Having already assisted retailers across Europe with selling off surplus food, Too Good To Go is now applying the same principle to the DIY sector, in a partnership with Germany's OBI.
Through Too Good To Go, the DIY retailer will help to save edible and ornamental plants that no longer meet retail standards, but are still viable for use.
Pilot Project
The initiative began with a pilot project in two Leipzig stores, focusing on edible plants, such as herbs. Following the success of this trial, the programme expanded in October 2024 to include 14 stores and added non-edible ornamental plants to its scope.
According to OBI, over the first four weeks of this expanded phase, more than 2,000 plants were saved from disposal.
'Transformation Journey'
"OBI is on a transformation journey and with a view to our social responsibility, we have decided to shape our ESG strategy according to the motto 'a little better every day'," commented Heide Schulte-Beckhausen, head of ESG at OBI.
"When evaluating individual fields of action, we recognised early on that the disposal of plants that are no longer for sale has immense potential: We can significantly reduce our waste rate, as well as the associated disposal costs, and in terms of our social responsibility, this approach helps us to act and operate a little more sustainably."
The retailer said that the partnership offers multiple benefits, reducing waste and disposal costs, bolstering its ESG capabilities, and offering customers the chance to purchase plants at around one third of their original price.
The scheme is currently available in 14 OBI stores across Germany, in Solingen, Düsseldorf-Rath, Bielefeld, Cologne-Godorf, Cologne-Marsdorf, Bergisch Gladbach/Bensberg, Leverkusen, Kerpen, Magdeburg, Detmold, Leipzig-Probstheida, Leipzig-Hauptbahnhof, Borken and Hamburg-Harburg.
OBI operates 340 stores across Germany and 640 across Europe, and the company plans to introduce the concept to more outlets, largely in metropolitan areas, in 2025.
