eco-experience. One of these partners is “Teaming with Life”, an organisation that offers courses and trainings about syntropic agroforestry. Revenues within this theme are generated by charging a premium price. In a similar vein, in the theme of Eco-Gastronomy guests are introduced to natural, healthy food. The theme was observed in four cases, including Case 5. In this case the owner decided to rigorously replace all meat ingredients by healthy, plant-based alternatives.
In the theme Nature Restoration, T&R businesses focus on restoring nature itself and actively participate in repairing the damage done to land and water. It was observed in six cases. While Cases 1, 2 and 5 maintain their gardens and food forest in close cooperation with organisations like “Stichting Het Zeeuws Landschap”, the regional nature conservation foundation, Case 6 decided on its own to make exclusive use of the original Walcheren regional hedge in demarcating the plots where lodges and campers are located.
A fourth theme, relying on the Stewardship pattern is the Ownership for Mobility. Considering the provision of charging stations for electric cars, this theme appears in 9 of the 10 cases studied. Yet Case 2 is the only one that actively encourages environmentally friendly and healthy mobility by allowing cyclists to charge their bikes for free.
The fifth theme, producer of public goods, shows how T&R companies try to innovate their business model by producing water and electricity and selling the surpluses to others. That theme was most clearly observed in cases 6 and 10, respectively, about purifying water and sharing unused supplies with neighbouring farmers and planning a solar farm of as much as 4 hectares to become almost independent from the regional electricity supplier.
The sixth theme, building value preservation, was observed in four cases. In this theme, T&R companies invest partly in circular buildings, using bio-based and second-hand materials and refurbishing damaged parts. Value of circular buildings is found in the flexibility and remountability of a building, which enable to preserve functionality and a longer lifetime. A higher residual financial value may result as this will reduce cost of reuse.
The last theme is Local Experiences. It was observed in four cases and demonstrates the regional embeddedness of T&R businesses. The example case of Case 3 shows how this results in an extensive network of local partnerships, including cultural heritage conversation parties and the local community. Again, this theme does not lead to direct financial returns, but does contribute to future value as it strengthens the regional economy.
Table 3: Overarching themes
Theme
What is it?
Typical patterns from the literature
Revenue model
Observed at
Case example
Eco-experience
Providing a sustainable experience by staying in a unique, biodiverse location
Adopt a stewardship role; Re-purpose for society/environment; Preserve the authentic landscape
Guests pay for a unique experience in nature
Cases: 1, 2, 7, 8
TRANQUILITY GARDEN In the garden there are sun loungers and walking paths have been laid out. There is also a powerful outdoor shower. Fragrant herbs are there to pick yourself for a cup of tea.
Eco-Gastronomy
Extracting new, raw materials from the company's waste streams for products that are returned to other parts of the company
Closing resource loops; Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks; Adopt a stewardship role; Inclusive value creation
Saving costs for waste processing; creating added value for sustainable, gastronomic experiences
Cases: 2, 3, 5, 9
Originally an agri-business, in which the home-grown potato still plays a leading role. You will find this potato both in our country shop and on our menu. In short, using the short food chain as much as possible is our goal. The many years of cooperation with many regional suppliers is also reflected in our country shop and, of course, on the plate. Taste and experience the Zeeland Flanders region with us!
Nature Restoration
Creating social value through tourism
Adopt a stewardship role; Re-purpose for society/environment; Preserve the authentic landscape
Charging an additional fee
Cases: 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8
Many of the plants and flowers native to the state of Zeeland disappeared in the last decades due to rezoning, water extraction and an overall change of the usage of land. However, Case 5 has worked closely together with foundation “Het Zeeuws Landschap” to only plant those plants and flowers native to the region. These efforts can be seen especially in the gardens surrounding the Farm House.
Ownership for Mobility
Directing guests to sustainable travel
Adopt a stewardship role
Future brand value
Cases: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 10
Guests in the studios can charge their bikes in the attached shed. Cars can be charged at the charging stations. For the bikes, charging is included in the price.
Theme
What is it?
Typical patterns from the literature
Revenue model
Observed at
Case example
Producer of Public Goods
In addition to its regular business in the hospitality industry, the company produces and supplies scarce, raw materials such as water and energy
Closing resource loops; Adopt a stewardship role; Inclusive value creation
Saving costs; additional income from the sale of public goods; reduction of footprint
Cases: 6, 10
The sewage water coming from the toilets is treated in our MicroPEC installation, to the level that medicine residues are also filtered out. The treated water is pumped over to the basin, from which farmers can draw water.
Value Retention of Buildings
Flexible design of sites and buildings, so that they can be easily rearranged without losing value for future generations
Closing resource loops; Adopt a stewardship role
Future value by preserving the value of investments
Cases: 5, 7, 8, 9
You could easily convert the tiny houses into workshops, for example, by taking out the kitchen and keeping the plumbing. You don't have to take them completely apart right away to change their functionality.
Local experiences
The tourism product is designed in close connection with the immediate community
Adopt a stewardship role; Inclusive value creation; Develop scale up solutions
Indirect impact via support of the local community, and contribution to the regional economy; Future brand value.
Cases: 3, 5, 9, 10
Once a year, we organise ring-riding on the occasion of Zeeland Day. People in traditional costume walk around here and we also have matching stalls. All freely accessible to everyone.
Apart from Case 5, T&R businesses spend most time and effort in reducing or mitigating the negative ecological impact. In addition, the revenue models underlying the themes demonstrate once again the importance of economic returns. In four of the seven themes revenues are found, either in cost savings or by charging premium prices. The three other themes, Property for Mobility, Building Value Preservation and Local Experiences, show that entrepreneurs are not exclusively driven by financial returns.
DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS
This research shows that T&R companies are well on their way to becoming more sustainable.
The first set of findings show that T&R businesses do not only speak of sustainability as demonstrated on their websites, but also act sustainably through a series of ten archetypes (or seven thematic patterns of behaviour) as mentioned above. The archetypes focus on activities that are specific for T&R businesses and touch upon principles of a holistic type of hospitality. Such holistic view encourages that T&R businesses not only look at the current needs of current guests, but assume a wider responsibility including future needs of a wide range of beneficiaries (van Rheede and Dekker, 2016). The practical implications are twofold: offering front-runners of sustainability in T&R a way to explain their actions to similar organisations and becoming examples for the next generation of businesses on their path towards sustainability.
The second set of findings shows that circularity and in particular recovery of waste, water and energy are important first steps towards becoming more sustainable. Katz-Gerro and Sintas (2018) demonstrated that similar circular activities are popular measures for SMEs in different industries in the EU. Our findings confirm this and, moreover, demonstrate the pathways towards increased levels of sustainability.
The figure below shows that T&R businesses will initially invest mainly in low-risk sustainability activities that require little collaboration with other stakeholders. As those investments are completed, the focus and ambition tilts towards high-risk sustainability activities that require close cooperation with a wide variety of stakeholders. The size of the coloured shapes indicates the relative importance and focus from the T&R entrepreneurs in the cases studied. These findings are important because they contribute to current understanding of new business models in general, and in particular explain how companies transform over time to more sustainable value propositions and associated business processes.
Figure 1: Path of transition towards sustainable business models for T&R businesses
The third set of findings reveal the mostly extrinsic motivation of the T&R firms. It is clear that the number of organisations taking full responsibility for sustainability is still limited. The internal, functional focus also seems to indicate an extrinsic motivation – sustainability because it should be done, because it is efficient, or because it can partly be done without high risks. However, effective performance and greater persistence on sustainability rely primarily on intrinsic motivation (Rovanto and Finne, 2022) and it is strongly associated with a society that values sustainability and places it as a norm central to action. These findings add important new knowledge to the stream of literature on motivational factors. More understanding on motivations of small firms is important as they reveal the level of embeddedness of sustainability in society (Rovanto and Finne, 2022). At the same time these findings have important practical implications for policy makers. The reciprocity and interaction between tourists and destination (employees, locals, facilities, and affiliated companies) provides a good basis for engaging the general public in a positive narrative about sustainability, thus initiating the necessary attitude and behavioural change. This requires policy makers to explicitly support and promote intrinsically motivated front-runners within the tourism industry.
This study was the first, explorative step in a wider research programme into sustainable business models in tourism. Its focus on the accommodation and restaurant industry makes it difficult to generalise to other types of tourism businesses. Moreover, the size of organisations has an influence on the capabilities and resources, and therefore on the opportunities to invest in sustainable business models (López-Pérez, Melero and Sese, 2017). In follow-up research, the results will be validated among a larger group of businesses.
A second important theme concerns the transition of business models and how businesses evolve from limited sustainability efforts within their own enterprise towards a position in which they assume a broader responsibility for a sustainable region. The T&R industry is highly suitable for promoting change, as they have an impact on local communities, employment, and the environment (Streimikiene et al., 2021). This should include research into the interactions between tourism businesses and the broader range of actors in the regional ecosystem. A final theme for follow-up research concerns the conditions, as well as the performance of different archetypes of sustainable business models.
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Appendix 1. Interview approach and coding rules
Table 4: Overview of data collection
ID
Case Name
Location
Type
Capacity
Data source
1
Case 1 Balance sheet (2021): € 6.687.294
Walcheren
Camping
369 units
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (13-feb-2023, 1h20m)
2
Case 2 Balance sheet (2021): € 1.459.388
Walcheren
Camping
214 units
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (27-feb-2023, 1h03m)
3
Case 3 Balance sheet (2021): € 13.394.243
Walcheren
Camping
535 units
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (28-feb-2023, 1h08m)
4
Case 4 Balance sheet (2021): € 317.939
Walcheren
Hotel
32 rooms
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (28-feb-2023, 0h46m)
5
Case 5 Balance sheet (2021): € 4.545.252
Walcheren
Hotel
31 rooms
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (6-mar-2023, 1h12m)
6
Case 6 Balance sheet (2020): € 5.315.191
Walcheren
Camping
495 units
website (Dutch)
annual accounts (2018,2019, 2020)
1 interview (6-mar-2023, 0h53m)
7
Case 7 Balance sheet (2021): € 6.273.514 Consolidation of Camping and Villapark
Noord-Beveland
Camping Villa Park
561 units
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (7-mar-2023, 1h27m)
8
Case 8 Balance sheet (2018): € 1.430.234
Zeeuws-Vlaanderen
Camping
175 units
website
annual accounts (2016, 2017, 2018)
1 interview (10-mar-2023, 0h57m)
9
Case 9 Balance sheet: n/a
Zeeuws-Vlaanderen
Restaurant + Rural shop Landwinkel
140 chairs
website (Dutch)
1 interview (16-mar-2023, 1h22m)
10
Case 10 Balance sheet (2021): € 22.474.202
Schouwen-Duiveland
Camping Villa Park Hotel Restaurant
407 units
40 rooms 160 chairs
website
annual accounts (2019,2020, 2021)
1 interview (20-mar-2023, 0h55m)
Total
275 web pages
28 annual accounts 12h:03m
Source: Authors
Appendix 2. Interview approach and coding rules
In each of the ten semi-structured interviews, great care was taken to ensure that all archetypes from Bocken et al. were covered. At the end of the interview, a double check was performed by asking entrepreneurs, via cards with a brief explanation on each, to put archetypes for which their company was a model on the left, and archetypes for which this was not the case or much less the case on the right. This activity often led to a spontaneous continuation and deepening of the conversation with regard to archetypes that had nevertheless received insufficient attention in the interview.
In several sessions with all researchers involved, paraphrased quotes were checked against Bocken et al.'s definitions (see Appendix 3.) to see to what extent the included sustainability actions illustrated one or more archetypes. After several iterations, the following codebook was created and applied, including the newly identified archetypes: “Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks” and “Preserve the authentic landscape”.
For the sake of completeness, the archetype "Delivering functionality rather than ownership" is still included in the list below, even though analysis of the websites and interviews revealed that none of the studied businesses took actions that matched this archetype.
Maximise material & energy efficiency Actions using sensors and monitoring systems to reduce material flow, transport, and energy consumption, significantly reducing CO2 emissions in most cases.
Closing resource loops Actions related to separating waste or creating value from waste through reprocessing or upgrading.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes Actions that contribute to the generation of renewable energy, mostly through solar panels. Actions that use natural processes to upgrade resources, such as filtering water through a reed filter.
Deliver functionality, not ownership Actions where there is no transfer of ownership within the commercial transaction, but where users can use a particular product for a fee.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks Actions in which the entrepreneur consciously opts for favouring sustainably and regionally produced and sold organic products over cheaper alternatives from large distribution chains.
Adopt a steward-ship role Actions in which the entrepreneur fulfils an exemplary role by making choices that do not immediately lead to a financial return but have an added value for people and nature that cannot easily be expressed in monetary terms. This concerns explicit attention for nature in the immediate surroundings, for guests as well as for local residents and for local suppliers of goods and services.
Encourage Sufficiency Actions in which the entrepreneur actively encourages his guests, through educational activities and explicit example behaviour, to consciously engage with the limited resources the earth provides us with.
Re-purpose for society/ environment Actions in which the entrepreneur puts his time, infrastructure, territory or knowledge and network at the service of activities that fall outside the company's core business but are primarily aimed at supporting initiatives from within the local community.
Inclusive value creation Actions in which the entrepreneur voluntarily shares his knowledge and experience with colleagues, suppliers, guests, and local residents. This also includes actions in which the entrepreneur undertakes actions to enable fellow human beings, such as suppliers, neighbours, or staff, to develop their business or themselves further.
Preserve the authentic landscape Actions in which the expansion of business activities is subordinated to the protection and preservation of the landscape within which the business is located.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions Actions that culminate in a product or service that not only benefits one's own company but has real potential to be successfully implemented among similar companies or other companies facing similar challenges.
Appendix 3. Definitions of archetypes by Bocken et al. and Ritala et al.
Table 5: Summary of the definitions in Bocken et al. (2014, 2019) and Ritala et al. (2018)
Archetype
Major Innovation Type
Definition (Bocken et al., 2014; Ritala et al., 2018)
Short definition (Bocken et al., 2019)
Maximise material productivity and energy efficiency
Environmental
Do more with fewer resources, generating less waste, emissions, and pollution.
Do more with fewer resources, generating less waste, emissions, and pollution.
Closing resource loops
Environmental
Reuse materials and products; turn waste into feedstocks for other products/ processes.
Reuse materials and products; turn waste into feedstocks for other products/ processes.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Environmental
Use of non-finite materials and energy sources.
Use of non-finite materials and energy sources.
Deliver functionality rather than ownership
Social
Provide services that satisfy users’ needs without having to own physical products.
Provide services that satisfy users’ needs without having to own physical products.
Adopt a stewardship role
Social
Proactively engaging with all stakeholders to ensure their long-term health and well-being.
Proactively engaging with all stakeholders to ensure their long-term health and well-being.
Encourage sufficiency
Social
Solutions that actively seek to reduce consumption and production.
Solutions that actively seek to reduce consumption and production.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Economic
Prioritizing delivery of social and environmental benefits rather than economic profit (i.e. shareholder value) maximization, through close integration between the firm and local communities and other stakeholder groups.
Seek to create positive value for all stakeholders, in particular society and environment
Inclusive value creation
Economic
Sharing resources, knowledge, ownership, and wealth creation. It is about creating value for previously under-addressed user and customer segments.
Sharing resources, knowledge, ownership, and wealth creation, inclusive value generation.
Develop scale up solutions
Economic
Delivering sustainable solutions at a large scale to maximise benefits for society and the environment.
Delivering sustainable solutions at a large scale to maximise benefits for society and the environment.
Appendix 4. Comprehensive overview of sustainability activities and archetypes per case
Table 6: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 1)
Case 1
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Reducing energy consumption for lighting through sensors.
Based on the thinking behind Trias Energetica, we looked at how to make buildings as compact and (energy) efficient as possible.
Only LED lights combined with sensors are used on the entire property.
Closing resource loops
Building accommodations with circular materials; separating waste; bokashi composting; aiming at a zero-waste strategy; using reusable packaging; producing biobased products; purifying ditch water.
Camping guests are invited to make their own contributions with the separation of personal GFT raw materials. We make bokashi from all these green residues.
We are committed to a zero-waste strategy, in which the current paper single-use items will eventually be replaced by reusable packaging.
Three water cascades have been constructed in part of a former ditch, where the water is kept clean by means of a pump system and filtering by EM bacteria.
Water from the cascades is used for the water-mud playground and water in the wellness garden.
The six eco lodges will be fully circularly built and equipped here.
In a project with Scalda, we figured out how to design buckets based on biobased raw materials at an affordable price. That became these burlap buckets, which you can also view on the website.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Filtering water by wadi; generating electricity by solar panels.
The construction of a 'cushioned landscape' in combination with the semi-paved camping pitches (can be rented out all year) have been created between the lanes of wadis where excess rainwater can slowly infiltrate into the soil.
This allows us to retain the water longer, so that plants can still benefit from it during dry periods, and we no longer need to apply active drainage.
For heating the pool and wellness accommodation, we try to minimise energy consumption by using solar panels in combination with a heat pump.
Adopt a stewardship role
Raising awareness about raw materials; leading by example; offering workshops; taking responsibility.
The layout of our recycling centre for the collection of raw materials has been adapted to make it easier for guests and to help raise awareness about raw materials (by offering interesting information).
TRANQUILITY GARDEN: In the garden there are sun loungers and walking paths have been laid out. There is also a powerful outdoor shower. Fragrant herbs are there to pick yourself for a cup of tea
We want to make people better, healthier.
Under no circumstances do we want to put a plastic bucket there, because we want to set an example.
We also want to offer workshops at Case 1, such as the one by Jos from Teaming with Life on syntropic farming.
We want to inspire and feel great responsibility for the micro-identity of the region. We are quite concerned about Zeeland's tourism identity.
Encourage sufficiency
Reducing consumption of straws; encouraging sustainable behaviour.
We are also constantly thinking about whether it is also a way to leave something out: no straws or biodegradable straws.
We encourage sustainability, both in the welcome letter and at the accommodations themselves.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Planting a food forest; ensuring organic sourcing of food.
We use many food-producing crops and herbs, which is why OUR OUTSIDE is slowly developing more and more as a food forest.
We want to stand 100% behind the products we advertise or offer. Hence, we work with local farmers, ensuring that what we offer is purely organic.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Increasing biodiversity; providing walking tracks to local residents.
—
For the walking route that runs across the campsite, we cooperate with the Tuys Foundation, which provides the connection of "Our Outdoors" with the village and the outdoor environment.
Inclusive value creation
—
—
—
Preserve the authentic landscape
Building natural playgrounds; taking responsibility for the regional identity; planting regional hedges and trees.
Homogeneous hedges (mostly privet) have been replaced by a variety of trees, shrubs, and plants. This contributes to the natural landscape and biodiversity.
Eight years ago we built the natural playground.
We want to inspire and feel a great responsibility for the micro-identity of the region.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
Scaling up circular innovations; designing sustainable buckets.
Circularity in construction is a priority for us. The three-to-five-year goal that we set is to build or renovate all new buildings in an optimal circular manner. The realization of the WELLNESS & POOL (2019) has set a first high standard on which we can literally build further.
With students from Scalda, we designed a product that is both environmentally friendly, suitable, and affordable. The design of that bucket with partition can now go into production.
Table 7: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 2)
Case 2
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Reducing consumption of straws; reducing natural gas consumption; reducing transport movements; installing thermostats and motion detectors.
We are doing our best we can to make less use of plastic. For example, in our restaurant we only make use of non-plastic straws and in the snack bar we are going to use more disposables of cardboard.
We bottle our water in reusable bottles, because of this we save a lot of energy in terms of cooling, transport (vehicle's emissions) and glass waste.
To better control the waste flow, we installed a press container in cooperation with the waste management company. This compresses the waste considerably, reducing the number of transport movements required to collect it.
We have installed new thermostats and motion detectors. These ensure that the temperature is adjusted downwards when people are sleeping, and the heating is switched off completely when the cottage is empty.
Closing resource loops
Collaborating with local stakeholders; building accommodations with circular materials; extracting heat; feeding animals with kitchen leftovers.
Out of the wastewater from the head building we extract residual heat; this residual heat is going to be reused.
During the construction of the new shed in 2019, we used circular materials as much as possible, which we also tried to source as much as possible from local suppliers.
Food leftovers from our kitchen go to the animals: pigs, chickens, ponies.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Generating electricity by solar panels; storing energy in batteries; using bio propane; installing chargers for electric cars and bikes.
Since 2019 we have bought bio propane instead of propane.
On top of the indoor parking place are 372 solar panels placed.
Now it is also possible to charge your electric car or bike.
The head building is heated by means of a heat pump.
The water ship that is there now is heated by solar panels. It will remain so, but you can imagine that less heating will be needed when everything is roofed over.
Besides installing more solar panels, we are also exploring whether we can store generated power in batteries.
Encourage sufficiency
Monitoring consumption.
—
At the campsite, we will also use the monitoring system to make people aware of their consumption, so they are no longer surprised when the fuse blows when they are simultaneously drying laundry, charging three iPads and grilling gourmet cheese.
Adopt a stewardship role
Offering charging stations for free; creating a pool for insects.
—
In the food forest, we have created a pool that is very interesting for insects.
Guests in the studios can charge their bikes in the attached shed. Cars can be charged at the charging stations. For the bikes, charging is included in the price.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Planting a food forest; growing your own vegetables.
The green area around the campsite is rebuild to a food forest.
The flowers, herbs, vegetables, and fruit that is growing along the walkway behind the campsite is only for the use of our kitchens, animals, and bees.
We make maximum use of our own yield from the food forest for restaurant preparations, but sometimes demand exceeds supply and we have to buy elsewhere. This is less often necessary for herbs and apples than for tomatoes.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Increasing biodiversity; installing a bee hotel; sponsoring and volunteering.
The first vegetables, fruits and herbs were processed in our kitchens and the insects were very pleased with all the nature.
There is also a bee hotel and the possibility to collect flowers.
School trips are also sometimes organised here or even sponsored by us.
Inclusive value creation
Collaborating with waste management company; making a booklet for children; exchanging knowledge.
—
The waste management company has stuck its logo on the compactor and made a promo film so that they can also recommend the compactor to other campsites.
For the food forest, we created a booklet for children, with which they can then walk through that food forest and learn about the different crops.
Cooperation with other Ardoer campsites is mainly situated in the field of knowledge exchange.
Preserve the authentic landscape
Taking into account the landscape.
—
In designing the site, care has been taken to take maximum account of the landscape in this region.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
—
—
—
Table 8: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 3)
Case 3
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Installing thermostats and motion detectors.
—
In quite a few accommodations, we have installed a Greenbox that ensures that the heating is switched off as soon as no more presence is detected. In addition, the heating is limited to 20.5° Celsius.
Closing resource loops
Letting animals graze grasslands.
—
We are in contact with a shepherd from Biggekerke who uses mobile fences to let his flock graze grasslands. This is not only fun, but also practical because you cannot mow wet grass mechanically.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Installing chargers for electric cars; generating electricity by solar panels; installing heat pumps; using natural water from a well; installing a solar boiler.
At the campsite, you can charge your car at the car parks near Jimmy's supermarket and at the car park near the Hotel Lodges.
We have installed mass quantities of solar panels on the technical services shed and on the swimming pool. We also installed a solar boiler on one of the toilet blocks.
The latest cottages are connected to a heat pump, making them completely gas independent.
We also have the nature preserve "Buiten Pekelinge" nearby, where occasionally waste has to be cleared, or sprayed during the driest times of the year. We do this together with "Case 1" campsite. The water is pumped from the well on site.
Encourage sufficiency
—
—
—
Adopt a stewardship role
Offering customised facilities to disabled guests; sourcing materials locally; using local service providers.
—
We very much want a diverse team, in age, nationality, and origin.
In the pool, we do have a separate area where guests can shower children with severe disabilities.
Materials and other supplies are sourced locally as much as possible by the technical department, so as to become economically a part of the environment as well.
We rely on local service providers for most of the delivery of products and services.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Cooking with seasonable vegetables that are locally produced; buying organic products.
Central to our cuisine is pure, honest and, above all, fresh local produce.
We pay attention to organic products and when it comes to ingredients for the kitchen, we strongly consider what is available within the respective season.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Providing walking tracks to local residents; hosting free events.
—
People from the neighbourhood are always welcome to take a stroll around the campsite anyway.
Once a year, we organise ring-riding on the occasion of Zeeland Day. People in traditional costume walk around here and we also have matching stalls. All freely accessible to everyone.
Inclusive value creation
Collaborating with local children day-care centres; jointly maintaining nature preserves; buying appliances together.
Since March 2020, Case 3 has partnered with Kinderopvang Walcheren to organise activities outside school holidays for children aged 7 to 12.
We bought some appliances together with neighbours; others like the scarifier, we bought together with two other campsites.
The "Buiten Pekelinge" is a nature preserve that both the guests of "Case 3" and those of "Case 1" use. Hence, we maintain it together.
Preserve the authentic landscape
—
—
—
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
—
—
—
Table 9: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 4)
Case 4
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Aiming at a zero-waste strategy; limiting water use; reducing energy consumption for lighting through sensors; avoiding monopacks; minimising unnecessary towel changes.
By actively striving to reduce waste streams and our consumption of gas, water, electricity, and fossil fuels.
We use both water-saving toilet knobs and water-saving showerheads.
There is only LED lighting everywhere in the building.
In some rooms, we also have heating sensors that ensure the heating is automatically switched off as soon as no more movement is detected.
In line with Greenkey regulations, we do not use mono-packaging, for shampoo for example. Instead, we purchase those products in bulk, after which the containers in the rooms are refilled manually.
We certainly do not change sheets and towels every day. There are always two towels per guest in the room and as soon as we find them on the floor, we replace them with new ones.
Closing resource loops
Separating waste.
—
Guests can just throw the coffee cups in the rooms with the green waste.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Collecting rainwater.
—
We are studying how to collect rainwater in an underground tank in the future.
Encourage sufficiency
Informing guests and suppliers about reducing negative impact.
We inform our guests, employees, and suppliers how we operate in a socially responsible manner.
Wherever possible, we try to inform and facilitate our guests and customers in reducing their environmental impact.
—
Adopt a stewardship role
Sponsoring and volunteering; minimising plastic use; offering bikes.
We voluntarily contribute to social causes through donations and sponsorships and/or volunteering.
We ban plastic beverage containers by always serving drinks from glass bottles. This applies both to the drinks we serve in the bar and at meals, and to the drinking water provided in the room.
We do the bike rental in cooperation with a local bike rental company.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Improving the procurement process; sourcing locally and organic.
We work continuously to improve our own procurement process and focus in particular on goods and services that are sustainable, preferably carrying a recognised environmental and/or sustainability and/or social label.
Deli meats from butcher Wisse from Meliskerke. Zeeland jam and a number of other delicacies, with sustainability being a key feature.
We serve organic bread.
We buy some local beers through the city brewery.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Hosting free events.
—
Once a month, we organise an open jazz session here for musicians and people from the neighbourhood, where admission is free.
Inclusive value creation
Exchanging knowledge.
We actively keep abreast of CSR developments within our profession and make an active contribution to transferring our knowledge about it to employees and others who want to learn the trade.
—
Preserve the authentic landscape
—
—
—
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
—
—
—
Table 10: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 5)
Case 5
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Repairing buildings for a better energy label; sourcing locally based; minimising repurchases; reducing transport movements; buying a service instead of a product; construction of multi-purpose buildings.
We aim to restore the buildings in such a way as that they receive energy label A, which are the most energy efficient buildings.
In our honesty bar, you will find organic wines, locally produced juices and snacks and sweets from family-run businesses that share the same values as we do. Moreover, by sourcing locally we limit the transportation time and cost, and the impact on the environment.
We take very good care of our stuff, which means we have to buy new products less often. Our coffee machine is a good example of this.
We purchase linen from Blycolin under the form of services. Just as Philips no longer sells lamps but is in charge of light and all additional installation and maintenance work. Beds could also be an option.
Through a right of superficies, we have had an external company install charging stations where guests can then charge their car using their trusted debit card. It makes no sense for us to own and have to manage that infrastructure ourselves.
For me, doing more with the same thing is mainly in designing multifunctional spaces. For the design of the new building, we have already built in scenarios A, B and C, depending on what function the space will have at any given time.
Closing resource loops
Purchasing cradle to cradle; collecting rainwater.
The headboards and beds are both from Auping and are produced following the cradle-to-cradle philosophy.
When renewing our beds, we partnered with Auping, partly because of the quality they stand for, but certainly also because they produce beds in a cradle-to-cradle certified factory within Europe.
All rainwater from the studio building and the villa will be collected and stored in the drinking water well. In dry periods, that water can then be pumped up to irrigate the plants.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Generating electricity by solar panels; installing a solar boiler.
The power used at Case 5 is generated from renewable sources such as water and wind.
Because we operate our hotel within existing, historic buildings, we have to study individually for each building whether to renovate with solar panels, a solar water heater or better insulation. Heat pumps are very difficult to install here.
By asking our guests to indicate that they want new bed linen by laying a card, we have been able to reduce laundry costs by 65%. Not to mention the time and inconvenience it saves our staff.
Guests have a clear view of how we work in the kitchen, and thus separate waste, setting a good example without talking about it explicitly.
Adopt a stewardship role
Creating an environment plan with the neighbourhood; appointing a confidential advisor; cultivating plants and flowers native to the region.
Many of the plants and flowers native to the state of Zeeland disappeared in the last decades due to rezoning, water extraction and an overall change of the usage of land. However, Case 5 has worked closely together with foundation “Het Zeeuws Landschap” to only plant those plants and flowers native to the region. These efforts can be seen especially in the gardens surrounding the Farm House.
As part of good entrepreneurship, we have appointed a confidential advisor to whom people can turn in case of cross-border behaviour, for example. You won't find that anywhere in a hotel with only 31 rooms.
In our team formation, I strive to reflect society without compromising the quality you want to deliver.
Before shaping our expansion plans, we listened to the needs and wishes of the neighbourhood. We then commissioned a landscape plan, and only then studied how to make it economically sustainable.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Offering only vegetarian food; sourcing locally and organic.
Compose your own vegetarian breakfast from our delicious breakfast buffet.
For the cost of providing breakfast, it was no longer possible to buy quality meat, only heavily discounted meat. So, during the corona crisis, I decided to become a vegetarian hotel.
In Zeeland's food story, we are mapping bottlenecks with the Economic Board and there we also see that too-small productions are too vulnerable. As a hotelier, I prefer to buy locally, but I'm not going to drive all over the island.
Re-purpose for society/environment
Providing facilities for free.
—
The village council may use premises at Case 5 free of charge.
Inclusive value creation
Collaborating with local farmers; telling stories behind products; offering facilities free of charge to village community; free overnight accommodation for artists; working with people at a distance from the labour market.
The guest soaps that can be found in your room are produced by 's Heeren Loo, a foundation that works with people with disabilities. Another initiative we support is Stichting Orionis, a foundation working with people that for several reasons have a large distance to the job market.
With the oldest organic farm in the Netherlands in your village, alongside other local suppliers supplying so many wonderful products, as an entrepreneur you can't help but at least try to connect with those people.
Telling guests the story behind the products you serve is very important. Like, this apple juice comes from the Van den Bosch family from Serooskerke.
The village council may use premises at Case 5 free of charge.
We give artists the opportunity to work quietly on a new production here for several weeks.
Preserve the authentic landscape
Taking in account the landscape; adapting to climate change.
—
We first have a landscape plan designed by landscape architects in partnership with the Zeeland Environmental Federation before starting work with building architects. The landscape thus takes precedence over the economic use of the available space.
We will convert our lawn into a flowery lawn and are also in talks with the Forestry Commission to investigate which plant species are best suited for climate adaptation.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
—
—
—
Table 11: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 6)
Case 6
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website (translated from Dutch) to English)
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Making smart use of energy; buying a service instead of a product.
—
After installing the new solar panels on the covered camping area, the treatment plant will run mainly during the day, i.e. as much as possible based on solar power. After all, those purification processes do not need to run continuously.
Because I have a buffer of 50 cubic metres of water, the treatment processes do not have to run continuously, and I can adjust the speed of those processes to the times when our energy production is highest and water demand is lowest.
At a minimum, we own machines. For the rest, we rent machines from commercial parties at times when we need them.
Closing resource loops
Supplying farmers with filtered sewage water; processing released soil into garden turf; making compost out of green waste.
—
The sewage water coming from the toilets is treated in our MicroPEC installation, to the level that medicine residues are also filtered out. The treated water is pumped over to the basin, from which farmers can draw water.
We have a closed soil balance. This means that we process all released soil into garden turf, which is then used to build the parks of pitches.
Green waste, such as tree pruning, is collected by a commercial party for a fee, which then composts it.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Offering natural swimming pool; collecting rainwater; filtering rain water; using spring water; using a natural crushed stone filter; reducing nitrogen by bacteria.
To experience the real beach feeling at the park, you can use the natural swimming pond with beautifully landscaped beach and sunbathing area.
Case 6 and PureBlue Water BV, with support from Hogeschool Zeeland (Expertise Centre Water Technology), will jointly develop and demonstrate a pilot to purify, buffer, put to good use and offer the waste water and rainwater from Case 6 as a source of fresh water for irrigation to the surrounding farmers and municipality.
We collect 80% of the rainwater that falls on Case 6 domains and premises. Depending on precipitation, this amounts to 60,000 to 80,000 cubic metres. That water is stored via pumps in a basin that does not actually belong to the campsite.
The rainwater collected via the ditches is treated using a hydro flux installation, after which it is suitable for use in the laundry and to flush the toilets. Showering and washing hands are still done with tap water.
We also have a spring here, whose water we use to fill our natural swimming pond. What remains afterwards is used to flush the toilets or do laundry.
We reduce the nitrogen content in our wastewater between 70% and 90%. We do this by extracting oxygen from the wastewater, causing the bacteria in it to eat more nitrogen instead of oxygen.
In the ditch, we dug a deep hole and placed a crushed stone filter in it. In that summer, reeds grow around that, so we then automatically have an additional reed filter to purify the ditch water.
Encourage sufficiency
—
—
—
Adopt a stewardship role
Increasing biodiversity; offering customised facilities to disabled guests; offering a place for wildlife campers; using of Zeeland hedges.
—
Biodiversity in the ditches is supported because we only mow the ditches in autumn, after which we simply let nature take its course. This mowing is necessary to create the necessary buffer to collect rainwater in winter.
At the campsite, everything is at ground level, which already makes it easier for wheelchair users, but we have built special facilities to make it easy for those people to go into the natural pond too.
When constructing the new place for 'wild campers', we want to commit to planting a number of trees per motorised vehicle that meet predetermined criteria. This is part of the deal with the municipality.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
—
—
—
Re-purpose for society/ environment
Offering a place for wildlife campers.
—
We still have 1.5 hectares available where we want to create a forest that should convince wild campers to settle over there rather than staying illegally in another place, where the necessary waste is often left behind.
Inclusive value creation
Working with people at a distance from the labour market; exchanging knowledge; offering tours of the water management system.
—
I mainly consult and exchange information on projects like these with the owners of “Camping Weltevreden” and “Case 1”. Because we each have our own specific vision and specialities, we complement each other nicely.
Once the project is fully completed, we would like to give guests tours of the whole story of our water management.
We deliberately employ a number of people here who find it a bit more difficult to find their way in the regular employment circuit. After all, I think everyone deserves a second chance.
Preserve the authentic landscape
—
—
To fence off the plots where the campers are parked, we deliberately use the Walcheren regional hedge, say a piece of Zeeland, cultural heritage.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
Enabling the market by demonstrating.
The final outcome of the project is a business case that can be demonstrated in practice, enabling the market to make evidence-based investment decisions.
—
Table 12: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 7)
Case 7
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Installing heat pumps; installing thermostats and motion detectors; reducing energy consumption for lighting through sensors; reducing transport movements; limiting water use; using efficient dishwasher.
We have energy-efficient air-source heat pumps for heating the water for sanitary facilities and swimming pools, as well as for air heating of these facilities.
The heating in the villas is controlled by motion sensors (no movement = temperature down).
All sanitary buildings have skylights so that no lighting is needed during the day, at night the lighting works on motion sensors.
A barge can transport seven cottages at once. That immediately saves seven road transports.
To reduce shower time, we have push buttons in the shower rooms that provide hot water in five minutes and then do nothing for three minutes.
We have a very efficient dishwasher that does dishes in minutes.
Closing resource loops
Separating waste; construction of multi-purpose buildings; extracting heat.
We have separate waste collection (green waste, paper and glass are separated).
The houses are easily movable. At the end of its life, everything can be easily unscrewed.
You could easily convert the tiny houses into workshops, for example, by taking out the kitchen and keeping the plumbing. You don't have to take them completely apart right away to change their functionality.
For hot water, we work with Flamco's, which are boilers where the heat is generated via electricity (from solar panels) and stored in a heat exchanger with liquid salt, thus making you gas independent for your hot water production.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Generating electricity by solar panels; installing a solar boiler.
Case 7 also invests continually in sustainability, for example, by generating sustainable energy and the separate collection of waste.
We use solar boilers to heat the water of the swimming pools and villas.
We are currently installing solar panels on several villas.
We buy standard chalets on which our installer then lays solar panels.
Encourage sufficiency
Limiting water use.
The shower time in the sanitary blocks is limited to 6 minutes.
—
Adopt a stewardship role
Avoiding monopacks; using sustainable cleaning products; building accommodations locally and with circular materials; buying insulation made of wood shavings; offering customised facilities to disabled guests.
We use sustainable cleaning products in the sanitary blocks
Tourists are constantly looking for new accommodations and new experiences, that's why the Paardekreek wants to build circular accommodations.
For the insulation of the walls of the new cottages, we opted for the most ecological materials possible, wood shavings or the like.
We buy toilet paper in large quantities, opting for non-bleached paper. We also try to avoid monopacks for soaps and the like.
We have a number of accommodations that are accessible to disabled visitors and there is also a bathroom in the large, sanitary building that is fully equipped for disabled visitors.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
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—
—
Re-purpose for society/ environment
Hosting free events; providing walking tracks to local residents.
—
At the end of the school year, the primary school organises the school barbecue, where parents and children from that school camp for free on fields we reserve especially for that purpose.
There are also quite a few people from the village who take their walk with the dog here, or even stay for a picnic. Precisely to emphasise this openness, we have removed the entrance gate and other fences.
Inclusive value creation
Sharing knowledge through demonstrations; using intranet for exchanging knowledge; offering swimming lessons.
FACET strives for circular solutions in the tourism sector by supporting entrepreneurs in the transition from linear to circular. This will be done by demonstrating solutions, so that entrepreneurs get knowledge and support in changing their business model. In this short animation we explain how this project works.
Ardoer's intranet makes it easy for us to exchange information and ask each other questions. That runs very smoothly.
Our pool also offers swimming lessons that people from the area can take advantage of. In addition, people from North Beveland can buy an annual subscription to the pool for half the price.
Preserve the authentic landscape
—
—
For aesthetic reasons, we have chosen to put solar panels only on the back of the new cottages, even though this leads to a lower yield of solar power.
The cottage on the side of the pier is under a tree, so it made no sense to install solar panels on the roof. However, that tree is an essential part of the environment, so we especially did not want to touch it.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
—
—
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Table 13: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 8)
Case 8
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Cards for recharging hot water credits.
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When renovating the sanitary building, we chose, against the installer's advice, to reinstall the old card readers where guests can recharge their hot water credits in the renovated rooms.
Closing resource loops
Separating waste.
Waste collected and disposed of separately, e-waste recycled.
—
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Generating electricity by solar panels.
—
There are fourteen solar panels on the sanitary building, ensuring that the laundry and showers run more than neutral in terms of energy supply.
Encourage sufficiency
Limiting water use; cards for recharging hot water credits; monitoring consumption.
Making our guests aware of water consumption and reducing it through shower passes.
Printing as little as possible, and only on paper made from agricultural waste.
Guests get free five minutes of hot water credit per day on their card, as we feel this is more than enough. Guests see their credit countdown on the monitor, making them very aware of the actual cost.
Adopt a stewardship role
Mobile accommodation; sustainable cleaning products; increasing biodiversity; re-using the ridge of the old barn; collaborating with local stakeholders.
For example, the ridge of the old barn was incorporated in its entirety into the replacement shed.
Buy local and collaborate as much as possible.
Eco-friendly fuel refuelling for our mower.
Cleaning with biodegradable agents.
Both for cleaning products, toilet paper and paper for the printer, we buy products that are ecologically sound: Ecover for cleaning, non-chlorine bleached toilet paper and A4 paper reclaimed from agricultural waste.
We have sown a lawn, which served as an overflow car park, with a rich flower mixture. This is beneficial for insects and wild bees. It looks so beautiful that people love to walk past it and post pictures of it on Instagram.
We do not have Wi-Fi on site because we believe that holidays should be a moment of reflection, to unwind.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
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—
—
Re-purpose for society/environment
—
—
—
Inclusive value creation
Organising a food truck event on campsite.
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Occasionally, we invite local entrepreneurs to set up their food truck at the campsite so that they can offer their wares here. Although we deliberately invite local entrepreneurs, we do not otherwise check the origin of their food products.
Preserve the authentic landscape
Taking in account the landscape.
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In line with the coastal vision, we want to better integrate the camping sites into the landscape. Such that, when the accommodation units are removed in winter, you can hardly see that a campsite is operated here in summer.
To better integrate the campsite within the landscape, work is already underway to soften pitches and minimise lighting.
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
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—
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Table 14: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 9)
Case 9
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website (translated from Dutch) to English)
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Collaborating with local stakeholders; using a short food chain; buying a service instead of a product;
using efficiently the dishwater.
In short, using the short food chain as much as possible is our goal.
The many years of cooperation with many regional suppliers is also reflected in our country shop and, of course, on the plate.
In the kitchen, we pay attention to putting full baskets in the dishwasher and eliminating empty freezers, or stacking crockery in a way that makes it less likely to break.
The Ice Cappuccino machine is not our property. After the season ends, it will be collected again by the supplier.
Closing resource loops
Minimising repurchases.
—
The doors in this space are from Mascha Brunia's second-hand shop in Breda, because the architect we worked with on the renovation was working with that at the time.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
—
—
—
Encourage sufficiency
Buying sustainable toilet products.
This product line is super innovative and uses alternative raw materials such as Filip's elephant grass to produce hygiene paper. So also toilet paper! From today (20 October), wipe your bottom at our restaurant with this soft and sustainable toilet paper.
—
Adopt a stewardship role
Leading by example; offering customised facilities to disabled guests; hosting free events; increasing biodiversity.
—
As an entrepreneur, I want to be progressive and set an example. So I am also willing to pay a higher price for sustainable products like the toilet paper produced in Germany with the elephant grass my brother grows here.
When we renovated, we deliberately made the toilets more spacious, even though we were just a square metre short of getting a grant for it. But people with wheelchairs are certainly welcome, so we did it at our own expense.
On the national clean-up day of Nederland Schoon, we offer vests and pegs and provide free pancakes for everyone who cleans up. This dates back to the corona days when we started looking at which events we could join.
To support biodiversity, we took a course at the IVN to keep our bee hotel. We will now sow flowers and there will also be pear trees.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Sourcing locally.
Originally an agri-business, in which the home-grown potato still plays a leading role. You will find this potato both in our country shop and on our menu. In short, using the short food chain as much as possible is our goal. The many years of cooperation with many regional suppliers is also reflected in our country shop and, of course, on the plate. Taste and experience the Zeeland Flanders region with us!
I want to work as much as possible with local people, with the crops that grow and flourish around us. I want to see that authenticity, that local origin of the products, on the plate. That's why our restaurant is also called "Case 9".
Re-purpose for society/ environment
Hosting free events.
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The Orange Committee has been organising King's Day here for 20 years, with stalls on our grounds and six-camps on the meadow opposite. They provide the activities; we provide the food and drinks.
During the corona period, we organised a Christmas market where local suppliers could advertise their wares in their own stalls. In this way, we wanted to give people the opportunity to get inspiration for their Christmas dinner.
Inclusive value creation
Telling stories behind products; working with people at a distance from the labour market; being an ambassador for landscape.
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Every shop assistant is trained to know the story behind the products on the shelf. He should be able to tell the customer where it comes from and how the production processes work. Hence, we make regular visits.
As ambassadors of Host Landscape (Gastheer Landschap), we do not contribute to preserving the authentic landscape, but we can refer people with questions or provide some explanation about the walks organised.
We have been employing a boy for 10 years who had been struggling both at school and at home. When his mother died, we worked with his family to find a solution so that he could continue to work here.
Preserve the authentic landscape
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Develop sustainable scale up solutions
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Table 15: Examples of sustainable activities per archetype per case (Case 10)
Case 10
Archetypes
Sustainability activities
Statements on the website (translated from Dutch) to English)
Paraphrased quotes (translated from Dutch)
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Making smart use of energy; reducing energy consumption for lighting through sensors.
Various energy-saving measures such as LED lighting, light sensors, smart thermostats, high-efficiency boilers, insulation and more.
For instance, special pipes will be installed, and pumps will be constructed that allow shower water to be converted to toilet water. Rainwater will also be converted to drinking water, shower water or toilet flush water.
Several times a week, the coffee grounds from the coffee you drink with us are taken by our supplier and used to grow oyster mushrooms. From these oyster mushrooms, our oyster mushroom carpaccio (V) and oyster mushroom croquettes (V) are made.
Waste separation: from plastic to coffee grounds.
We have provided a greywater connection in the new chalets, even though we cannot put it into use immediately, due to no greywater management system yet.
The new chalets must be sanitary facilities suitable for separate grey water drainage.
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Installing chargers for electric cars; storing energy in batteries; using green energy.
Have our own car charging points.
Working with green energy.
Instead of using excess solar power to heat pool water, we are also going to study the possibilities of storing that power in batteries.
The new chalets must be equipped with a heat pump.
Encourage sufficiency
Minimising unnecessary towel changes.
Using towels in rooms again, just leave them hanging! Towels on the floor means, please get new towels.
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Adopt a stewardship role
Sustainable cleaning products; installing heat pumps; participating in local events; having disabled toilets; offering customised facilities to disabled guests.
Do we use ecological cleaning agents in a dosing device.
For instance, we also have products with the Zeker Zeeuws label. The raw materials of this product come from Zeeland, processing into the final product and production takes place in a sustainable way and meets the legal sustainability requirements.
We are very accessible for disabled guests.
We have disabled toilets in the toilet block, and in the hotel, we also have adapted rooms.
Heat pumps are being installed in the new chalets by a small company here in Renesse. And we bought the new lawnmower in Wolphaartsdijk. We deliberately try to keep that around here because it is not much more expensive.
As with the fjoertoer, we participate in the dweilband festival. These are off-season events where local residents want to compensate for the inconvenience, they may have experienced during the summer due to crowds.
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Sourcing locally.
Purchasing sustainably and locally as much as possible.
We buy tomatoes, strawberries as well as vegetables and meat locally. That includes the fallow deer that are shot here in winter in cooperation with the Forestry Commission.
Re-purpose for society/ environment
Local children playing on site for free.
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Local children can just come and play in our playground for free. And people who want to walk their dogs on our grounds in the evening do not have to pay for that either.
Inclusive value creation
Free overnight accommodation for artists.
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We participate annually in Renesse's Fjoertoer, in which artists display all kinds of objects along a footpath in the dark. Those artists come from all over the Netherlands and can enjoy free board and lodging during those days.
Preserve the authentic landscape
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Develop sustainable scale up solutions
Re-using shower water.
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In the toilet block, we conducted a test of collecting shower water to flush the toilets. That trial was more than successful, so this system will be implemented when the toilet buildings are renovated.
Appendix 5. Summary overview of sustainability activities and archetypes
Table 16: Identified archetypes
ID
Archetypes
Description
Example applications
1
Maximise material and energy efficiency
Do more with fewer resources, generating less waste, emissions, and pollution.
Building accommodations with biobased materials; reducing energy consumption for lighting through sensors; reducing waste collection transports by adopting press containers.
2
Closing resource loops
Reuse materials and products; turn waste into feedstocks for other products/ processes.
Purifying ditch water for recreational use in a natural swimming pond or playground through indigenous vegetation and plants; capturing and re-using hot air emissions; letting animals graze grasslands; purchasing cradle-to-cradle certified furniture; sharing water reserves with neighbouring farmers; constructing multi-purpose buildings; installing grey water systems for using shower water to flush the toilets; installing sewage treatment system to upgrade sewage to grey water.
3
Substitute with renewables and natural processes
Use of non-finite materials and energy sources.
Filtering water by a wadi; generating electricity by solar panels; using bio propane; installing heat pumps; collecting rainwater; heating pool water with solar boilers.
4
Prioritise sustainably and locally produced food and drinks
Favour sustainably and regionally produced.
Cooking with seasonable vegetables that are locally produced; sourcing food and drinks locally; replacing meat ingredients by plant-based alternatives
5
Adopt a stewardship role
Proactively engaging with all stakeholders to ensure their long-term health and well-being.
Organising educational tours for children through surrounding nature and neighbourhood; providing walking tracks to local residents; hosting free events for the neighbourhood; hiring people that face problems at the regular labour market.
6
Encourage sufficiency
Solutions that actively seek to reduce consumption and production.
Informing guests and suppliers about how to reduce negative impact; limiting water use in showers and bathrooms; curtailing unnecessary towel changes.
7
Re-purpose for society/environment
Seek to create positive value for all stakeholders, in particular society and environment
Offering free playground for children of local residents; providing facilities and infrastructure for community events like “Nederland Schoon” (“Clean Netherlands”); organising food market for local farmers, butchers, cheesemakers, and artisans.
8
Inclusive value creation
Sharing resources, knowledge, ownership, and wealth creation, inclusive value generation.
Collaborating with schools and/or local children day care centres; telling stories behind the products; offering free accommodation to artists; sharing knowledge through collaboration platforms for T&R entrepreneurs.
9
Preserve the authentic landscape
Subordinate commercial activities to the protection and preservation of nature.
Planting a food forest; adopting plants and hedges that are typical for the region; integrating accommodation building within the landscape; prioritising the scenic view over the economic use of the available space.
10
Develop sustainable scale up solutions
Delivering sustainable solutions at a large scale to maximise benefits for society and the environment.
Co-creating and supporting the production of sustainable buckets.
Appendix 6. Map of Zeeland
Appendix 7. Affiliations
Dr. Ageeth van Maldegem is professor sustainable business model at the HZ Knowledge Centre Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Focus area of this research group is on capabilities for sustainable innovation. Ageeth has a 20-year track record as market researcher, working closely together with innovating teams and entrepreneurs in service industries. She had a particular interest in customer needs and her applied scientific research today focuses on how the voice of the customer can drive radical innovations and support the transition towards sustainable business models.
Frank Peeters is researcher at the HZ Knowledge Centre Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Focus area of this research group is on capabilities for sustainable innovation. Frank has a special focus on how new technologies offer small and medium enterprises opportunities to design and implement sustainable business models that take on 21st-century challenges.
Stef Bleyenberg is researcher at the HZ Knowledge Centre Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Focus area of this research group is on capabilities for sustainable innovation. Stef has a particular interest in sustainability transitions, collaborative business models and stimulating SMEs to adopt sustainable business practices.
Nilab Raufi is student-assistant at the HZ Knowledge Centre Entrepreneurship & Innovation. Focus area of this research group is on capabilities for sustainable innovation. She has a bachelor’s degree in business administration and is currently studying Human Resource Management. Nilab has a particular interest in future-proof business models and in understanding human behaviour.
Special thanks go to Marije Noordhoek, Simon Witt, Maarten Soeters and Harm Ijben from HZ Research Centre of Expertise of Coastal Tourism for introducing this research project, sharing their highly valuable comments, and proofreading this paper.
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