Donald Trump signed the withdrawal from the Paris Climate Agreement on the day he took office. The term “climate change” no longer appears in his vocabulary and has reportedly been deleted from government servers. Within the EU, implementation of the Green Deal has stalled.
Discussions and plans are currently under way at the EU level and in Germany to weaken the regulatory requirements with a focus on competitiveness. This gives the impression that sustainability is currently taking a back seat.
Sustainability, a decisive factor in awarding contracts
However, this trend is not confirmed among EuroShop exhibitors, specifically companies in the Shopfitting & Store Design dimension, nor among the majority of retailers. “The topic continues to be of great importance, if not more so”, reports Claudia Horbert, head of the store planning and design research department at the EHI Retail Institute. She has now held numerous discussions with industry leaders as part of the “EHI Store Monitor 2026” study, which is due to be published in time for EuroShop. Silke Lederhaas, Head of Quality & Sustainability at umdasch The Store Makers, also notes, “We see that sustainability continues to be a high priority for our customers and is even part of their strategy in some cases. Issues such as COâ‚‚ reduction, the use of sustainable materials and transparent supply chains are increasingly in demand and are sometimes even decisive when it comes to awarding contracts.” Mischa-Ron Ferenschild-Bätzel, General Manager of Fotoboden, makes no secret of the fact that “the demand for sustainable projects is higher for customers during economically stable times than in uncertain times”.
Refresh and reuse instead of entirely new concepts
The questions “Where do the furnishings come from?” and “How are they manufactured?” are definitely being asked more and more often in the shopfitting industry, says Claudia Horbert, who sees the development as being driven by legislative requirements, on the one hand, and by intrinsic motivation, on the other hand. A lot has changed recently. Some of it is being driven by cost considerations, but it has had a positive impact on sustainability. For example, the cycles between complete store renovations are becoming longer and longer. “Operations are much more resource-efficient, and planning is more timeless”, observes Claudia Horbert. Regular changes in line with the spirit of the times or to surprise end customers are ensured through minor adjustments and flexible furnishing concepts.
Reuse is also becoming increasingly important. umdasch The Store Makers actively offer this by reusing existing shopfitting elements that are adapted to new circumstances or requirements. ppm Planung + Projekt Management takes a similar approach. Managing Director Frank Bittel emphasises, “When planning new furnishings and renovations, it is important to ask the right questions as early as possible and to think from the end result. We advise our customers on the use of climate-friendly materials, how to focus on designs that enable the separation of materials by type at a later stage and to measure the resource consumption of the furnishings supplied.” umdasch also offer “Sustainable Design Consulting” and draw on its own digital material database, “ECOlib”, which contains several hundred sustainable materials. These include genetic cork, for example. These are three-dimensional panels made of natural cork agglomerate, which enable a whole new formal aesthetic thanks to digital manufacturing processes.
Product innovations at EuroShop
Exhibitors are still only revealing snippets of the innovations they will be presenting at EuroShop in Düsseldorf. At Pfleiderer, for example, a manufacturer of wood-based materials, “OrganicBoard Pure P2” will be a central theme. The chipboard is made from 100 per cent recycled wood, which is also glued with a purely biogenic adhesive instead of a fossil-based one. Fotoboden will not only highlight the advantages of customisable floor surfaces but also the fact that, from 2026 onwards, the entire product range will be available in “Biorenyl” quality. Unlike conventional vinyl floorings, which are made from fossil oils, the PVC in Biorenyl contains vegetable oils from circular sources, including by-products and waste products from the catering industry or wood processing. “Compared to previous photo floors, this saves 40 per cent CO2 in the production of the printable raw material”, says Mischa-Ron Ferenschild-Bätzel. The South Tyrolean company Schweitzer is announcing, among other things, “the latest developments in the field of cooling”, according to Bernhard Schweitzer, owner and CEO. At the last EuroShop, the plug-in “Waterloop” solutions were presented as sustainable and flexible alternatives to conventional refrigeration systems in terms of store layout. Waterloop uses R290, a natural gas with an extremely low GWP (global warming potential) value.
Diverse commitment, starting at its own locations
It is also clear that companies in Düsseldorf can report on a wide range of sustainability commitments. Pfleiderer has been awarded the “German Sustainability Award 2024” in the category of raw materials/wood processing. “We recycle more waste wood than any other company in Germany”, emphasises Michael Schiebe, Senior Vice President Wholesale & Project Business. Post-consumer recycled wood accounts for 53.5 per cent of the wood mix across all products. Sawmill residues constitute the second-largest share at 25 per cent. The remaining 21 per cent comes from thinning and damaged wood, mainly from local forests. Wood that has reached the end of its useful life is used for energy production at the sites. Incidentally, Pfleiderer covers a good 87 per cent of its energy consumption for heat and electricity from its own combined heat and power generation (100 per cent biomass) and has reduced its Scope 1 emissions by 41 per cent since 2020.
Schweitzer also focuses on the careful use of wood. Wood and wood-based materials are sourced from local family businesses. FSC and PEFC certification are mandatory. The company’s own manufacturing facility in South Tyrol and its logistics centre in Hungary are also certified accordingly. In terms of materials, recycled acrylic and metal, which is 60 per cent recycled, are also playing an increasingly important role. “We are working on making the entire supply chain traceable in the medium term”, emphasises Bernhard Schweitzer on the subject of transparency and refers to the company’s own photovoltaic systems at its headquarters, which cover 65 per cent of its electricity needs in terms of CO2 reduction. Waste heat from the compressors is used for the internal water supply
Net-zero is the goal here and there
Fotoboden produces in Cologne with 100 per cent solar power. Its own PV system generates around 80,000 kWh more electricity per year than it consumes itself. This is then fed into the grid. Production offcuts are returned to the PVC cycle. Worn-out flooring from customer projects is forwarded to Trash Galore for reuse in charitable institutions. ppm has been climate-neutral since 2019 and has been able to reduce its CO2 footprint from 150 to 55 tonnes during this time. Self-generated electricity also contributes to this (in addition to the use of green electricity and gas). Ninety-five per cent of its own vehicle fleet is electric. The approach taken by umdasch’s sustainability strategy is holistic. The clear goal, according to Silke Lederhaas, is net-zero by 2040.
