The five-star The Calile has partnered with the Australian Bedding Stewardship Council in a mission to rethink, redesign, reuse, and recycle bedding.
The Brisbane luxury hotel listed in the World’s 50 Best Hotels has replaced every bed while diverting 16,151 kilograms of waste from landfill and engaging Indigenous-owned social enterprise Project Net Zero to manage the work.
The scheme is a voluntary, industry-led product stewardship program authorised by the ACCC, focused on recovering end-of-life mattresses and moving the bedding sector toward circular-economy practices.
Mattresses were shredded and recycled into Process Engineered Fuel, an alternative fuel source that reduces reliance on fossil fuels.
Pillows, protectors and doonas were donated to the Remote OpShop in the Northern Territory, which works with First Nations communities to run op shops in areas with limited retail access.
ReStart SEQ also received bedding to support people escaping domestic violence and homelessness.
Project Net Zero was founded by Greg Bird (Anaiwan) and Aron Kurzydlo (Kamilaroi) and is a 100 per cent Indigenous-owned and operated business providing nationwide asset recovery and de-fit services for offices and hotels.
“We have replaced every bed in the hotel with a large focus on doing it sustainably, nothing to landfill, reusing through local charities first and recycling the rest,” says The Calile Hotel general manager Chris Kemlo.
“The result, a sensational new bedding experience we’re proud to offer to our guests. All in the quiet knowledge that bringing it to life didn’t cost the planet anything on the way out.”
Part of a wider strategy
The bedding project sits alongside the hotel’s “Stay with Purpose” charitable initiative, which last year recorded $250,000 in donations to local charities.
On the rooftop, an organic garden supplies seasonal produce, while 90 solar panels generate 75,000 kWh annually. A greenhouse nurtures 68 orchids across a twelve-month cycle, with flowering blooms sent down to selected guest suites in place of imported cut flowers.
“Growing up, my mother always sought florals that offered longevity. That sentiment inspired us to create something more enduring,” says The Calile Hotel co-owner Catherine Malouf, referencing the rooftop garden cultivated with partner Future Wild.
For more information, visit The Calile Hotel.
KARRYON UNPACKS: Sustainability credentials increasingly move the needle for the affluent traveller, and The Calile’s decision to route its de-fit through an Indigenous-owned enterprise gives advisors a concrete, measurable story to tell rather than a vague green claim. In a market crowded with pledges, a landfill figure and named charity beneficiaries are the kind of specifics that sell purpose without the greenwash.
