Our annual highlights: The most memorable moments from 2025

The ensemble "The Young ClassX" once again gave an extraordinary concert in St. Martin's Parish Church in February. Over 500 visitors enjoyed an evening full of musical highlights – from "I am the One and Only" to a rousing 90s medley. The perfectly coordinated arrangements and the energy of the young singers made the evening unforgettable.

On August 8, 2025, our traditional blood drive took place at BAUR, as it does every year.

In addition, there was a real highlight: the big blood donation bet in Lichtenfels!
The bet was: Can the BRK district association, the district, and all the municipalities together mobilize more donors than the district administrator expects?
The result: the bet against the district administrator was won hands down. 1,107 donors set a new record – probably the largest blood donation event in Bavaria! Clubs, families, and even an entire theater group took part. The BAUR Group also supported the campaign with vouchers and commitment.

One influencer dared to try a creative experiment this year: she sent us a completed order form from an old BAUR catalog from 2003—and documented everything on Instagram and TikTok. The campaign went viral, with millions of views.
Our colleagues joined in and searched for matching items from the current range to fulfill the nostalgic wishes. The community celebrated the idea with enthusiastic comments and high interaction.

In June, Petra Scharner-Wolff, CEO of the Otto Group, visited us. She explored the state-of-the-art shuttle warehouse in Altenkunstadt, spoke in a panel discussion about exciting topics such as the economic situation and diversity, and took time to chat with our trainees over lunch.

Our diversity podcast has made history: out of around 1,000 submissions, "Alles bleibt anders" made it into the top 10 of the Impact of Diversity Awards in the "Audience Award" category! This is a great success for our editorial team and a strong sign of diversity and inclusion.
The six episodes of the season provide exciting insights into personal stories and topics such as diversity, inclusion, and mindfulness.

A special locomotive is rolling through Austria: an ÖBB locomotive in OTTO x PAYBACK design was ceremoniously christened at Vienna Central Station in September. The event was part of a major campaign to highlight the long-standing partnership between OTTO Austria and PAYBACK and strengthen brand awareness.

In addition to the locomotive, around 80,000 craft sheets were distributed in OTTO packages to bring the cooperation to life in a playful way.

Our shuttle warehouse in Altenkunstadt has been awarded the coveted "Sprinkler Protected" seal. This makes it one of the pioneers in fire protection—and for good reason: it features complete sprinkler protection, certified systems, and even northern Bavaria's first firefighting robot.

The award shows that safety is a top priority for us—and at a level that far exceeds legal requirements.

A new nature and culture project has been announced: the Friedrich Baur Circular Trail will be around 7.8 kilometers long and will pass through Weismain and the Mainecker Forest. More than ten stations are planned along the trail, offering exciting information about Friedrich Baur, his company, nature, and sustainability.

Special features such as a "green classroom" and interactive content make the circular trail an attractive option for local recreation and environmental education. The project is being implemented in collaboration with the Friedrich Baur Foundation, the Obermain-Jura Environmental Station, and the city of Weismain.

Right at the start of the year, there was cause for celebration: our trainees showed what they are capable of! Sandra Neder was named Bavaria's best photographer, and Paula Radler won the title of Bavaria's best e-commerce businesswoman.

And that was just the beginning: in December, our young talents went one better. Fabian Gaudig was honored as Bavaria's best e-commerce businesswoman – and also made it onto the Dean's List at Hof University of Applied Sciences. Also on this list: Shania Rießner. A strong sign of the connection between practice and theory, which is very important to us.