They Told Us Not to Provide Toothbrushes in Hotel Rooms, Now They're Removing Bottled Water Too... Water Purifier Industry Says "What a Windfall"

Resource Recycling Act, Ban on Disposable Items in Hotel Rooms
Hotels Exclude Bottled Water Not Subject to Regulation and Install Water Purifiers

Last month, the ban on free disposable items in hotel rooms has sparked excitement in the water purifier industry. This is because many hotels are taking this opportunity to stop providing bottled water, which is not included in the ban, and instead install water purifiers in their rooms.

On the 21st, Coway announced that it installed 405 units of nano direct water mini purifiers at Le Meridien & Moxy Seoul Myeongdong in February, and 287 purifiers at Courtyard Marriott Seoul Times Square last month.

This is due to the revised and enforced "Resource Saving and Recycling Promotion Act" that took effect on the 29th of last month. This law prohibits lodging businesses with 50 or more rooms from providing free disposable items. The five targeted items are toothbrushes, toothpaste, razors, shampoo, and conditioner, and violators may be fined up to 3 million KRW.

Although bottled water provided to guests is not subject to the ban, with the enforcement of this law, more hotels are considering installing water purifiers to reduce plastic waste. This is part of ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) management. Water purifier companies such as Coway, Cheongho Nice, and SK Magic are receiving increasing inquiries from hotels about installing water purifiers. A representative from a water purifier company explained, “There were occasional inquiries before, but the number of inquiries has significantly increased since the revision of the Resource Recycling Act.”

The water purifier industry is actively targeting the hotel room market. Signing a contract with one hotel can lead to the installation of at least 50 to several hundred water purifiers. According to the Ministry of the Interior and Safety, there are 2,243 lodging facilities in Korea with 50 or more rooms. Industry insiders said that corporate sales teams for water purifiers are currently visiting hotels to explain the advantages of installing water purifiers.

The water purifier industry emphasizes that hotels do not need to add additional management personnel. They explain that the hygiene inspections, which were previously conducted regularly by visiting homes or businesses with installed purifiers, can be applied as is to hotels. They focus on compact water purifiers that can maintain a cozy room interior. Coway supplied a non-powered nano direct water mini purifier considering that the power is cut off when no guests are staying in the hotel room. This purifier is 13 cm wide, so it does not significantly affect the surrounding environment. Other companies also have non-powered or ultra-compact models.

Some companies are also considering developing designs that match hotel room interiors. A water purifier company representative said, “Hotel rooms were not designed with space for water purifiers in mind, so there are mismatches between tables, drawers, and existing purifier sizes in the rooms,” adding, “There is demand from the hotel industry for room-customized water purifiers, so we are discussing this with the product planning department.”