Case Study: How everyone profits from diversity

bauMax is a home improvement store group which operates in nine countries throughout central Europe. With its headquarters in Austria, it has over 10,000 staff working at nearly 200 sites.

bauMax has grown from a small family-founded home improvement retailer to one of the biggest names in DIY in Central Europe.  But at the heart of that expansion has been the continuing desire to help out the small communities next door to any one of its 200 stores.

It has launched a number of initiatives which do far more than tick a social responsibility box; they actively support some of the more diverse parts of the local community and provide real economic benefits to their company and the towns and cities where their stores are based.

Perhaps the most notable scheme set-up by the DIY retailer was a training and employment initiative to get more staff with disabilities onto their payroll and to offer training and support to local groups that work for people with disabilities. To date, 250 employees with disabilities work in their stores throughout Europe – with a commitment to increase that number.

bauMax has started a bursary to support young arts and crafts students and they have more than halved the carbon footprint of the company by driving through environmentally-friendly efficiencies in their transportation needs.

This has all brought a benefit to the bottom line, with sales and profits higher; customer satisfaction levels raised and a better awareness of the bauMax brand in current and new markets.

Prof. KR Karlheinz Essl, Chairman and Founder said:  “It is in the tradition of bauMax and its owner family to live an integrative approach and to combine economic success with social awareness. Responsibility to contribute as an entrepreneur means to measure success not only in economic indicators, but also take into account social and environmental aspects. This is defined in our mission statement and has been effectively implemented in everyday business.”