Consumers want a broad choice of ethical options, from vacations to investments and back again

by Lara Ryan

It’s hard in the midst of the late-winter blahs not to dream of sunshine, sandy beaches, and a stack of good novels. How about sailing the wide blue Caribbean on a windjammer cruise? Sign me up! Ecofriendly tour operator Canadian Sailing Expeditions Inc. offers just such an opportunity, while appealing to our social responsibility.

Doug Prothero, the CEO of Halifax–based Canadian Sailing Expeditions, which launched in 2001, is betting that many travellers feel this way. His company owns three vessels, including the 73.5-metre Caledonia, the largest traditional sailing ship built in Canada in the last century. In addition to its leisure cruises, it has begun to move into the corporate market offering team building, corporate excursions, and employee rewards. “The corporate market is growing,” says Prothero. “Lots of businesses are using our services as a unique tool for retaining and attracting young talent. Why not dock in Lunenburg Harbour for a meeting instead of a boardroom?”

The environmental impact of cruising is minimized by the nature of its energy mode: the wind. Crew members buy everything locally, desalinate their water on board, have a water-treatment system, and pay fair wages to a Canadian crew. The ships visit small ports of call, explore history and culture there, and have a positive economic impact on small, often rural parts of Atlantic Canada and the Caribbean as passengers enjoy unique voyages of discovery.

“We’re conscious to not deplete resources where we’re visiting a port of call,” says Prothero, “and we try to reduce all of our waste as much as possible.” The business case for Canadian Sailing Expeditions and other companies like it are generally built on a solid foundation of personal values. The question becomes how to grow the business while retaining the original value.

For Prothero, the opportunity to expand into the ecotourism market was   a natural fit. “When we were seeking investment partners, ecotourism seemed to make sense to them,” he says. “It’s a niche market that’s growing.”

Three strikes? Not exactly. Enter GrowthWorks, a leader in Canadian venture capital management; over the past 10 years it has invested $62.5 million in 14 green technology companies. While socially responsible businesses are of interest to them, GrowthWorks Atlantic Venture Fund’s president and CEO Tom Hayes says that other more traditional investment factors play an important role in decision-making. “The business plan needs to reflect a competitive advantage, significant growth opportunity, and usually be export oriented,” he says. “Canadian Sailing Expeditions was attractive to us because of its strong management team and overall business case.”

GrowthWorks Atlantic Venture Fund is the only active labour-sponsored fund in this region, something that may bode well for other socially responsible businesses seeking partners whose values align with their own. According to Hayes, GrowthWorks believes that the ethical screens they use in the decision-making process will continue to impact its investment decisions. Investors are more active and vocal about where they would like their funds to be invested and are examining relationships to community more now than ever before. However, he stresses that while this sector of investment is growing, the business case must still be there; social responsibility alone will not attract investors.

A couple of other Atlantic Canadian companies in which GrowthWorks has invested that have potentially positive social benefits are Virtual Expert Clinics and Sampling Technologies Inc. Virtual Expert Clinics is a Fredericton–based technology company has been developing a revolutionary approach to providing services to children with special needs.

AutismPro is a subscription–based program for providing immediate, just-in-time, therapeutic guidance to parents, therapists, and teachers working with autistic children. The program allows users to build and manage therapeutic programs for individual children; it monitors each child’s progress and adapts the training as needed. Sampling Technologies Inc. in Sackville, N.S., has developed a smart card technology that provides pharmaceutical companies with a better and safer way to provide samples.

Canadian Sailing Expeditions’ Doug Prothero sees growth in the socially responsible sector. “Venture capitalists by nature are opportunists,” he says. “The growing eco approach to business is not going to go away, especially as more ecofriendly consumer–based products hit the market. Venture capital will see the opportunity.”

“There is a lot of expectation in the socially responsible investing sector,” adds Hayes. “Businesses need to meet expectations on many levels. We will continue to look for growth potential.” In the meantime, if you find yourself planning a vacation this year, or as you ponder ways to invest your capital, you might take a look at the offerings available in your own backyard.

Lara Ryan is a business consultant specializing in CSR. She can be reached at lara@lararyanconsulting.ca.