Circularity

The companies of the Otto Group are implementing concrete solutions. For example, OTTO and Bonprix have launched "Circular Collections" in collaboration with circular.fashion. These collections are subject to strict requirements regarding recyclability and durability, ensuring that materials can be identified later in textile sorting facilities to prepare them for reuse or recycling based on the condition of the item.

Functioning take-back systems are essential in the circular economy, which is why OTTO offers customers the opportunity to collect used textiles as part of the non-profit initiative “Platz schaffen mit Herz” (Creating space with heart). The proceeds from selling the second-hand clothes are directed to social projects worldwide, which customers can help choose through a voting process. This allows well-preserved clothing to be reused, while the remainder can be recycled.

In 2025, the Otto Group sent more than 48,200 tons of old electrical appliances that we took back from customers, for proper recycling. In addition, refrigerators and freezers are stripped of harmful components at German waste disposal partners in facilities with a Weeelabex certification and are subsequently recycled to a high standard. This prevents greenhouse gases such as chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and hydrofluorocarbons (HFCs) from entering the environment through the recycling process.

For the products of our group company Manufactum, care is taken to ensure that individual parts can be replaced and mechanisms repaired. In addition, the special orders team integrated into the company's own customer service supports customers with repairs and the procurement of necessary spare parts.

As part of its membership of the Fashion for Good initiative, the Otto Group has supported the “Closing the Footwear Loop” project since early 2025. The project focuses on the use of alternative footwear materials, the definition of circular design criteria, and the optimisation of take-back logistics for the reuse and recycling of footwear.

As the transition towards a circular economy requires change across the entire industry, we participate in initiatives and discussions that promote the exchange of relevant solution approaches. The WWF study “Model Germany Circular Economy” ("Modell Deutschland Circular Economy", 2023), supported by the Otto Group, provides impetus for the debate on advancing the circular economy in Germany. Many of the issues and measures described in the study are also reflected in the German government’s National Circular Economy Strategy, adopted in 2024.