Responsible communication and action

At VAUDE, environmental friendliness goes well beyond the products. Ecological principles also apply to company representation and to our marketing campaigns. We voluntarily apply these guiding principles and have developed codes of conduct for ourselves.

Of course, in relation to publicity, advertising, merchandising and sponsorship, we fully comply with all commercial and media rights, taking all aspects of data protection very seriously.

Furthermore, we have committed ourselves to constructing our stores and trade fair stands in line with ecologically sound principles.

The issue of environmental sustainability runs through all of our dealings: for example, we do not use carpets in our trade fair booths, we rely on FSC certified, untreated wood, use low-energy lighting options, avoid single-use items and also take sustainability into consideration for our catering.

In addition, we try to use each module we build at least three times. In many cases we manage to use them much longer. Over time, our suppliers have gotten to know our requirements and many of them only offer us environmentally friendly products.

In 2014 we created a set of guidelines for trade fair construction which lays down binding standards for ecological criteria. It is intended to provide clear rules internally, but also to put our foreign colleagues in a position to build trade fair stands to our standards.

As a sustainable, innovative mountain sports brand, we try to keep the ecological footprint our our films and photo shoots as small as possible. Our guidelines for film and photo shoots, for example, specify that we do not take any pictures from helicopters. If aerial views are necessary we use electrical drones. In addition, we try to limit air travel as much as possible. Flights and car travel initiated by us to shooting locations are recorded and compensated for. 

In general, we follow the "by fair means" principle for mountaineering and biking: The activities shown in the movies and pictures should be “self-powered” to the greatest extent possible without artificial/ technical aids such as lifts or helicopters 

Our content should convey respect for people and nature. We support responsible mountain and bike sports, as represented, for example, by the German Alpine Association (DAV) or by the German Initiative Mountain Bike (DIMB).

So, for example, our bikers do not ride off trail through untouched nature, but rather stay on existing trails. They also behave respectfully toward pedestrians. Our ski tourers adhere to the recommendations of the DAV campaign "Natürlich auf Tour" and steer clear of sensitive habitats such as environmentally protected or conservation areas.

Our policy for film and photo shoots specifies, for example, that we do not take any pictures from helicopters. Our bikers do not ride off-trail through pristine terrain. In addition, we do not use environmentally harmful media, but only digital footage.

There were no violations of these regulations and voluntary codes during the reporting period.