Where does the name VAUDE come from?

VAUDE is one of the best-known companies in the outdoor industry, a sustainability pioneer with a transparent sustainability report, a German Alpine Club (DAV) partner, and it's hard to imagine many closets and gear stores without it. But two questions are asked again and again: Where does the name VAUDE come from? And how do you actually pronounce VAUDE?

The pronunciation is quite simple! VD [fau'de], like the two letters V and D on german spoken one after the other. The company name goes back to our Company founder Albrecht von Dewitz. The middle and last name initial was his early nickname, as he was amicably called that in his climbing group. Since VAUDE is a German company, the V and D are pronounced in German. This is exactly the most common misunderstanding, many who read VAUDE think the company name is pronounced English or French.

To make it less complicated, we simply auditioned this on Tiktok.

VAUDE is still a family business and owner-managed. Albrecht von Dewitz founded the company in 1974. In 2009, his daughter Antje von Dewitz took over the management of the company and developed VAUDE into a pioneer in sustainability and responsible business practices, which has already received many awards.

So V and D, those are still the initials of the managing director and owner Antje von Dewitz: When we say "fau'de", we are also always a bit proud of the commitment and attitude of the von Dewitz family.