We implemented a comprehensive stakeholder analysis for the preparation of this GRI report. An interdisciplinary and cross-company GRI project team identified the relevant stakeholder groups, identifying their core concerns and determining the nature of their inclusion - see "These are our stakeholders".
As a general principle, we at VAUDE are open and interested in dialogue with our stakeholders. Together we can make a difference. Therefore, we enter into dialogue with stakeholders on important issues.
With our internal stakeholders such as employees and shareholders, there are already systematic structures for dialog.
Each quarter, we share information with the senior executives. We consult our employees regularly in various survey formats - more at Satisfied Employees are Motivated.
Twice a year, we exchange ideas with our shareholders at the annual shareholders meeting - more at Antje von Dewitz at the Summit.
So far, we have primarily entered into dialog with external shareholders on specific occasions or specific issues – see These are our Stakeholders, such as for example, with Greenpeace on the issue of Strategies Against Excessive Chemicals or the Tettnang Municipal Council on the influence of VAUDE at our headquarter location in Obereisenbach / Tettnang - see also Creating Added Value with Activism.
We are using the findings from this stakeholder analysis to establish a systematic dialog with stakeholders.
In 2015 we organized a Sustainability Breakfast with sporting goods retailers, our customers. Together we worked on the issue of how we can successfully and credibly communicate sustainability in retail stores. The essential input to come out of this dialog was incorporated as inspiration in our sustainability communications. This format will be continued in 2016.
In 2016, we are also starting the internal project, Voice of Consumer. We want to systematize the exchange of ideas with our consumers and identify possible areas of action. By entering into dialogue with consumers, we want to find out more about their needs and desires. We also value the feedback we get for potential optimization of our products. More at Customer Satisfaction as the Ultimate Goal.
In addition, a Dialogue Day with representatives from our environmental stakeholder groups is planned for 2016 on the theme “Environmental Management in the Supply Chain”.
At the political level and in numerous initiatives, we are also exchanging information with external stakeholders and more actively participating in discourse – more at Commitment at the Political Level and Stronger Together. The commitment to the Alliance for Sustainable Textiles is particularly important to us – more at VAUDE - Founding Member of the Alliance for Sustainable Textiles.
From the dialogue with these stakeholders, we have drawn valuable insights about how we can improve our company – an example:
Four Paws works against the use of live-plucked down and force-feeding of geese. VAUDE has set a clear commitment for itself: we use only down from slaughtered animals.
Triggered by the campaign, we found out that we could not guarantee 100% control over the conditions. We have therefore commissioned an independent organization with auditing our entire supply chain for down. See also Lightweight Heat Storage - Wonder of Nature.
In 2015, we consulted with selected stakeholders for our second GRI Report (reporting year 2014). We took into account the lessons learned in the preparation of the report (reporting year 2015). We repeated this procedure for the 2015 report. Due to technical complications, we could not evaluate the results of the survey.
