Meeting Alain Bauwens and Lutz Mehlhorn in Wash & Coffee in Munich Yesterday evening we received a phone call from Alain Bauwens, responsible for International Marketing Laundry Care at Henkel. “Are you still in Frankfurt?” he asked. “I want to share with you the new sustainability strategy that we developed: Achieving more with less. Can we meet in Munich?”

We have known Alain for quite some years already and we spoke a lot about Henkel and sustainability. But we knew something new had come up. “Munich?“ I asked. “The head office is still in Düsseldorf, isn’t it?” “Yes, it is,” Alain said, “but I would like to meet in our Wash & Coffee bar in Munich; that might also be of interest for you. It’s a laundrette re-imagined by Persil and our business partner Bosch-Siemens. Next to the washing part, there is a coffee shop part and a community hub part, with events that include everything from stand-up comedy to live music to charity drives. A perfect place to meet and talk about Achieving more with less.” “That sounds like a plan,” I said, “see you tomorrow.” Well, tomorrow is today and we park our car in front of Wash & Coffee in the centre of Munich. We stand in front of this laundrette, look inside where we see a very stylish interior. People sitting at the small tables having a coffee, eating a sandwich or surfing the web while waiting for their washing cycle to finish. As we enter the store we see Alain sitting at a table observing the screen of his iPad. Next to him we recognise Lutz Mehlhorn, who is responsible for new business at Henkel’s Laundry & Home Care business sector. As we come closer they look up and a smile appears on their faces. “Welcome to Wash & Coffee,” Alain says, “so what do you think?”

“This is a really cool concept. What is the idea behind it?” I respond. “It’s a Persil brand extension,” Lutz replies, “a concept that goes beyond the product. Traditionally we put our products in the supermarket and wait for the consumers to come and make their pick. Wash & Coffee is an out-of-the- box concept; it gives us the opportunity to be in contact with the consumer directly. Beyond providing the best laundry care equipment, the personnel explain how to use the modern appliances, the detergents economically and with a maximum energy efficiency.“

“Consumer engagement?” I ask. “Yes... engagement, interaction,” Lutz continues, “but it’s not only about our products. By organising events like meetings or live music, we play a role in the local community. It gives us the opportunity to work our way up in relevancy.” “So, this is an innovative way to connect to the consumer?” I ask. “Indeed,” Alain answers, “being in touch with, especially young, consumers gives us new insights, which helps us to adapt our products and services. “We opened the first Wash & Coffee concept bar here in Munich. And also in Amsterdam we created this consumer engagement tool.

“By the way, would you like a coffee?” Alain says. “Then I can tell you about our new sustainability strategy and our new targets.” “Café latte would be nice,” I say, “the sustainability story would be great... but do you think I can get our laundry out of the car and use one of the washing machines while we talk?”

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