KEN CRUSE
CO-FOUNDER, CEO
SOUL COMMUNITY PLANET
EVERY STAY DOES GOOD
PAM CRUSE
CO-FOUNDER, CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER
SOUL COMMUNITY PLANET
EVERY STAY DOES GOOD
WHO: Ken Cruse, former CEO of Aliso Viejo-based Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. (NYSE: SHO), and his wife, Pam, founded Soul Community Planet (SCP) in 2018 to be a more “holistic” hospitality company with a focus on sustainability and environmentally friendly programs. SCP currently has 10 hotels open, including two in Laguna Beach.
WHY: The Cruses built a giving program into its hotel business called Every Stay Does Good, where every stay at any SCP hotel generates funds for a chosen nonprofit. Currently, one stay can either provide one adolescent access to mental health services with We Well-being, plant one tree in a deforested area through One Tree Planted, or clean one square meter on the Costa Rican coastline via Innoceana.
IN THE NEWS: The newest Laguna Surf Lodge by SCP opened in March and, along with SCP Seven4One also in Laguna Beach, includes a partnership with the Boardriders Foundation and SeaTrees to plant one sea tree along the Southern California coastline per stay.
NOTABLE: The couple met while working at Marriott International. Through the giving program, SCP Hotels have supported 187,000 adolescents, planted 196,000 trees and cleaned 5,000 square meters of Costa Rican beaches. In Hawaii, SCP has helped Hawaii Wildlife Fund remove 76,000 pounds of trash from local beaches. In Southern California, 8,000 sea trees have been planted.
IN THEIR WORDS: “Our goal is to disrupt the industry in a very positive way that inspires others to do better.” —Ken Kruse
LEARN MORE: scphotel.com/every-stay-does-good
