Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) is more than just a buzzword in today’s business landscape; it’s a guiding principle that ensures businesses are sustainable, ethical and accountable to their customers, employees and stakeholders.
Chestertons, London’s long-established estate agent, is proud to be leading the charge in the property industry towards a more sustainable future. It was the first major estate agency group to replace its whole fleet of company cars with emission-free electric vehicles in July 2019.
The Benefits of a Green Fleet
Chestertons has been serving London since 1805 and at present has around 60 vehicles on the capital’s roads. Managing Director Guy Gittins says: “We are constantly embracing new technology to improve our efficiency and are very proud to now be using it to do our bit to reduce pollution and improve air quality in London.”
In order to further improve the sustainability of their supply chain, Chestertons enlisted the services of Dropless, London’s waterless car wash start-up, to clean its fleet of all-electric BMW i3s.
Working Towards a Zero-Emission Supply Chain
Dropless has only been in business since 2018 but is already making waves in the car wash industry – or a lack of waves, technically, as their waterless vehicle cleaning service saves an average of 150 litres of water per wash.
Mike Grindy, Founder and CEO of Dropless, says: “We set up Dropless because we saw a fragmented, dated car wash industry and realised that we could make it better. Our approach brings it into the twenty-first century, which automatically means introducing a heightened awareness of sustainable, ethical and eco-friendly practices.”
By using ecological nano solutions, a Dropless wash uses just 2-3 litres of water per vehicle and eliminates the need for drainage, preventing harmful chemical runoff into the water system. It also enables their service to be mobile – operators travel to and from fleets all across London on electric mopeds.
Working Together to Make a Difference
The new partnership allows Chestertons to save an astounding 624,000 litres of water annually compared with a standard weekly car wash per vehicle.
“It goes to show that small changes really can make a world of difference. We are very glad to have found a supplier that shares our sustainable values and can help us eliminate water wastage from the fleet cleaning process,” says Fleet Manager Michelle Francis.