Cooperation with VAUDE

Marieke from the Oetz Trophy organizing team talks to Manfred Meindl, VAUDE’s International Marketing Director, about the brand and the commitment to the legendary new race at the Wellerbrücke.

Hello Manni, let’s start, who are you actually?

It’s pretty easy. We, VAUDE, are an outdoor company from Lake Constance. We don’t just have clothing, we also have everything from backpacks to tents. One or the other has probably already slept in one of our 5 * rooms 😉 while kayaking. We are family-run, have been on the market since 1974 and live with the fact that you cannot pronounce our brand name correctly.

Aha, how do you pronounce yourselves then?

Not difficult in itself if you know the founding story. We were founded by Albrecht von Dewitz. His initials were v.D. The company name was then derived from these initials. Hence [fau´de]. Actually, everything quite logical.

In two sentences, how would you describe VAUDE to someone who doesn’t know you? What distinguishes you?

We are a family-run outdoor company with an incredibly deep anchoring of sustainability in the way we manufacture products, commit ourselves to a world worth living in and simply want to change something. For example, with one of our jackets, I can be sure that our product development department will turn every fiber around in order to develop a product that is both very functional and sustainable at the same time. … As requested, two sentences!

Why are you sponsoring the Oetz Trophy now?

It is great that through the commitment of enthusiastic athletes, a legendary race can take place in a new form. So it was a no brainer for us to support this and to be there for the restart at the Wellerbrücke.

What does the Oetz Trophy have to do with your sustainable image?

Rivers are not only playgrounds for athletes, but also an elementary lifeline for our Alpine valleys. So that our children do not experience power plants in an alpine desert, but can marvel at the power of nature through these streams, this is why it is all the more important for us to stand up for an intact river landscape with these athletes.

Last question, will there be dry suits from VAUDE in the future?

Sure, of course. It would of course be a dream for all the kayakers at our company. We’re already annoying our product developers to get that done. Their last suggestion is, they will think it through if my colleague Jenz or I win the thing. I’m a little skeptical about how to judge that. 😀

Thank you Manni.