“My career started in a dishonest, non-sustainable, unethical workplace — I truly wanted to create the complete opposite of that”
In March of 2019, Florida-based Legacy Vacation Resorts officially achieved Certified B Corporation Status and became the first multi-state hotel and vacation ownership company in the country to secure the prestigious designation. MaCher talks to its co-owner, Jared Meyers, about his journey.
Why did you choose to become a B Corp?
A few years before we certified, I was searching for ways that Legacy Vacation Resorts (LVR) could use the power of our business to improve society. I learned of other companies that were directing the prosperity of their businesses towards the greater good and found that the most credible businesses doing so were Certified B Corporations. B Corps stood out because of their wholistic view of the aspects of the business, the rigorous verification of business practices, and the alignment of their values with those that I wanted LVR to adopt (as well as my own).
Tell us about the journey to certification…
To be honest, the road was long and the journey was, at times, tedious! We all truly felt it was the only way forward for the business though. We set out to align every aspect of our operations with B Lab’s requirements. We introduced a variety of efforts to achieve a more sustainable business model including carbon footprint offsetting, waste reduction and enhanced recycling efforts, sustainable lifestyle awareness campaigns, green-focused renovation projects and a living wage initiative for employees in our eight locations across four states.
Where did your passion for business with purpose come from/who inspired you?
I have a passion to see what I can do for the betterment of society. My career started in a dishonest, non-sustainable, unethical workplace — and I truly wanted to create the complete opposite of that. I was inspired by household-name brands like Patagonia, Eileen Fisher and Seventh Generation… all voluntarily meeting the highest levels of social and environmental performance with transparency and accountability while thriving. They adopted a higher purpose, stakeholder orientation and conscious practices which ultimately led to their strong profits and worth.
Some of my sustainability heroes include Elon Musk and Yvonne Chouinard. Musk showed me that it was possible to build a successful business around solving massive worldwide problems. Tesla’s mission was not to sell more cars but instead to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy — so I like to think of my company as a tool to improve society. Chouinard taught me that humans usually mess things up and that business could be successful while operating with pure intentions at its core. Patagonia remains the gold standard by which we create our vision and execute upon it. They continually prove that we can all do better.
What have you learned about collaboration along the way?
I realized early on that we can’t do this alone and that we all must work together for maximum impact. This was the reason I co-created the For Good Movement (FGM), a 501(c)3 nonprofit that serves as a connector between B Corps, Conscious Capitalism, 1% For the Planet, like minded organizations, governments, academia and local For Good ecosystems throughout the state of Florida. As part of this and because of our continued involvement in the B Corp movement, I wanted to see something specific for hospitality and tourism. As such, I helped to create B Tourism, a global network of Certified B Corporation travel and tourism companies as well as other conscious travel organizations taking collective action for the betterment of society and the health of our planet. The platform serves as a resource for the regenerative travel movement and to help travelers enjoy a vacation experience that understands interdependence and interconnectedness.
What does the future look like for your business?
For the future of LVR, I hope that we continue to improve upon every aspect of our business and create a measurable positive impact for people, the planet and the communities in which we operate. I want LVR to become an example and a case study to show others in the tourism industry, and even outside of it, that you can do well while doing good.
This article has been posted by MaCher to celebrate B Corp Month 2021 and build awareness of companies that meet the highest standard of verified social and environmental performance. To learn more about LVR’s journey to B Corp status, watch their new brand video.