Sustainability

Start to finish

Sustainability isn’t just some flash-in-the-pan interest of ours. It’s part of our DNA – we’ve lived it since day one. Back then, we were among the first companies to make school bags out of PET-recycled materials. We never get tired of questioning the status quo, forming great partnerships, or being one of the industry’s innovation drivers.

Our recycling methods

PET recycling

Where it all began. Since our founding in 2012, we’ve been producing our school backpacks and accessories using high-quality materials made of up to 100% recycled PET bottles. Instead of just heading to the landfill, more than 100 million PET bottles have helped conserve our natural resources with their new purpose. But do PET bottles really wind up in the trash? In the many countries that don’t have PET recycling systems, they do. Even so, we’re looking for alternatives to PET recycling that will do as much or more to conserve resources without affecting existing recycling processes.

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Scrap nylon recycling

Our second material innovation: ECONYL® regenerated nylon. In 2019, we launched the Bondi Beach Special Edition, the first school bag whose outer shell is made of 100% regenerated nylon scraps. The old nylon is obtained from fishing nets, cloth scraps, rugs, and industrial plastics – things that would otherwise pollute our world’s oceans.

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Cloth scrap recycling

Another sustainability breakthrough: Our Collected Grey edition, which we launched in 2022, is primarily made of cloth scraps recovered from our own production processes. Besides fulfilling bluesign®’s strict safety and sustainability criteria, every style in this edition has also received the “Green Dot”, a nationally recognized certification standard for socially and environmentally sustainable textile production. But that’s not all! The shoulder and hip belts on our Collected Gray satch pack use innovative BLOOM foam, which is made of algae extract. Could we get any more sustainable?

Clothes recycling

Making textiles out of textiles? Recycling cloth scraps from our own production processes wasn’t just logical – it was a precursor to our most recent material innovation. With the launch of our 2024 collection, we’ve officially become the first brand in the school backpack segment to incorporate recycled textile products into our production. Going forward, we’ll be manufacturing the exteriors of our beloved Skandi Styles out of used polyester textiles, which will undergo treatment before being spun into sturdy yarn.

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PFC-free waterproofing

Our school backpacks might not be suitable for diving, but they’re perfect for a rainy walk to school. And you’ll love the water-repellent, 100% PFC-free waterproofing! Why PFC-free? PFC-chemicals are suspected to cause cancer, and they aren’t biodegradable, so we've eliminated them from our production processes in the name of protecting the environment.

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Partners with a system

Sustainability means a lot more than just recycling. Our long-term partnership with bluesign® helps us identify and investigate any factors affecting sustainability along our value chain. In addition to bluesign®, we’ve since formed system partnerships with many of our materials suppliers – and even with their own suppliers of raw materials and chemicals. We’re working together towards a common goal of minimizing our negative impact and maximizing our positive impact on humanity and the environment.

Bluesign® system partner

Key principles

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Occupational safety

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Resource productivity

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Water pollution prevention

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Air pollution prevention

Verbraucherschutz

Responsible corporate guidance is a big priority for us and our siblings, affenzahn and ergobag.
Our efforts were first recognized in 2016 when we received the German Sustainability Award – but that’s no reason to stop improving!

Responsibility Report

Would you like to find out more about our sustainability activities and what long-term strategy we are pursuing as part of FOND OF? Then click through to the latest Responsibility Report!

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