"Sustainability and fairness –
honest and no nonsense"

Mr. Moedinger, everyone is talking about "sustainable for generations" today. Since when and how has schlafgut been dealing with the topic of sustainability?

Max Moedinger: Sustainable for generations is a good term, because otherwise I wouldn't be sitting here. After all, I'm already a great-grandson here at schlafgut. I think family businesses generally deal with sustainability for generations – because it should continue in the next generation. We are not a large, profit-driven corporation, we have completely different goals and values.

Our own production is an important cornerstone. For example, we try to produce everything as bundled as possible in one place and not waste resources with long transport routes. Sustainability has always been an essential topic for us. And it has many facets. One of them is quality and durability. We don't produce disposable goods, but well-designed products that provide enjoyment for a long time. Other facets are packaging, production, the management of our locations and truly fair workplaces for our employees.

"Conscious" – a marketing term? More and more companies are claiming ecological awareness and fairness towards their employees. How much is really true? And what about schlafgut?

MM: Unfortunately, I haven't yet met many companies where this topic is really taken seriously and comprehensively. For the usually rather small proportion of employees in Germany, this, I call it facade of "consciousness", can perhaps be maintained. But the lion's share for most companies is production and thus the employees abroad. Such as China, Pakistan or India. These are countries with productions that are anything but sustainable and mindful.

Why does this model persist? Because it's cheap. Sustainable production and good working conditions for employees cost money, which is also reflected in the price of the goods. Nevertheless: We don't believe in dumping and certainly not in greenwashing. Our principle applies: People first. With the way and where we produce, we want to give something back to people. We firmly stand behind our values, have lived them since our founding and are very happy that our schlafgut fans do too.

The dark sides of the textile industry have come into focus more and more in recent years – from precarious working conditions to serious environmental sins.
What exactly does schlafgut do differently?

MM: From Made in Green to SA 8000: Of course we meet all important certifications. But we're not hunting for logos to adorn ourselves with. Because when it comes to sustainability and fairness, we're serious and don't do any frills. This should not only be demanded by common sense, but simply be normal. Dark sides arise from price pressure and greed for profit. Neither is part of us. We have values that are geared towards longevity in every respect and we pass these on as a family business to every generation.

We have our own production in Turkey, where we can have direct influence and produce everything in one place. There we spin, knit, finish, dye, manufacture and pack. We are deliberately not in Bangladesh or Pakistan and prefer to invest in our own production facility and our warehouse here on site. For us, sustainable action is an essential part of healthy competitiveness and future viability. That's why we don't offer very cheap entry-level price ranges at all.

And by the way: The fact that we have solar panels and bees here at our company headquarters is a matter of course for us.

Acting ecologically and fairly yourself is very good. But as a company, you depend on many factors and are integrated into a network. What criteria does schlafgut use to select its partners?

MM: We think about that very carefully. Our main partner is the joint venture in Turkey. Basically we have a great preference: As a family business, we also work almost exclusively with owner-managed family businesses. Trust, transparency and sympathy are extremely important for us in any kind of cooperation and the basic requirement for a good partnership.

We also select suppliers according to our high standards and get a personal picture of them. Cotton is most important to us. So we are a member of the BCI (Better Cotton Initiative), an alliance that is committed to the sustainable production of cotton worldwide.

Our new plastic-free packaging comes from a small family business in Austria and our furniture is made here nearby in a carpentry shop, also a family business of course. Actually it's quite simple: If we feel that our partners take what we take so seriously just as seriously – then it fits. If you concentrate and choose your network carefully, it's a real constant. In short: We also cultivate quality and sustainability in our partnerships.

What is schlafgut planning for the future? Are there already new ideas or initiatives in terms of sustainability, innovation and responsibility?

MM: Our minds never stand still and we are constantly working to make our products even a little bit better. For example, we have removed printed bed linen from our program and are focusing on a selected solid color palette. Minimalist design is also a counter-design to fast fashion for us. We are also in the process of eliminating the poly bag once and for all and using the new recyclable packaging for our entire product range. A small look into the future: We will think about the topic of sleep much further and develop and offer new products. It remains exciting!