FAIRFIELD, N.J.—Tommy Bahama dispensers have found a home in a number of hotels along the Pacific Coast with the help of Essential Amenities, Inc. and Pineapple Hospitality. The Acqua Hotel, Hotel FIVE, The Maxwell Hotel, University Inn, and Watertown Hotel have all recently adopted the Tommy Bahama hotel amenities in all guestrooms as part of an effort to reduce waste and make a positive impact on the environment.
“We’re very proud because we are the first hotel in California to feature the Tommy Bahama dispensers,” says Kurt Helmke, general manager for the Acqua Hotel, located in Marin County just outside of San Francisco. “Here, people are very environmentally conscious, and expect the hotels to be the same. A lot of hotels have started moving to dispenser systems, but the Tommy Bahama products make us stand out.”
Licensed into the hospitality industry by Essential Amenities, Tommy Bahama dispensers are available through Pineapple Hospitality, a distributor of green hotel products and marketing programs for the hospitality industry.
The Tommy Bahama amenity line includes high-quality soaps, shampoos, conditioners and moisturizer products, as well as accessory items which have been designed to support the casual lifestyle of the brand for the luxury hotel setting.
No Animal Testing
“Tommy Bahama amenities were created specifically for hotel guests using gentle formulas and natural ingredients, which are never tested on animals and are packaged with the environment in mind,” says Michael Ware, president of Essential Amenities, Inc. “The Exotic Coral fragrance brings a clean, fresh aroma to give hotel guests a relaxed and pampered feeling, and will help to enhance your guest’s entire experience while staying at your property.”
“Gallon-sized amenities and dispensers are a smart choice for hotels economically and environmentally,” says Ray Burger, president of Pineapple Hospitality. “It cuts down on wasted soap and shampoo products, and you are not throwing away hundreds of little plastic bottles at the end of each day.”
Working with management from its ownership group at Broughton Hospitality, Helmke said they decided to give Tommy Bahama a try at the Acqua Hotel this past summer.
“We try to do as much as we can to be environmentally responsible, from recycling in every guestroom to an ozone system in our laundry facilities,” says Helmke. “With our ties to our community and the environment, the dispenser program was a great fit for us.
Hotel FIVE, The Maxwell Hotel, University Inn, and Watertown Hotel are four unique Seattle boutique hotels operated by Pineapple Hospitality, a hotel management group that happens to share the same name as Pineapple Hospitality the distributor.
Recently, Pineapple Hospitality has been working with Essential Amenities and Pineapple Hospitality to become the first hotels in the state of Washington to feature Tommy Bahama dispensers.
Little Steps Add Up to Big Steps
“We are only about 450 out of thousands of rooms in Seattle,” says Marco Baumann, managing director for Pineapple Hospitality hotels. “But we believe that any improvement we can make, whether it is through efforts like recycling or amenity dispensers, can add up and make a big difference. Hotel guests use only one-fourth to one-half of the contents of their amenities bottles each day. You wash your hands once and throw an entire bar of soap in the garbage. It makes sense to find a better way of doing things.”
Brett Magnan, director of development & operations at CherryTree Hospitality Management, is a consultant who has been working with Pineapple Hospitality hotels. He has been a key part of bringing the two Pineapple Hospitalities together during the Tommy Bahama upgrade.
“First of all, Tommy Bahama is a great brand, a great product,” says Magnan. “It’s a green, environmentally sound solution that allows hotels to reduce the waste of hundreds of little plastic bottles each day. But working with Essential Amenities and Pineapple Hospitality, it’s a great business decision too. You can save money by buying gallons. And the dispensers makes it easier on housekeeping each day. Tommy Bahama is a great program and we’re glad to be working with all.”
The Tommy Bahama gallon amenities available through Pineapple Hospitality include: Exotic Coral Shampoo; Exotic Coral Protective Conditioner; Exotic Coral Liquid Soap; Exotic Coral Hand & Body Lotion; and Exotic Coral Bath & Body Gel.
Pineapple Hospitality ships exclusively using UPS’s carbon neutral program.
Go to Essential Amenities and Pineapple Hospitality.
