Although Land Rover Gear has been available for a number of years through Land Rover dealerships, the company launched their first retail store in the Gateway Shopping centre on the 19th of March this year. For the company’s Co-Directors, Chester Foster and Terry Flack, this has not only been a significant step in their ultimate vision for Land Rover Gear, but has also allowed them an excellent platform for promoting the company’s “Nurture Nature” approach to business, says Flack: “We’ve both got an extensive love for the outdoors and come from a background where conservation is very important to us, and because of that we have a strong environmental crusade for the business. Looking at a business’ carbon foot print has to become more relevant than ever before.”
The company obviously has close ties with Land Rover itself, and in particular Land Rover Gear is keen to emulate some of their many environmental and conservation projects, such as Land Rover’s collaboration with Climate Care, an organization that ensures the carbon neutrality of all Land Rover vehicles for the first 45,000 miles; and their Ugandan stove project, which aims to install 20,000 new, more efficient stoves per year in and around Kampala. Land Rover Gear also have their own environmental plans, explains Flack: “We aim in the next year or two to become a completely carbon neutral business and to make sure that we stick to all the policies that make a business a good clean living business.” This is an ambitious undertaking but the company feels that it is best to start as they mean to continue: “We are a fairly young company, but it makes sense to get this right from the very beginning.”
Another very important aspect of this environmental vision was the achievement of becoming the first (and thus far only) company in Africa to register with 1% For The Planet. Once registered they had a choice of 3 (already registered) non profit organizations with which to collaborate but they chose instead to approach the Wildlands Conservation Trust and ask them to register because they felt Wildlands would be a natural fit with their company. Land Rover Gear is a KZN-based organization, as is Wildlands; and as both Foster and Flack are outdoor and sporting enthusiasts they were also well acquainted with Wildlands through the extreme sporting challenges Wildlands runs annually as part of their Bonitas Wild Series. The company also clearly sees the necessity of conserving the environment and thereby conserving the type of outdoor adventure ‘Land Rover Lifestyle’ that many of their customers engage in or aspire to, as Simone Dale, Wildlands Media Manager explains: “If we don’t conserve the beautiful areas and natural resources that we have, there won’t be any places for outdoor sports enthusiasts to do these kind of events.”
Although the exact use Land Rover Gear’s annual donation is yet to be decided, both parties are leaning towards Wildland’s Indigenous Trees for Life Campaign, which not only contributes to the restoration of the region’s forest eco-systems, but also provides a sustainable livelihood for the 2000 ‘treepreneurs’ who grew over 250 000 trees last season. The trees are planted in urban greening projects in eSikhaweni, Sokhulu, Mbonambi (all in Richard’s Bay), Khula (St Lucia area) and Waterloo (Umhlanga). Trees will also be used to create pilot carbon sink projects associated with the restoration of the Mkhuze Riverine Forest and Ongoye Scarp Forest. The project connects nicely with Land Rover Gear’s concerns about carbon neutrality, and also fits the company’s bias towards specifically environmental projects, as Flack explains: “In South Africa there hasn’t been a clear enough delineation between environmental awareness and conservation. I think conservation will always be key because its one of our most important resources but business, especially South African business, now needs to awaken and realize that we’ve got such incredibly beautiful environmental resources and they need to be protected too.”
According to Wildland’s CEO, Dr Andrew Venter: “Land Rover Gear’s commitment to 1% For The Planet is pioneering. We were very excited when they approached us and are proud that we are now one of Africa ’s four 1% For The Planet registered environmental organisations. We’re also hoping to use Land Rover Gear’s example to recruit a number of other SA businesses to the much needed cause of environmental protection.” One can only hope now that more environmentally conscious companies like Land Rover Gear heed the call.
To register with 1% For The Planet visit the website at www.onepercentfortheplanet.org and to find out more about Land Rover Gear’s environmental initiatives and to view their product range visit their website on www.landrovergear.co.za.
* Reproduced with kind permission from the Weekend Witness.
WILDTRUST (registered as the Wildlands Conservation Trust - IT No: 4329/1991/PMB)