Legal Information

Publisher according to § 5 of the German Telemedia Act (TMG).

SCHOLZ & VOLKMER GmbH
Schwalbacher Straße 72
65183 Wiesbaden

Managing Directors: Michael Volkmer, Peter Post
Trade register: AG Wiesbaden HRB 10899
VAT ID number: DE 192046611

Foto Harald Welzer: Langreder / S.-Fischer-Verlag
Foto Peter Unfried: Anja Weber
Foto Lothar Seiwert: Seiwert Keynote-Speaker GmbH
Foto Maria Krautzberger: Photostudio D29 Berlin
Foto Lisa Thaens: Über den Tellerrand kochen
Foto „Demonstrieren statt Kaffeekränzchen“: Sven Ehlers
Foto „Kultur erfahren statt Reiseführer“: Carina Adam / Über den Tellerrand kochen
Foto „Hund ausführen statt eigenes Haustier“: Donnie Ray Jones

Contact

If you have any suggestions or questions, please send them to us under opinions or by e-mail.

Note of thanks

We would like to thank everybody who helped us carry out this project. Our special thanks go to: Annika Schulz and Andrea Diefenbach for the great photos.
Blanca Sánchez Goyenechea for translating the website into Spanish.

Also we would like to thank the Kleinen Hotel in Wiesbaden.

Sources

A brief comment up front: we compiled and calculated the data to the best of our knowledge and with the greatest possible care. If you discover an error or have better sources on a topic, we would be grateful if you let us know. Thank you for your help.

Read out loud rather than give a book

The number of books sold a year (379 million) refers to 2006; the figure was taken from a GFK survey. The number of unread books in a household was taken from an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The popularity of books as Christmas gift (44%) refers to 2012; the figure was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A cooking evening rather than a cookbook

The number of cookbooks sold in 2007 was based on the following data: 379 million were sold in 2006; 10.3% of these were non-fiction (2010), of which 19% were cookbooks in May 2008. Therefore we calculated the sales of cookbooks to be 9.36 million. The number of unused cookbooks in a household (48%) was based on an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The popularity of books as a Christmas gift (44%) refers to 2012; the figure was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

Knitting lessons rather than a sweater

The number of textiles sold per person (13 kg) was taken from an article in the Greenpeace magazine: "Textil - der Stoff, aus dem die Albträume sind" (Textile - the stuff of nightmares). It states that we consume 11-15 kg of clothing per head. The number of unworn clothes in one's own closet was taken from an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of clothes as a Christmas gift (33%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

Fresh forest air rather than perfume

The data on the sales of perfume in 2011 was taken from a survey by the Industrieverband Körperpflege und Waschmittel e. V.; it states that Euro 1.013 million were spent on women's fragrances.
The number of unused perfumes (25%) was based on an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of cosmetics/perfume as a Christmas gift (27%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A neck massage rather than a scarf

The number of textiles sold per person (13 kg) was taken from an article in the Greenpeace magazine: "Textil - der Stoff, aus dem die Albträume sind" (Textile - the stuff of nightmares). It states that we consume 11-15 kg of clothing per head.
The number of unworn clothes in one's own closet was taken from an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of clothes as a Christmas gift (33%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

Repair rather than replace

70% of people have things in their homes that are broken. This data was collected in an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012.

Revamp rather than buy new decor

The amount of money spent on home decor items and appliances was Euro 87.59 billion in 2011. This information was obtained from the study "Private consumption expenditure and available income - 3rd quarter 2012" conducted by the German Office of Statistics.
The number of "corners in your household that are not 100% finished" (70%) was based on an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of home decor items as a Christmas gift (11%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A puppet show rather than a toy

We obtained the information that 11.1% of toys sold are dolls from the study "Product group share of sales on the European toy market in 2010" by Toy Industries Europe.
According to the study "Sales on the toy market in Germany from 1994 to 2011 (in millions of Euro)", Euro 2.7 billion were spent on toys in 2011. Based on this, we calculated that Euro 270 million were spent on dolls alone. The number of dolls that are not played with (57%) was taken from an anonymous survey carried out by Scholz & Volkmer with 115 respondents in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of toys as a Christmas gift (36%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A football game rather than a console

We added the sales of consoles and computer games together in our data. According to the survey "Number of console games and hand-held games sold in Germany from 2003 to 2015* (in millions)" carried out by PwC, 35 million video games and consoles were sold in 2012.
Data collected on "How often do you use computer, console, and online games either alone or together with others?" show that 62% of children aged 6-13 years play on computers several times a week. The figure for the popularity of computer games and consoles as a Christmas gift (14%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

Look at old pics rather than give a camera

According to the survey "Sales of camcorders and digital cameras on the consumer market in Germany from 2005 to 1st half-year 2012 (in 1,000 pieces)", 8.25 million digital cameras were sold in 2011.
The number of "unsorted photos on your hard disk" (100%) was based on an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of cameras as a Christmas gift (4%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A visit to the zoo rather than a cuddly toy

According to the survey "Sales on the toy market in Germany from 1994 to 2011 (in millions of Euro)", Euro 2.7 billion were spent on toys in 2011.
The number of cuddly toys that are not played with (57%) was taken from an anonymous survey carried out with 115 respondents by Scholz & Volkmer in December 2012. The figure for the popularity of toys as a Christmas gift (36%) was taken from a GFK survey on "The most popular Christmas gifts in Germany from 2010 to 2012" carried out in 2012. When cumulated, the total percentage exceeds 100% because respondents were allowed to give several answers and the questions were analyzed individually, not as an aggregate.

A kiss rather than flowers

The figure for sales of flowers in 2011 was taken from the survey "Sales of cut flowers and house plants in Germany from 2008 to 2011 (in billions of Euro)". The number of roses imported to Germany in 2011 was taken from the survey "Quantity of fresh roses imported to Germany between 2001 and 2011 (in millions of pieces)" and the myclimate survey "Environmental aspects of the flower trade - survey on the environmental impact of cut flower production". The survey "Number of people who do gardening in their leisure time, according to frequency between 2007 and 2011 (in millions)" was our source for the statistic that 24 million people did not do any gardening work in 2011.

Demonstrating rather than having a coffee party

The fact that 29 % of the Germans aren’t participating in the elections originates from the official result of the federal elections 2013. 52 % aren’t satisfied with the work of the federal government, according to the results of the ARD-DeutschlandTrend survey “Zufriedenheit mit der Arbeit der Bundesregierung”, which was released October 2016.

Walking a dog rather than owning a pet

From the article “Aussetzen ist keine Lösung”, by the Tierschutzbüro 2012, we learn that about 500.000 pets are abandoned yearly and 70 % of the animals that are turned over to animal shelters have been abandoned due lack of money. The statement which claims that the maintenance for a dog, as well as for a cat, is an average around 60 Euros originates from Tierschutzbüro as well.

Tierschutzbüro: Aussetzen ist keine Lösung

Cultural experience rather than a guidebook

The popularity of a book gift for Christmas ( 44 % ) covers the year 2015 and originates from the GFK survey “Beliebteste Weihnachtsgeschenke in Deutschland im Jahr 2015”, from 2015.

The percentage of gifts in total is greater than 100 %, due to the possibility of multiple answers and the fact that each question was valuated separately, not as total sum. The percentage of guidebooks being sold per year (around 25 million) is based on a report by the WDR for the year 2016.

Rescuing toads rather than a leather folder

From the article “Leder: Die Tiere zahlen mit ihrer Haut und ihrem Leben” by PETA we learn, that more than 90% of the marketed food products are treated with chrome, as well as the information that 1 billion animals are being killed for leather production each year. The information that around 160 litres of water are used to produce 1 kilogram of leather is based on the article “Leder: Tierleid und Umweltverschmutzung” by the Albert Schweizer foundation from 2014

Picking mushrooms rather than giving chocolates

The information that Germans waste 18m tonnes of food yearly comes from the WWF survey “Das große Wegschmeißen”, which was published 2015. The popularity of a food gift for Christmas covers the year 2015 and originates from the GFK survey “Beliebte Weihnachtsgeschenke in Deutschland im Jahr 2015”, which was released 2015. The percentage of gifts in total is greater than 100 %, due to the possibility of multiple answers and the fact that each question was valuated separately, not as total sum. The percentage of 68 % packaging waste in the food sector is based on data, which covers the year 2013 and was ascertained by a small request of the Green parliamentary group.

Legal information

Liability for contents

Although the contents of this website were prepared with our utmost care, we cannot assume liability for the correctness, completeness and up-to-date status of the information provided. According to § 7, parag. 1 of the German Telemedia Act (TMG), as a service provider, we are responsible under general law for our own contents on this website. However, according to §§ 8 to 10 of the TMG, as a service provider, we are not obliged to monitor information transmitted or saved by third parties or to research circumstances that suggest an illegal activity. Obligations to remove or block the use of information under general law remain unaffected. However any liability in this respect is only incurred from the moment that we have knowledge of the specific breach of law. As soon as we become aware of legal violations, we will remove such contents immediately.

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Our site contains links to websites of third parties, whose contents we have no influence on. For this reason, we cannot assume liability for these external contents. The relevant supplier or operator of the linked websites is always responsible for the content of such pages. The linked pages were inspected for possible legal violations at the time the link was placed. Unlawful contents were not detected at the time the link was placed. Permanent monitoring of the content of the linked pages is not feasible without concrete evidence of unlawful content. As soon as we become aware of legal violations, we will remove such links immediately.

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The contents and works on this website were created by the website operator and are subject to German copyright law. The duplication, editing, dissemination, and any kind of utilization outside the limits prescribed by the copyright laws require written consent from the respective author and/or originator. Downloads and copies of this website are only authorized for private and not commercial purposes. In so far as the contents of this website were not created by the operator, third-party copyrights are respected. The content of third parties are marked as such. Should you still have reason to believe that a copyright violation has occurred, we kindly request that you inform us. As soon as we become aware of legal violations, we will remove such contents immediately.

Data privacy

As a rule, it is possible to use this site without having to declare personal data. If personal data are collected at our website (such as name, address, or email address), as far as possible it is always conducted on a voluntary basis. Scholz & Volkmer has absolutely no interest in analyzing data and shall not use data for other purposes or forward them to a third party without your explicit consent.

After having filled in the gift card, you send an email to the recipient of the gift. Scholz & Volkmer makes the platform available only for this purpose. You, as the person giving the gift, are personally responsible for the dispatch and contents of the email. Please take this into account when giving a gift and only send emails to people who will appreciate your gift.

The following applies to the comments and pictures you create: It is forbidden to upload pictures that are offensive, racist, or promote violence. By uploading a picture, you declare that the picture is free of third-party rights and release Scholz & Volmer from all third-party claims.

Data transmission via the Internet (e.g. email communication) may involve security gaps. It is impossible to completely protect data against being accessed by third parties.

We expressly prohibit the use of contact data published in this legal information section in order to send advertising and information materials that have not been explicitly requested. The operators of this website expressly reserve the right to pursue legal steps if they receive unsolicited advertising information, such as spam mail.