Sustainability Spotlight | Salcombe Distilling Co.
In our latest Spotlight we asked co-founder and director, Howard Davies of Salcombe Distilling Co. how they have made great strides to become more sustainable.
Located in the heart of Salcombe, Salcombe Distilling Co. was founded by Angus Lugsdin and Howard Davies, inspired by the town’s rich coastal heritage and stunning surroundings.
Their first gin, Salcombe Gin ‘Start Point’, launched in 2016 with the classic London Dry Gin quickly earning critical acclaim, winning multiple awards and establishing Salcombe Gin as a favourite among gin enthusiasts worldwide. Distilled using the London Dry method it is crafted with 13 botanicals, including Macedonian juniper, red grapefruit and cardamom.
Salcombe Distilling Co.’s range has since grown to include Salcombe Gin ‘Rosé Sainte Marie’, a Mediterranean-inspired gin with bright, elegant flavours reminiscent of Southern France and more recently, ‘Four Seas’ by Salcombe Gin, which supports the RNLI through a donation from every bottle sold.
New London Light, a collection of non-alcoholic spirits and aperitifs, Salcombe Rum, and the Voyager Series, limited-edition collaborations with renowned chefs including Michael Caines MBE, Mark Hix, Monica Galetti and Paul Ainsworth, have all joined Salcombe Distilling Co.’s portfolio over the past ten years.
All of Salcombe Distilling Co.’s products are crafted at their waterside distillery on Island Street which is accessible by boat and steeped in maritime heritage. Here, in addition to their distillery bar they have Salcombe Gin School which offers a hands-on distilling experience that has welcomed over 20,000 guests since 2017.
What have you done to make your business more sustainable?
We have taken big steps to make Salcombe Distilling Co. more sustainable, most recently through the introduction of our new 5cl aluminium miniature bottles. Made from 100% post-consumer recycled aluminium they are the lowest-impact spirit miniatures on the market. Lightweight and fully recyclable, they generate up to 90% less CO₂ than traditional glass or PET bottles, while being 54% lighter, cutting emissions across production and delivery.
Sustainability doesn’t stop there. All of our products are plastic-free, our bottles feature biodegradable cellulose tamper-proof seals and we are proud to donate 1% of sales from our Salcombe Gin ‘Start Point’ to the Marine Conservation Society, helping to protect and restore ocean habitats.
We have also introduced a refill scheme and our trade customers can buy larger formats for refills, reducing packaging waste.
What would you like to change in the future to improve your sustainability credentials further?
We would like to expand upon our gin refill scheme initiative, in which customers can bring their empty bottles of Salcombe Gin to our stores and get them refilled for a 20% discount on the price of a new bottle. This is the ultimate in sustainability, being able to re-use bottles directly while also providing great value to our customers.
Currently we have a number of trade partners supporting our refill scheme including Darts Farm in Topsham, Inspirations in Brixham and Barrel and Still in Kingsbridge. If we could spread this further with broader adoption by other retailers in Devon and further afield across the UK that would be absolutely fantastic and deliver clear, immediate sustainability benefits.
What are your tips for other businesses that want to become more sustainable?
So many of the best ideas and easy wins come from the team, develop a culture in your business where everyone has bought into the importance of sustainability and its importance within the company.
It then immediately takes on a momentum all of its own as everyone is looking for opportunities almost unconsciously as part of their day-to-day work and considerations, continuous improvement in sustainability becomes natural and good things will happen!
Find out more
Follow @salcombegin on social media and visit the Salcombe Distilling Co. website at salcombegin.com