Zalando Celebrates 10 Years of Volunteering: An Important Milestone

Community Engagement as a Cornerstone of Zalando’s Culture

August 7, 2025
People & Planet
A group of volunteers collecting garbage at Berlin's East side gallery park; Oberbaumbrücke and Spree in the background

Berlin, August 7, 2025 – Zalando proudly marks a major milestone in its social impact journey: 10 years of corporate volunteering. What began as an employee-driven initiative has evolved into a defining pillar of Zalando’s corporate culture and a tangible expression of the company’s commitment to corporate social responsibility.

To celebrate this decade of social impact, Zalando expanded its efforts with a dedicated week of volunteering across Berlin, offering nearly 400 opportunities for employees to support meaningful causes and engage with local communities. From cleaning the Spree riverbank to supporting a girls’ climbing festival in Neukölln, assembling hygiene kits for people experiencing homelessness, and helping pack school backpacks for disadvantaged children with Berliner Tafel, the week showcased Zalando’s values of empathy, diversity, and commitment once again. Altogether, Zalando employees contributed close to 1,000 hours of volunteer work in just five days - a powerful reflection of what we can achieve when we come together.

group photo of volunteers with collected garbage sacks in front of Berlin East Side Gallery

“Volunteering is very important to us at Zalando,” says Astrid Arndt, Chief People Officer. “It's a fantastic opportunity to connect with our communities – whether at our HQ in Berlin or at our logistics and tech sites. It’s also about broadening our perspectives, listening, learning from one another, and making a meaningful contribution to society.”

The volunteering week launched with designing and packing hygiene kits filled with plasters, disinfectant, and nutritious snacks. Distributed through Zalando’s long-standing partner vostel.de, these kits provided practical support for individuals experiencing homelessness.

A group of volunteers standing around crates with food items in a warehouse

Another standout moment was our ongoing partnership with Berliner Tafel. Together we supported their School Bag Campaign by providing more than 6,100 school cones, in the form of backpacks filled with books, pencils, small gifts, and treats – giving children from low-income families the confidence and excitement they deserve on their first day of school. Around 140 Zalando employees volunteered to pack the bags that Zalando donated to support the campaign.

“Volunteering has become a proud tradition at Zalando,” explains Lara Gesche, Principal Social Impact. “It isn’t just an initiative – it’s part of who we are, and it will continue to be a powerful way to bring people together.”

A Culture Rooted in Purpose

Since the official launch of Zalando’s corporate volunteering programme in 2015, thousands of employees have contributed their time, skills, and passion to projects ranging from mentoring youth and teaching digital skills to supporting environmental initiatives and animal welfare. To date, Zalando has partnered with over 150 non-profit organisations, supported 460+ projects, and logged more than 30,000 volunteering hours.

Volunteers at a table preparing sandwiches

Employees receive two paid volunteering days per year, empowering them to engage in causes they care about, while also strengthening teamwork and personal development. Activities are always organised within a 50-kilometre radius of Zalando’s offices or warehouses, ensuring direct and relevant local impact.

“Volunteering at Zalando is simple, inclusive, and accessible – from our headquarters to our warehouses in Germany, and our tech hubs in Dortmund, Dublin, Stockholm, Helsinki, and Zurich,” adds Gesche.

Social Impact as a Cultural Cornerstone

This 10-year anniversary marks Zalando’s broader commitment as a responsible business. “At Zalando, we encourage and support our employees in volunteering, as it reflects our values of doing business responsibly and staying connected to our communities,” says Arndt. “ I'm excited for the next 10 years!”

Zalando SE Boiler Plate EN

About Zalando

Founded in Berlin in 2008, Zalando is Europe’s leading online multi-brand fashion destination. We are building a pan-European ecosystem for fashion and lifestyle e-commerce, along two growth vectors: Business-to-Consumer (B2C) and Business-to-Business (B2B). In B2C, we provide an inspiring, high-quality multi-brand shopping experience for fashion and lifestyle products to more than 52 million active customers across 25 markets. In B2B, we leverage our logistics infrastructure, software, and service capabilities to support brands and retailers in managing and scaling their entire e-commerce business, both on and off the Zalando platform. On 11 July 2025, Zalando successfully closed its strategic combination with Hamburg-based ABOUT YOU, allowing both companies to serve customers and partners across Europe even better. ABOUT YOU’s operations add scale and complementary capabilities, fully aligning with Zalando’s ecosystem strategy.

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