Introducing our latest member, Camp Kerala

Founded over 20 years ago in Somerset, Camp Kerala is a British luxury hospitality and events brand creating immersive experiences across some of the world’s most iconic cultural and sporting occasions. Known for its hand-crafted Shikar tents and exceptional hospitality, the family-run brand brings a distinctive approach to luxury, from festivals to global sporting events.

Learn a little more about our latest member in our interview with Camp Kerala's Managing Director, Bert Broughton.

Walpole: Tell us about the history of your brand…

Bert Broughton: An unmatched extended house party. Camp Kerala began over 20 years ago in a tranquil field in Somerset, right next to the greatest festival on earth. A wild yet magical idea took hold: to bring electrifying luxury and hospitality into one of the world's most expressive and beautiful environments. What started as a handful of hand-crafted Shikar tents has grown into a global events and experiences brand, working across some of the world's most iconic cultural and sporting occasions. We remain a family-run business at heart, and that family ethos still shapes everything we do. It is a lot of fun.

What is your brand best known for?

Camp Kerala is service with a smile; the bubble effect, as we call it. Guests feel cocooned and ultimately relaxed enough to be their purest form of self, in deserts to mountains and everything in between. On a physical level, our beautiful Shikar tents hand-crafted by a single artisan workshop in Rajasthan have come to define what we do, proof that you can be deep in a field at a festival and still experience six-star luxury, right down to the duck-down duvets and Egyptian cotton sheets.

What has been a significant achievement in your company’s timeline?

Being described by Vogue as "the caviar of festival accommodation" was a real moment for us because it captured exactly what we had set out to create. More recently, announcing that we will be at Adare in 2027 for the Ryder Cup has felt like a hugely significant next chapter, taking everything we have built at the UK's most iconic Festival in Somerset and bringing it to a completely new audience and occasion. On a personal note, giving back to our community through the healing powers of transformative movement, SHIFT, has been empowering, giving us the opportunity to change the lens of how people see the world.

Why do you love the brand?

I love that Camp Kerala still feels like a family, even as we have grown. Every guest who returns, every member of the team who has been with us for years, every detail we obsess over all comes from genuine care rather than a desire to simply look luxurious. That is a rare thing to protect as the business scales and I am proud that we have done just that. Our clients, staff and suppliers are all hand-picked and the most extraordinary people we can find. It is no coincidence that some of the largest business deals have been done within our canvas walls.

Why does your brand represent the very best in British luxury?

We have never compromised on craft to make growth easier. Every Shikar tent is still hand-made by the same partnership we built 20 years ago. Every guest experience is still built around genuine hospitality rather than transactional luxury. British luxury, at its best, is about discretion, craft and care and that is exactly what we have tried to protect as we have expanded. Wherever we go we embrace tradition - we are building our own pub next year (does not get more British) and we love the tales of King Arthur near our birthplace. When we go abroad we switch up the menu and services to suit the locality - for example, I have grown to love Thai food from our exploits at Wonderfruit Festival.

What attracted you to becoming a Walpole member?

Meeting exceptional people with vision, character and personality, alongside being part of a community of British luxury brands who understand the same pressures and ambitions we do. We are excited to learn from other members, build relationships and represent the events and experiences side of British luxury within a community that has traditionally been more product-led and to have fun along the way.

If you could collaborate with another Walpole member, which one would you choose (and what would you like to do)?

The Walpole community is beautifully broad, spanning fashion, design, music, food, travel and craftsmanship of every kind. Camp Kerala has never been confined to one lane, so rather than name a single brand, we love the idea of exploring collaborations across all these worlds over time. That could be a fashion collaboration on guest styling, a design partnership on our interiors, or bringing music and culture into our events in new ways. There is so much scope for creative partnership within this community, and that is part of what makes it so exciting to be joining.

Tell us about an exciting development or new launch for your brand in the coming months?

We are heading into an exciting new chapter with bucket list events of the highest order. This year marks our 20th anniversary and we are marking it with a new brand identity, the launch of our documentary film telling the story of the last two decades and bringing the Camp Kerala world to Adare in 2027 for the Ryder Cup. We are also continuing to grow SHIFT, our wellness immersion, as wellbeing becomes an increasingly important part of how we think about luxury. We want SHIFT to do for the mind and body what Camp Kerala has always done for hospitality, create a space where people can fully arrive, feel restored and return to their lives with clarity: giving people time and a renaissance of self, to become the most human, present version of themselves. It feels like the perfect moment to honour where we have come from while building confidently towards what is next.

campkerala.com