Kasper Rorsted
Henkel Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

At the first ever German Sustainability Congress, the award for being Germany's "Most Sustainable Brand" went to Henkel, providing the company with yet another major accolade for its activities in this field. "We are happy to receive this award. My special thanks go to our 55000 employees worldwide. It is their award. Henkel has been working on the sustainability topic for more than 130 years. Sustainability is part of our DNA," said Kasper Rorsted, Henkel's CEO. "We are strongly convinced that this topic is more important today than ever before. We see enormous potential for innovations that combine performance and quality with responsibility for people and environment."

Dr. Friedrich Stara
Executive Vice President Laundry & Home Care

At the German Sustainability Congress, Dr. Friedrich Stara, Henkel's Executive Vice President responsible for the global Laundry & Home Care business, explained the message behind the "Quality & Responsibility" logo,
stating: "Our aim is to establish a new quality standard in the marketplace and to assume issue leadership in the field of sustainability within the markets of importance to us."

Christian-Andre Weinberger
Global Chief Marketing Officer in the Laundry & Home Care business sector (U-W)

"The associated innovation strategy - 'Performance based on Sustainability'
- is a major driver in the development of innovative products and more intelligent solutions, and it therefore constitutes a significant factor in the creation of meaningful competitive advantage," explains Christian-Andre Weinberger, Corporate Senior Vice President and Global Chief Marketing Officer.

Link to the Press Release

Kasper Rorsted
Henkel Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

“An increasing number of customers now demand more than quality, product performance and innovations. They also want proof of sustainable development – that is, meeting the needs of today’s generation without endangering the opportunities of future generations. We have decades of experience in this area, which we can put to good use.

Markets and customers expect companies to recognize that contributing to society is part of their corporate responsibility. The need to balance economy, ecology and social responsibility has always been self-evident for Henkel. This standpoint has helped us to build an excellent reputation as a company and to attain leading market positions worldwide.

It is essential for us to maintain this lead, as many companies have now come to realize that they can only attain leading positions in the market if they also contribute toward meeting the global challenges – climate change, resource scarcity, social progress.

In other words, only companies that develop intelligent processes, that can assure product performance and quality long-term allied with the greatest possible environmental compatibility, will prevail in the market. The public demands quality, and this means performance plus responsibility or, as in the name of the initiative launched by the Laundry & Home Care business sector: “Performance based on sustainability.”

At Henkel, sustainability – that is, acting responsibly throughout the value chain – is part of our DNA. The challenges in five areas are especially important. These are: Energy and Climate, Water and Wastewater, Materials and Waste, Safety and Health, and Social Progress. We must be willing to strike out in new directions, to take an open approach to finding new solutions. This means viewing the global challenges that face us as an opportunity and not as a threat. This is why we have set ourselves the goal of ensuring that each new product contributes to sustainable development in at least one of these focal areas. We need a new mindset – globally. Each one of our 55,000 colleagues all over the world must understand and internalize sustainability and act in accordance with its principles. By simultaneously considering economic, ecological and social aspects we can generate enormous potential for the development of innovative, powerful and smart products.

Our objective must be to position Henkel as a leading sustainability partner for our industrial customers, for retailers, and for consumers. We have a long history of experience in quality and performance – and “Performance based on sustainability” is our business.

Interview with Dr. Friedrich Stara, Executive Vice President Laundry & Home Care

We act. Worldwide.

With its “Quality & Responsibility” logo, Henkel documents a new dimension of quality, unmistakably and absolutely, in more than 20 languages and on more than 4,000 different packagings of brand products from the Laundry & Home Care (U-W) business sector all over the world. Henkel Corporate Communications spoke to detergents head Friedrich Stara about the new brand philosophy, “Performance based on sustainability” (PboS for short).

? “Quality and Responsibility” – Is this just a fashionable phrase or is there a systematic strategy behind it?

Stara: There is much more behind it. We are setting a new standard of quality in the market, namely a combination of uncompromising product performance and the greatest possible environmental and resource conservation. We thus combine core consumer needs, such as product performance and product quality, with emotional brand values like trust and responsibility.

? What is the effect?

Stara: We lead the field in sustainability in the markets that are important for us and thus take a definite role as a trailblazer. This is typical for Henkel. Quality, sustainability, and constant efforts to develop innovations that shape the market are firmly anchored in the tradition and in the history of our Company. Just think of the many significant results of our research and development work on detergents and cleaners that have transformed the market and brought about real ecological progress. These include the invention of phosphate-free detergents, the development of high-performance surfactants, and the invention of Megaperls – to mention just a few shining examples of Henkel’s track record.

? So this is not a short-term marketing trend?

Stara: Absolutely not. The “Quality & Responsibility” strategy is a clear innovation driver and thus offers an opportunity to create long-term economic added value, that is, definite competitive advantages. Henkel has always been committed to both the quality of its brands and to sustainability. Our new claim stems from this very tradition: exceptional product performance combined with the best possible environmental compatibility and resource conservation. This is the potential we see in spurring on the development of innovative products.

? What exactly does this mean?

Stara: Our modern detergents and household cleaners, for example, already perform perfectly even at low temperatures, thus reducing energy and water consumption in the household. This demonstrates the fact that for us high product performance and environmental compatibility belong together. We must convey this message clearly and unmistakably to consumers. The new “Quality & Responsibility” product logo plays a key role in doing so. Its purpose is to make it easier for the consumer to opt for our products. After all, along with the better product performance they provide, he or she will also be buying the more sustainable solution.

? Are consumers actually willing to pay more money for more sustainable products?
 
Stara: We are finding that an increasing number of consumers very consciously decide on a lifestyle based on health and sustainability. These consumers combine a propensity to consume, a nature-oriented lifestyle, health and wellness with a pronounced ecological consciousness. One third of all Germans, for example, are already part of this group. Market researchers refer to this group as “LOHAS” (Lifestyle of Health and Sustainability). With their conscious and quality-oriented purchasing behavior, they are somewhat less sensitive to price and are a perfect fit for our concept of “Quality & Responsibility.”

? Do you believe that sustainability will still be considered important in difficult economic times?

Stara: In the long term, certainly. Our declared strategy is to make a positive contribution toward meeting the global challenges at hand. Sustainability is by no means a short-term marketing trend, but a powerful driving force for innovation. And it will strengthen our business in the long run.

Christian-Andre Weinberger
Global Chief Marketing Officer in the Laundry & Home Care business sector
(U-W):

“We believe that focusing on the performance of our brands parallel to our sense of responsibility toward people and the environment – Performance based on sustainability – generates great potential for encouraging the development of more innovative products and smarter solutions. The added value of the combination of ‘Quality & Responsibility’ must be communicated in a way that will make it easy for the customer to reach the responsible decision. They purchase the best product performance along with the more ecologically sound solution. We are committed to this worldwide, and we indicate it with our ‘Quality & Responsibility’ logo. Henkel has thus again demonstrated its leading role in sustainability.”

Mexico
Rosalinda Treviño
Head of Research & Development, Laundry / Home Care

“For us, sustainability has become part of our culture of innovation. At R&D, for example, we have contributed to increasing the utilization of materials from renewable sources by up to 50% in our liquid detergents. Our powder detergents were the first in the Mexican market to have phosphate-free formulas. Our colleagues in Production have significantly optimized water and energy consumption in their processes so that we are even able to exceed the requirements of local environmental regulations. For this achievement, we were already granted certification as an “Industria Limpia” (Clean Industry) by the Mexican Organization for Environment Protection in 2007. Our sustainability performance has helped us to stand out in the market.”

USA
James A. Serenson Jr.
Director of Marketing, Loctite

“Sustainability is an important industry trend and critical to our strategic direction. For the North American market, we have assigned dedicated resources to develop Henkel’s business in the fast-growing renewable energy markets. With our tailor-made adhesives for fuel cells and solar cells, for instance, we make important contributions to advance the development of these clean energy sources. Given the current dependency on fossil fuels and the rising prices for crude oil, working on the ‘energy sources of the future’ is both relevant and exciting.”

Lebanon
Georges Rizkallah
Supply Chain Manager, Laundry / Home Care

“When I joined Henkel at the end of 2005, we took on the challenge of making the Beirut plant fully compliant with the Henkel standards for safety, health & environment [SHE]. In less than three months, we managed to turn around the previously non-acceptable situation at the plant and establish a whole new safety culture. Today, we are at over 1,800 days accident-free. It was a very rewarding experience, and completely changed the way we all work and behave at our plant. Thanks to SHE standards, we are now providing our people with a safe work place and a clean environment that we are all proud of. We were successful because everyone was involved, from top management to production floor.”

Canada
Isabelle Valois
Market Development Manager

“Sustainability is not just a marketing trend, but a real chance for innovation and competitive advantage. Interview results from a survey done in 2007 showed that our industrial customers are increasingly concerned about sustainability. They expect assistance from suppliers like Henkel in reaching their own sustainability goals – such as making their processes more energy-efficient. In response to this concern, we initiated a customer-focused sustainability team with employees from different job functions within the Industrial Adhesives department – with the goal of positioning Henkel as the leading sustainability partner for our customers.”