Responsibility
Corporate responsibility,
ecology, and ethics
At Wallpaper from the 70s we are enthusiastic about all things wallpaper, but also aware of our responsibilities. That’s why every day we try to do our best to help make a positive impact. We are a small German online wallpaper store, based in the heart of the country, and our commitment to sustainability, ethical practices, and community support is woven into our very fabric. If you have landed on this page, it means you are interested in the way we do business, so let’s take a look at it together.
Responsible sourcing from trusted suppliers and long-term partnerships
Our journey begins with our choice of suppliers, and we are very careful when picking them! We prefer long-term collaborations, built on trust and with partners that share our commitments and goals. We value mutual trust over a quick buck and over the years have chosen a limited number of suppliers, all originating from Europe and the United States. We share best-standard practices with them and regularly check in with them to ensure that they adhere to stringent environmental and ethical standards.
Use of sustainable and eco-friendly materials
The overwhelming majority of our suppliers use paper and non-woven materials, as well as natural materials such as grass, cork, bamboo etc. The preferred materials are water-based, solvent-free, PVC-free, and use colours that are environmentally friendly. Using FSC-certified pulp and wood pulp from responsibly managed forests ensures that their products are produced with a focus on forest preservation.
Eco-friendly production processes and energy efficiency
Adopting eco-friendly production processes, including using water-based, biodegradable inks and dyes, ensures our wallpapers are free from harmful chemicals. This is extremely important to us! Reducing energy consumption is another priority and a number of our suppliers utilise residual heat from production processes to keep their facilities warm.
Artisanal and traditional craftsmanship
We partner with several suppliers maintaining a strong commitment to traditional craftsmanship, blending it with contemporary technology. This approach helps preserve artisanal skills and reduces the carbon footprint by avoiding mass production methods.
Commitment to certifications and standards
We pay great attention to our suppliers’ adherence to the most stringent environmental, ethical and social standards, such as GOTS, Fairtrade, Organic Exchange, Oeko-Tex, and FSC. Our wallpaper labels always state which standards the respective product is compliant with.
Reduction of waste and pollution
We work with our manufacturers to minimise waste production and pollution by using water-based printing technologies (known as “smoke-free ink systems”) that eliminate the emission of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other harmful pollutants often associated with traditional printing processes. Excess colour and paper waste are also responsibly handled, often converted into heat or recycled to manage resources more efficiently.
Embracing ecological innovations
Veruso Lino is not just a product, it's our statement against the unsustainable practices prevalent in modern wallpaper production. Traditional wallpapers often end up in landfills or incineration facilities, contributing to environmental damage. Veruso Lino breaks this cycle, offering a sustainable, compostable alternative that returns nutrients to the earth, transforming waste into raw material for new products.
We’ve been passionate about introducing an ecological side to the wallpaper business for a long time and have therefore committed to an ever-expanding range of eco-friendly wallpapers. There is, however, a particular model we are particularly proud of, one of the first fully compostable wallpaper models available on the market worldwide, and it’s called Veruso Lino. Crafted entirely from plant-based raw materials, this wallpaper makes us proud as it exemplifies a harmonious blend of innovation and the protection of nature. Its production requires minimal water resources, while the unique needle felting and hydro-entangling process eliminates the need for conventional binding agents, resulting in a wallpaper that is not only eco-friendly but also robust and pleasingly tactile.
Eco-friendly packaging and carbon neutral shipping
We source all our packaging from a local supplier to minimise its carbon footprint and concentrate our efforts on packaging our wallpapers in recyclable materials, keeping the use of plastic to a minimum. To further reduce waste, we recycle all the cardboard boxes we receive from our suppliers by cutting them into smaller pieces and using them to secure the rolls within the packaging of our boxes.
When it comes to shipping, we have chosen UPS as a shipping partner, as we were impressed with their commitment to their CarbonNeutral initiative, offering to offset shipping emissions and making them carbon-neutral. In countries where UPS is not a viable option, we partner with Deutsche Post, who are also offering the option to offset shipments by investing in global climate protection projects through their GOGREEN initiative.
Website and web services
We are an online retailer and it’s very clear to us that operating an online business inherently involves energy consumption, which can have an environmental impact. This is why we've deliberately chosen a server provider that exclusively uses electricity generated from renewable energy sources and was awarded the certification “Climate Neutral” by ASEW.
In partnership with our hosting company, we also work on compensating all energy utilised by our web processes by offsetting it through ecological and regeneration projects by atmosfair.
According to Website Carbon, a site devoted to evaluating the carbon impact of the web, our page is cleaner than 72% of all pages globally, producing only 0.26g of CO2 each time someone visits our site.
Supporting and creating opportunities in our local community
We started our company in a small village in the rural heartland of our state, and decades later we are still incredibly proud to be part of our community. In an area that has faced a difficult transition in terms of the global economy we are a major engine for job creation, providing safe and secure employment opportunities. We take pride in offering flexible roles tailored to the needs of mothers, empowering them in a job market where otherwise it would be difficult to find opportunities.
Our employees come from all walks of life. Some of them are disabled and we have collaborated with them to integrate their unique abilities into our workflow by making remote employment opportunities available to them. Our ongoing collaboration with Vogtlandwerke, a local East Thuringian non-profit organisation, exemplifies our commitment. We share our work- and warehouse space with them and through our partnership we offer meaningful opportunities to individuals with disabilities, enriching both our team and the broader community.
Our promise
We are a small but proud player in the wallpaper industry, and we promise to stand by what we believe in. From supporting our local community to contributing to a more ecological and sustainable future for our industry, we believe in what we do, and you can trust we will always give our very best to honour our commitments!
Your Wallpaper from the 70s Team
These are the ecological commitments we focus on for our suppliers:
