In 2011 Positive Luxury was founded by two women, Diana Verde Nieto and Karen Hanton, fuelled by the belief that technology and transparency could revolutionise sustainability. United by shared values and inspired by the resurgent tale of the Large Blue Butterfly, symbolising the triumph of hard work and collaboration, Positive Luxury and the Butterfly Mark emerged. A decade later, having helped over 200 businesses meet higher and higher standards for people and nature their mission endures: to transform luxury, for the good of all. Today, we hear from CEO Amy Nelson-Bennett as she reflects on Positive Luxury’s core values, proudest moments and gives her advice to aspiring business leaders.
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Hi Amy, can you tell us a bit about how Positive Luxury started?
Positive Luxury launched just over a decade ago when Diana Verde Nieto and Karen Hanton were brought together through a shared belief that the highly aspiration luxury industry needed to lead positive change and enable every member of society – individuals and businesses – to play a role in preserving and restoring nature. Positive Luxury wanted to help businesses get started on their sustainability journey, while the Butterfly Mark was developed to signal brands which consumers could trust. These ideas aligns very closely with Gro Harlem Brundtland’s vision, a prominent figure in sustainable development in the 1980s, that sustainability is “meeting the needs of today without compromising the needs of future generations.”
What do you think it was about the state of the world at that time that spurred Positive’s Luxury inception?
The whole concept of sustainability was at a relatively early stage when Karen and Diana started Positive Luxury, and it has come a very long way since Diana started working in this field 20+ years ago. I’m pleased to say that there has been significant acceleration in progress and awareness around the fundamental pillars of Environment, Social and Governance in the last few years, as well as growing comfort with transparency. The change isn’t happening as quickly as we’d like, but we are seeing real progress, which is very motivating for the PL team and community. First and foremost, Positive Luxury is and always has been about making sustainability easier for businesses to assess and adopt and easier for luxury consumers to understand so they can make informed choices. That’s what Positive Luxury does – connect the dots between luxury businesses delivering real change and the wider world that should take inspiration from those real changemakers.
Tell us what it was about the story of the reintroduction of the Large Blue Butterfly that inspired the creation of the prestigious Butterfly Mark?
In 2010 Diana was presenting Sir David Attenborough with a lifetime achievement award and over dinner he regaled her with the story of a project he was supporting to reintroduce the Large Blue Butterfly to the British Isles after it died out in 1979. In a complex but inspiring tale of ants, Battenburg cake and 37 years of scientific labour, this butterfly now flies in larger numbers in the UK than anywhere else in western Europe, it’s reintroduction a watershed moment for conservation. This very practical illustration of positive progress inspired Diana and Karen, and it is why the iconic Butterfly has been woven throughout Positive Luxury, our mission and values, and our products and services. The accreditation our founders established and which we still award to luxury business demonstrating higher and higher standards for people and nature, represents the necessity and vitality of collaboration, hard work and a long-term commitment to deliver real change. Fewer than 200 brands have met the rigorous standards to earn the trust mark, and we are immensely privileged and proud to work with these Real Changemakers.
What are the core values and mission of Positive Luxury, and how have these evolved since its founding?
The mission has always been to shape a sustainable future for luxury by redefining the business model and rebuilding consumer trust, and we envision a future where luxury and sustainability are fully symbiotic – that will be truly positive luxury. The luxury industry has always set trends and we believe we have an obligation to lead, whether that be in product categories such as fashion, beauty and jewellery & watches, or across more experience-led sectors such as travel & leisure, premium drinks and interiors. Our core values are intrinsic to our mission, and within Positive Luxury we hold ourselves and each other accountable to them daily: act with purpose, commit to excellence, collaborate with care and choose optimism (because every business and every individual can help deliver real change).
In the years since its inception, what have been some of the proudest moments for Positive Luxury?
In the last year, we have made some exciting changes to the business which I am very proud to see come to life. We have worked on expanding our services, innovating our technology platform, and improving the tools we can provide to clients to help them engage consumers and other stakeholders in their work. The bespoke approach we can offer is what allows the team to nurture clients along their sustainability journey and continue to embed sustainability within their business, and I have a great feeling for what is to come. The proudest moments are always about the people, a client tearfully happy to earn Butterfly Mark certification, a team member generating a really high-value piece of support for a client or a prospect joining the community because of the relationship they’ve built with one of our account managers over time.
As a business leader, what is one piece of advice you wish you had been given early on in your career?
Hmmm…. I’m torn between “choose your battles carefully” and a warning on micro-management. I learned both of these through tough experience. It’s imperative to prioritise the issues that are most material, and let others simmer on the back burner. Equally, no business is successful because of its leader. It’s successful when a leader creates an environment where talent can thrive and meaningfully contribute to that business’s success. Be crystal clear about the destination and keep hold of the reins, but hold them loosely.
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