Sustainability is a complex issue. The better we understand the interrelationships, the more aware we become. To clearly illustrate these issues, we engage in communication about them in a format that's tailored to the channel and target audience.
Raising awareness for the environment and climate-change
Thinking ahead. Managing with consideration. And engaging in action from heart. That's how we move forward. In outdoor sports. In everyday life. And in the development of sustainable products. Because only if we preserve what we love can future generations also enjoy the great outdoors and a healthy planet.
This means that VAUDE manufactures high-performance gear produced under exemplary and fair ecological criteria – the highest possible performance coupled with ecological and socially responsible production.
Without an awareness of fair and environmentally friendly production, there would be no demand for sustainable products. As a manufacturer, we serve as a role model for responsible outdoor experiences that our customers can also sense through our communications.
Climate change is progressing relentlessly
We are convinced that with a common will to take action and make changes, we can stop global warming. We need to boldly take responsibility for our planet.
Less talk, more action!
We stand by our word and consistently work towards our sustainability goals – we’ve been climate neutral at our company headquarters since 2012 and also in the global manufacturing of all our products since 2022.
Now it's all about consuming more consciously.
Our campaign calls on customers to consume more consciously and adopt a more sustainable lifestyle. The central message "Wear less. Achieve more" is accompanied by concrete solutions from VAUDE. Examples include repairing products instead of throwing them away. Cycling more and conserving energy. Recycling more and emitting less CO2. Putting budgets into carbon neutrality instead of advertising. Inspiring and supporting other businesses on the path to sustainability. It's about putting less strain on nature and the climate and doing even more for a sustainable lifestyle. The promise carries over to every single product. With VAUDE products, customers can join us on this sustainable jouney.
Brand creates clarity and orientation
To help us act with a unity of purpose and communicate consistently – both in marketing as well as in other company departments – we developed a set of guiding principles in 2014 and implemented them throughout the entire company in 2015. These guiding principles describe our roots, our values, our incentive and our convictions and reflect what VAUDE stands for as a brand. From this document, frameworks such as our Corporate Identity (CI) can be derived which makes the VAUDE as the sender clearly recognizable across all media.
The VAUDE CI consists of various elements:
Corporate Design: determines the visual appearance
Corporate Wording: determines the contents and the manner of communication
Imagery: determines the substantive and formal requirements for our (moving) images
Behavior guidelines for specific issues: defines the desired behavior of VAUDE employees - see "Company Philosophy".
We set these standards not only in terms of content, but also in choosing of means of communication. For environmental considerations, we try to replace print products with digital media as much as possible. This has helped us to reduce our paper consumption. In addition, we compensate for all emissions stemming from paper consumption. When using digital media or website development, we work to avoid unnecessary energy-intensive measures.
Internal communication
In the VAUDE Guiding Principles, specific guidelines are set regarding how to put into practice, visualize and communicate about sustainability in the corporate context. To help our employees be involved with our corporate identity, content is updated regularly and passed on to everyone in the company in our "VAUDE Wegweiser”.
Inclusive language
Our communication should be respectful, appreciative and equal to all genders. That is why we communicate with fair and inclusive language. We know that language influences the way we think: by addressing and naming people of all genders, stereotypical role models are eliminated. Inclusive language implicitly shows that both women, men and non-binary people are qualified for and capable of different activities.
A strong focus on experiencing nature mindfully
Sustainability is a guiding theme in our choice of advertising.
As a sustainable, innovative mountain sports brand, we try to keep our ecological footprint as small as possible for our activities. We act considerately towards people and nature. We also follow the "by fair means" principle in mountaineering and biking: tours should be managed as much as possible with one's own power and without the use of artificial or technical aids such as lifts. We make our advertising film and photo shootings as environmentally friendly as possible and convey this approach in our images. For example, our bikers don’t ride off-trail through pristine nature, but stay on existing trails; ski tourers don’t rely on ski lifts, etc.
Employees as brand ambassadors
In order for the content of our marketing to come across authentically, it makes sense that our employees also identify with this philosophy.
To promote this, we offer them ongoing mountain sports and bike sports activities. These trips are organized sustainably, for example, by using eco-friendly transportation. The shared outdoor experiences raise awareness in our employees for the preservation of nature as a "playground" for future generations.
Message in training courses
VAUDE offers sustainability training courses for all employees. In addition, our sales representatives and international distributors receive training every six months about new information on product sustainability, environmental protection and social responsibility.
VAUDE provides training materials for all relevant product segments that communicate sustainability aspects of each product group. Much of this information is also publicly available to retailers and consumers on our service.vaude.com platform.
We also communicate just how committed we are to sustainability in product presentations at trade shows around the world, in VAUDE order rooms and in VAUDE stores.
Sustainability isn't only put into practice with the VAUDE Collection, but also in the design of exhibition stands at trade shows and store design concepts. For our exhibition spaces and store designs, we use environmentally friendly raw materials and environmentally friendly production elements such as banners and displays.
The VAUDE Green Shape Campus
To provide our dealers with factually well-founded information on sustainability themes, we regularly invite them to participate in our Green Shape Campus at the company headquarters in Obereisenbach.
The goal is to provide a comprehensive body of knowledge on sustainability. This training is intended to help dealers be able to inform and advise their customers competently, to respond to difficult questions and to pass on the issues to colleagues in the trade.
VAUDE Academy for Sustainable Business
Sustainable management makes companies fit for the future and is a decisive approach to solving the problem of not exceeding our planetary boundaries. Therefore, it is important that as many companies as possible operate in an environmentally friendly and fair manner.
VAUDE has made environmentally friendly and fair business practices a core competency and has been working consistently for over a decade to transform the company holistically and systematically. We pass on this knowledge and experience in the VAUDE Academy.
