COMPO News

COMPO has joined the United Nations Global Compact Initiative (UNGC) and the UN Global Compact Network Germany. In doing so, COMPO is underpinning its responsibility as a green leader in the industry and setting a further example that will hopefully be followed by many of its market companions. Membership of the world's largest sustainability initiative is an important step in the company-wide ESG programme. By signing up, the leading supplier of branded products for plants in the home and garden in Central Europe is emphasising its commitment to aligning its business activities with the ten universally accepted principles of the UN Global Compact on sustainable and responsible business and development. In addition, COMPO makes its activities and measures transparent in regular progress reports in the UN Global Compact database. "By joining the UN Global Compact, COMPO is underlining its commitment to responsible action and sustainable management along the entire value chain. Human rights, labour standards, environmental protection and anti-corruption are important areas of action in our ESG programme and are firmly rooted in our corporate culture," explains Stephan Engster, CEO of COMPO. Like the UN Global Compact, COMPO's ESG programme is also aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) of the United Nations. "With our membership, we are consistently implementing measures for ecological, social and societal management." The company-wide commitment will be available in the form of annual progress reports in the UN Global Compact database. Alongside sustainability, quality and partnerships, transparency is one of the central principles of COMPO's ambitious ESG programme. "As a green leader in the industry, we are committed to transparent sustainability reporting in accordance with recognised standards. In future, this will be supplemented by the UNGC progress reports available in the UN Global Compact database," says Stephan Engster.

COMPO presents its new international brand campaign at the start of the gardening season. At the center of the communication offensive: a spot that shows in emotional images what nature has in store for us over generations. COMPO's core message "Better the best. For nature. For you. For everyone." picks up on the individual and collective responsibility towards nature. COMPO's message is an invitation and obligation for everyone to act in a holistic way for the environment and society and to give something back to nature. From sowing the seeds to enjoying the harvest together, the spot and campaign assets celebrate the joy of gardening that connects generations in nature: They show the young boy sowing and harvesting together with his grandma, who is amazed by the diversity in nature; the young couple enjoying the garden together as a resting place; and the whole family coming together with friends for a garden party. "Time to say thank you. And give something back. That's why we choose the best. For nature. For you. For everyone." is the message that accompanies these pictures. "The campaign is the consistent further development of our brand communication," explains Stephan Engster, CEO of COMPO. "If you look at early COMPO campaigns, the focus was primarily on individual product benefits. In 2018, the "Where have all the flowers gone" campaign by Jung von Matt takes COMPOs brand communication to an emotional level. Now it's time to go one step further." With "Better the best", COMPO is addressing overall social responsibility in brand communication for the first time. COMPO is committed to acting with the highest quality in a holistic sense," says Stephan Engster, adding "The best means the best possible result for the environment and users with the least possible impact and effort." Developing sustainable quality products and solutions that are geared towards the specific needs of hobby gardeners and their plants has always been part of our DNA. "We focus on one thing in particular: nature. To strengthen it, protect it and give something back to it," says Stephan Engster. This makes the brand campaign much more than just a creative idea, "It reflects our social vision and responsibility". "The new brand campaign and its memorable message consistently combine tradition and the promise of quality with the company-wide sustainability strategy," explains Stephan Engster. Responsible action and sustainable management are key requirements for COMPO at all levels. The fact that COMPO takes its self-imposed obligation seriously is already demonstrated by a various number of measures such as the DNK declaration or the signing of the commitment letter of the Science Based Targets Initiative. At the same time, numerous prestigious international awards confirm the sustainability of the brand and the trust of the market. With its memorable message, COMPO invites end consumers to make this claim their own. "Each and every one of us can give something back to nature and help it," says Stephan Engster. This is becoming more important than ever, especially in the face of economically challenging times and climate change. Economically challenging times require priorities. "Products have to work. Costly experiments are not allowed. This is where the COMPO brand fulfills a clear lighthouse function that goes far beyond classic branding," explains Stephan Engster. At the same time, sustainable gardening - especially in extreme weather conditions such as drought or heat - is an essential topic in the gardening world today and in the future. "Nature needs help, help to help itself, so to say," says Stephan Engster. "In the coming season, we will provide this in the form of new organic products, concepts and services. But we are also focusing on existing products that have long since met today's requirements in order to provide hobby gardeners with the best possible support for sustainable gardening". The new brand campaign will be rolled out immediately for the umbrella brand and successively for individual product categories and services and will accompany hobby gardeners in all relevant European markets throughout the gardening season. The campaign, which was developed and produced in-house, will be shown digitally, in selected print media, outdoor advertising, TV and at the POS.

Just in time for the start of the 2024 gardening season, COMPO is presenting the first responsibility report in the company's history. Under the title "Responsibility Pledge", COMPO provides insights into the company and brand and makes the holistic understanding of sustainability and the company-wide ESG program transparent and tangible on over 40 pages. The report is aimed equally at employees, partners and end consumers. The aim is to disclose the topic in all relevant dimensions and at the same time make it tangible. "Responsible action and sustainable management are an integral part of COMPO's DNA. This is made clear in every single chapter, interview and statement in our responsibility pledge," reports Stephan Engster, CEO of COMPO. The report shows that COMPO's holistic understanding of sustainability includes environmental aspects as well as social issues and responsible corporate governance. It focuses on the topic of sustainability and links this with the principles of quality, transparency and partnerships. "Because we are convinced that we can only achieve what we have set ourselves as our goal through a balanced system," says Stephan Engster. The title makes the company's commitment to sustainability clear. "Just like the quality of its products and solutions, COMPO also has the highest standards when it comes to its company-wide commitment to sustainability," explains Stephan Engster. To ensure consistency, transparency and comparability, COMPO's sustainability strategy is based on the recognized standard of the German Sustainability Code (DNK). The first DNK declaration was published in September 2023 and is available in the DNK database. Nevertheless, the company remains self-critical: "We are aware that our DNK declaration and this report - despite many years of consistent alignment - only mark the beginning of a long and challenging journey. In this and subsequent publications we will provide detailed reports in which we will make the current situation and our efforts relating to sustainability transparent," explains Stephan Engster. Accordingly, COMPO is presenting future goals, including a focus on organic and organic products, further reductions in transportation routes through regional sourcing and a CO2 reduction plan that the company has committed to. Despite the seriousness of the topic, reading COMPO's responsibility pledge should be fun and the ESG program should be brought to life. In addition to the visual presentation of the individual chapters, this is ensured in particular by statements and interviews with management and executives who accompany COMPO's ESG program. In the interview "Reaching the goal with an experienced partner", Gudrun Engelhardt, Head of Sustainable Management at B.A.U.M. Consult, talks about the collaboration with COMPO. The renowned consultancy for sustainability projects accompanied the ESG program from the initial status quo and materiality analysis to the final roadmap. "The roadmap provides us with the necessary basis for taking responsibility for employees, partners and customers - and for a greener world," says Stephan Engster.