Sustainability has become increasingly important in recent years. This development reflects the growing awareness of the urgent environmental and social challenges facing our society worldwide. Sustainability is no longer just a buzzword, but an essential guiding principle for governments, companies and individuals alike.
Of course, Käthe Wohlfahrt is not immune to this development, as the company is not only going green with its corporate colors. For several years now, a wide range of measures have been taken to make the company more sustainable.
Use of resources and delivery routes
For example, we source 85% of our deliveries from German and neighboring European suppliers, which enables short delivery routes. For national shipping, we use Euro pallets instead of disposable pallets. In addition, our goods are delivered to points of sale using a cardboard box system in which the boxes are reused several times.
In addition, over 50% of the range is made from sustainable wood. Only wood with the PEFC seal is used in the "Rothenburger Weihnachtswerkstatt", "Käthes Original" and "Kindertraum" ranges. In this way, we are jointly setting an example for a sustainable future.
Decisive role of the online store
Our online store also makes a valuable contribution, as it has an extremely low return rate of less than 9%, which is well below the average figure for German online retailers. We owe this result not only to our first-class customer service and professional advice, but also to the high quality of our products. Together, these factors make for a smooth shopping experience for our customers. If you send in treasures purchased from us after consulting our customer service, you also have the option of having them expertly repaired in our in-house repair service.
Energy generation and transport transition
We are also proud of the fact that Käthe Wohlfahrt produces around 220,000 kW of electricity from renewable energies every year. Around 180,000 kW of this is generated annually by the photovoltaic system at our logistics center and 40,000 kW by hydropower in the Tauber Valley.
Käthe Wohlfahrt is also making a valuable contribution to the transport revolution, as 40% of our company vehicles are already fully electrified and a further 10% are hybrid vehicles charged with green electricity. We have also converted our Christmas Express to environmentally friendly energy and a bicycle garage has been set up for employees in the old town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber.
New measures were also taken this year to make the company's future even more sustainable. Since 2023, we have relied entirely on our online catalog. The paper savings alone mean that we avoid the emission of around 36,000 kg of CO2 and Käthe Wohlfahrt will continue to promote sustainability in the future.
