Anyone serious about achieving greater sustainability must literally leave nothing behind. In other words, even the smallest detail is important. In the case of the Volkswagen Group, this by no means ‘only’ refers to the emissions during the usage phase of a vehicle or the carbon footprint of the supply chain, production and logistics.

With the goTOzero environmental model, the Volkswagen Group is also focusing on its extensive network of dealerships and service partners spread across more than 150 countries worldwide. For their part too, these locations ultimately have enormous influence on the environment – whether through resource consumption, CO₂ emissions or soil sealing.

This is precisely where the
goTOzero RETAIL programme comes in …

… which was developed as part of the Volkswagen Group’s sustainability strategy and aims to reduce the impact of the entire sales network on the environment. Participating dealers are shown how they can measure their current environmental impact in order to improve their environmental footprint. This also includes an integrated certification methodology for assessing the environmental performance of dealerships and service partners.

Aside from aspects of the energy efficiency of buildings or contents from environmental management systems, such as ISO 14001, the cross-brand programme also assesses industry-specific indicators, including workshop operation, customer interactions or environmental aspects of vehicles sold.

This all adds up to a catalogue of 70 criteria that the operations can influence directly. A range of resources are made available to dealerships and service partners that are seeking certification, including special calculation tools, manuals, online training modules and other tools, which can provide targeted support for them in optimising their environmental footprint.

The actual auditing in the context of goTOzero RETAIL is carried out by trained auditors in a multi-stage process. The first step is to inspect the relevant data, after which the operations are scrutinised during an on-site visit. If successful, they then receive bronze, silver, gold or platinum certification.

The bottom line is that goTOzero RETAIL creates the ideal circumstances for a real win-win situation; after all, not only does the environment benefit, but also the operations themselves – for example through increased attractiveness as an employer or a long-term reduction in operating costs thanks to the efficient use of resources.

A retail partner in Poland was the first to receive the sustainability certificate at the end of 2023: It was presented by Carla Wentzel (left), President of the Board of Volkswagen Group Poland, and Hilke Krause, project lead goTOzero RETAIL Volkswagen Group, to Michał Ignaszak, owner of Ignaszak Prosta Spółka Akcyjna.

Status: 03.09.2024

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