Head of VAUDE, Antje von Dewitz: „We have a bloated bureaucracy, but…“

She gives refugees a chance in her company, appeals to company bosses‘ sense of responsibility when it comes to protecting the environment and produces bags from recycled plastic and trousers from used tyres. In an exclusive interview with Jörg Köpke, Head of Communications at cep, textile entrepreneur Antje von Dewitz, who has just been awarded the Federal Cross of Merit, makes a plea for humanism and sustainability.

Mrs von Dewitz, you describe your company as consciously sustainable. Could you explain what that means?

I wouldn’t say that we are completely sustainable. But when I took over the company from my father 15 years ago, I set myself the goal of achieving this one day. I had this idea: One day we’ll be at the top. But there are always new challenges along the way. For me, sustainability is about taking responsibility. And that comes from what you do. Every company is responsible for the impact of its activities. Our aim is to create quality of life with our products and the way we do business, and to minimise our footprint as much as possible. We do this in a very systematic, analytical and professional way in all areas where we have responsibility and impact. This applies to supply chains, but also to materials and emissions. We analyse, prioritise and take action to be as sustainable as possible. Of course, there can never be 100% sustainability. But we are striving for it and have already come a long way.

What does that mean for your products?

We meet the most stringent environmental and social standards. Over 80 per cent of our products have been awarded the Green Shape Standard. This is our sustainability label, a kind of meta-label based on the highest and most stringent – environmental and social – textile standards. These products are particularly environmentally friendly, produced with as little pollution as possible and in a resource-efficient way. We mainly use recycled and renewable materials that produce half the emissions of conventional materials. We also develop new material innovations that are functional and sustainable: Trousers made from recycled tyres, cycle bags made from recycled plastic packaging or our fully recyclable Rethink collection.

Products are also tested for repairability and material efficiency. They can be sent in or repaired yourself with the help of online video tutorials.

It almost sounds like you have been involved in the latest EU directives, such as the right to repair. As a businesswoman, were you convinced from the start that this was the right approach?

Yes, it has to be said that the textile industry is one of the top three risk industries in the world, mainly because of the high emissions, but also because of the high social risks, the risks associated with the processed sheep materials and the high water consumption. Along with construction and agriculture, the textile industry faces the greatest challenges. We are part of the problem with the products we make. Now we have to try to be part of the solution. If you look at it carefully, this is the approach that is now increasingly being taken by the EU, which we very much welcome.

How do you monitor your supply chain? How do you ensure that the German Supply Chain Act is actually implemented?

We have been voluntarily complying with the criteria of the German Supply Chain Act for many years, which, incidentally, does not apply to us due to the size of our business. As a member of Fair Wear, we have been committed to fair working conditions in the global textile industry for 15 years. This means that all our factories have to be audited, i.e. inspected externally. If producers do not meet the strict requirements, there are complaint mechanisms for local workers. Complaints can be made anonymously to a hotline in any local language. This gives us a very good idea of where things are going or where there might be problems. In general, as part of Fair Wear, we have to work together with the producers in a continuous improvement process. For example, as a company I have an obligation to ensure that living wages are paid. We are measured by our actions. We can only use the Fair Wear label if we meet the strict requirements. Otherwise it is withdrawn. These are the mechanisms that contribute to a continuous improvement process.

Can you understand why large parts of the industry are critical of the Supply Chain Act?

Of course, because it’s a lot of work to implement, especially if you haven’t dealt with these issues before. But supply chain management is a necessary business competence that I have to build up, just like digitalisation or quality assurance.

Your approach must be very time-consuming and administrative.

It is very time-consuming and exhausting, especially at the beginning when a lot of data has to be collected and competences developed. We have set up a dedicated team of experts to look after our supply chain management. But if many people still think that it is completely legitimate to produce cheap consumer goods at the expense of exploiting other people, if that is the assumption, then it is difficult to argue against it. However, if we assume, as I personally believe, that we are responsible for the effects of our economic activity, that we must not pass on the true costs of wages, environmental and health damage and improved working conditions to others, if we do not want to continue to exploit and destroy natural resources without restraint, then it is worth making a massive change of course for ethical reasons alone. Irrespective of this, it is important to realise that we are talking about an area of the economy where a large part of the actual added value is created. Professional supply chain management creates transparency and control and is the basis for innovation, resilience and sustainability. What’s more, the more people get involved, the less effort is required and the lower the costs and risks.

Talk about bureaucracy: Is your business suffering under the weight of requirements and regulations?

Let me give you an example. The EU single market is crucial for us. But each of the 27 member states still has its own packaging directive. We must meet all these different requirements with our packaging. This is a huge bureaucratic burden that involves a lot of work. A Brussels regulation could be worth its weight in gold. I hope that there will finally be a centralised directive so that we can see a sensible turnaround in packaging. Overall, however, I am reluctant to join in all the moaning about too much bureaucracy. It’s too loud in Germany. Yes, we have a bloated bureaucracy that needs to be worked on. But I find this constant focus on the fact that everything is terrible counterproductive for our business location.

This brings us to the next point: the shortage of labour and skilled workers and the question of what experiences you have had with the integration of refugees.

We started to integrate refugees in 2017. This was our response to Chancellor Angela Merkel’s „We can do it“ programme. But this initiative was also based on the individual commitment of our employees. We wanted to use an open day to show people from refugee centres how to work in German companies, how to apply for a job and which departments are available. A lot of people came. We were inundated with applications. So we started hiring refugees in the areas where we, like many other companies, have a hard time finding workers: production and logistics. And then we started to train them bit by bit, to integrate them into the team, into the daily work, etc. It was all about mutual integration. It was all about mutual integration skills. We trained our managers and learned what integration really meant. We accompanied them on their visits to the authorities and offered German courses. It was a gruelling process for everyone involved. As a company, you have to be prepared and know exactly what is important. And you need capable managers who can manage the process well. We had a lot of internal conflict. There was sometimes a sense of alienation. A lot of sensitivity was required. But the really depressing thing was that in the end the integrated employees had to be deported again.

Excuse me? You had even received an award from the Baden-Württemberg government for exemplary integration.

That frustrated us at first. We felt helpless. But then we successfully fought back. Together with other entrepreneurs, we founded the „Right to Stay through Work“ initiative, which has now been joined by almost 600 companies in southern Germany. As a result, we gained political influence and were able to contribute to the new immigration law for skilled workers. Ultimately, our intensive involvement has meant that none of our employees has been deported. Around 30 of our 650 employees are now integrated refugees, mainly from Syria, Iran and Afghanistan, but also from African countries such as Nigeria. Integration through work is the crucial step, which is becoming increasingly clear, also in view of demographic developments. We are now also receiving workers from other European countries. This is helping to combat the shortage of labour. Because we are in the same position as many caterers or retailers: our main shortage is labour, not skilled workers. We can also find skilled workers here.

Is Europe facing deindustrialisation?

This is to be expected because of demographic change. We are also seeing degastronomisation in the cities. Then there are the problems in the skilled trades. Not only is there a shortage of skilled workers everywhere, but there is also a shortage of trainees in logistics, production, healthcare, retail and even catering.

Would you consider integrating artificial intelligence (AI) into your business?

I have an open mind about AI, although of course we have to look at the risks. All our teams are analysing where it makes sense to use AI, for example in copywriting, product development, graphic design or planning. AI allows people to free up resources for other key areas. With labour and skills shortages and rising staff costs, it may well make sense for AI to one day replace humans in some areas.