Responsibility for society

In the southern Indian town of Pondicherry, we are committed to improving the lives of people with disabilities with our ZWILLING Foundation India. Women with disabilities or impairments can gain professional qualifications in the textile industry at our training and education center. Over the past few years, 225 women have completed their training here, enabling them to make their own living.

Additional activities have since sprung up around the training center. In addition to qualification initiatives for women, this Foundation offers programs to secure livelihoods for families and a child sponsorship scheme.

One of the ZWILLING Foundation India’s key missions is to help secure the material interests of families in the Pondicherry district. Whether for a market stall, a mobile snack bar, or a grocery store, the Foundation’s start-up funding enables people in need or with disabilities to start their businesses and earn a living for themselves and their families. We also support local training courses that improve graduates’ prospects in the labour market.

The ZWILLING Foundation India looks out for the youngest members of society. Sponsorships provide support to children with disabilities or those in precarious living conditions until they reach adulthood. The assistance ranges from school fees to necessary medical interventions, medication, and accessible toilet facilities.

To maintain transparency regarding the effective use of aid funds, we meet with sponsored children and their parents twice a year. We are kept informed about their health and learning progress, while regular health check-ups are a standard feature of the sponsorship program. Furthermore, we invest in a fund for each sponsored child and pay it out to the children when they turn 18 as ‘seed capital’ for their future.

Since 2018, we have been cooperating with the Saigon Children initiative in Vietnam. The non-profit organization helps improve children’s learning environment by supporting the construction and renovation of daycare centers, kindergartens, and primary schools. All schools are wheelchair-accessible and open to schoolchildren with disabilities.

We are involved with Saigon Children in the southern Vietnamese province of Hau Giang. Our financial support allowed us to build a new school wing and renovate an elementary school. More than 1,000 students have benefited from our involvement since the initiative launched.

The war in Ukraine has touched us deeply at ZWILLING. Immediately after the war began, we launched an aid program to support the employees of our Ukrainian distributors and software service providers. We have also provided numerous ZWILLING Care Packages to refugees in the communities around our German headquarters to help them furnish and equip their homes. Our subsidiaries are also helping: STAUB partnered with the city of Merville to organize donations and essential goods for those affected by the war in Ukraine. Since the start of the conflict, we also have donated around 360,000 euros to aid organizations in partnership with Wilh. Werhahn KG.