Unpackaged shop "Ois ohne" in Tölz is saved and receives an environmental award

Created: 01/12/2022, 06:30

By: Christiane Mühlbauer

Proud of the project: (from left) board member Andreas Munkert, Monika Schlegel from the shop team and supervisory board member Stephan Wild.

© Proehl

The comrades of the unpacked shop "Ois ohne" have two reasons to be happy: They not only saved the shop with a subscription shopping voucher campaign, but also received the environmental award of the district on Wednesday, together with "Biotop Oberland" and the " Toelza Garden".

Bad Tölz – They fought and they won: The team at the unpackaged store “Ois ohne” and the 179 comrades from all over the Oberland are currently breathing heavily.

They put their heart and soul into maintaining “their” shop. As board member Andreas Munkert reports, the minimum sum was reached, so that a fixed monthly turnover of 10,000 euros is achieved.

Over the past few weeks, the volunteers have been committed to maintaining the shop with flyers and on the Internet.

"This support was impressive," says Munkert happily and thanks all supporters.

"It shows that something can be achieved if everyone sticks together." With the commitment, the minimum sum has now been reached.

Munkert announced this to all comrades on Wednesday, because November 30 was the deadline.

At the same time, however, one must continue to beat the advertising drum, because the actual goal is 15,000 euros.

"You can still purchase subscription shopping vouchers." The price is "also an enormous boost for us".

Munkert: "It would have been bad if the history of the store had come to an end with the award."

Store was established in 2019

The bottom seems to have finally been passed, because the cooperative has not had it easy in recent years.

The project was founded in 2019 with a crowd-funding campaign, start-up financing from Perfumery Wiedemann, private lenders and numerous comrades.

The aim was to establish a shop where goods are available without packaging and in regional organic quality.

For example, there are pasta from Wackersberg, quinoa from Dachau and soaps from Geretsried, but also sweets, rice, coffee, cosmetics and organic cleaning products.

The latter are an "insider tip", says board member Andreas Munkert with a smile.

"Some customers swear by these products." There is also a small café.

Customers bring their own containers with them when they go shopping.

Products such as lentils or oatmeal can be filled from chutes.

"We want to strengthen regional supply chains with a clear conscience and offer an opportunity to buy more consciously and in line with requirements," says Supervisory Board member Stephan Wild.

Five board members and three supervisory board members

In order to start the project, considerable initial investments were required – for example in the shop fittings – and many logistical questions had to be clarified.

The cooperative called "Unverpackt-Laden Oberland eG" has five board members (in addition to Munkert, Brigitte Goldbrunner, Philipp Maiss, Anna Meßmer, Markus Scheffel and Kathi Kuhn) and three supervisory board members (in addition to Wild, Alexandra Schmidt and Gabriele Wojciechowski).

"We can offer our goods more regionally and more selected than any supermarket," explains Munkert.

The Tölz store gave the region a boost, they are now also available in Wolfratshausen and Holzkirchen, and preparations are being made in Penzberg.

You don't see yourself as a competitor, but put pressure on supermarket chains with such a concept, says Munkert.

Fortunately, a lot has already happened in terms of plastic packaging.

Many consumers have become more aware that they would rather shop without plastic.

"Priced at the level of organic shops"

In terms of price, says Munkert, you are moving at the level of organic shops.

100 grams of rice costs 62 cents, 100 grams of quinoa 1.30 euros.

"Our business logistics do not correspond to those of a discounter," says the board.

"We don't want to measure ourselves by that either." In the discounter it's all about the price, in the "Ois ohne" store it's also about the quality of the food, adds Wild.

The store should raise awareness of making a personal contribution to protecting the climate.

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Comrades sometimes criticized that the shop was too remote for walk-in customers.

"But whoever comes to us, comes consciously," says Wild.

"I don't think we would have a huge increase in sales in the pedestrian zone."

Workshops will now also be offered

With the shopping subscription campaign, the monthly fixed costs are now covered every month for a year.

The team hopes more people will subscribe.

"Until now, we only had to react to crises," says Munkert.

Now there is planning security and you can tackle projects that you have wanted to carry out for a long time, such as workshops on plastic-free living.

"We hope that we have now found a model that will support us in the long term," says Munkert.

You can read a portrait of the other two award winners in the newspaper today and online in the coming days.

You can find more current news from the region around Bad Tölz at Merkur.de/Bad Tölz.