The sound of the sea and sand between your toes? That's precisely what Adenauer & Co, founded in 2011 by Andreas Adenauer, represents and continues to stand for durable clothing for both small and grand adventures. In collaboration with our partner plentymarkets, we chatted with Managing Director Axel Heiter about the company, ecommerce, and the changes brought about by plentymarkets and Mollie.

Maritime Lifestyle for Everyone

In our conversation with Heiter, it becomes evident how much love is invested in the company and each individual garment. "The special aspect of our products lies in the thoughtful details, including our inscriptions with positive messages. This is how genuine favourites are created," explains Managing Director Axel Heiter. Indeed, the company already produces 90% of its goods in Europe, with solid plans to increase this figure to 100%. Currently, 80 employees are engaged in production in Turkey and on Mallorca.

The attention to detail at Adenauer & Co is not only evident in the design of their pieces but also in the stores, referred to by the company as "Strandhäuser" (beach houses). There are now 45 of these houses in Germany, Austria, and Spain. The company consistently pursues the same goal: maritime flair for all. The beach houses are decorated with lifebuoys, anchors, and charming beach lights, and every single item exudes the fresh sea air. Over 40 employees now work for Adenauer & Co, with eight already firmly immersed in ecommerce – and there's a reason for that.

Adenauer & Co offers nearly 250 different products online. Additionally, four collections, each comprising 100 products, are launched every year. "We sell online exclusively through our plentyShop; marketplaces are not served," emphasises Axel Heiter. "Offline, we sell our goods through our own beach houses and franchise partners. To mirror our production and sales processes with the beach houses, we use LSE, a specialised fashion industry ERP system connected to plentymarkets."

An Online Shop with Numerous Payment Methods

The Adenauer & Co online shop is built on plentyShop, providing the best foundation for Mollie integration. "We have integrated Mollie into our plentyShop. Through this, we offer our customers various payment methods at checkout," explains Axel Heiter in our conversation. This is crucial as preferred payment methods vary significantly among customers in Germany, Austria, and Spain. "We switched to Mollie in 2019," reports Axel Heiter. "Previously, various payment methods were connected through different providers, which required a lot of effort. These are now consolidated thanks to Mollie," says Heiter. With Mollie, Adenauer & Co now has access to more than 25 local and international payment methods, easily activatable or deactivatable with just one click. Almost five percent of all Adenauer & Co orders come from abroad. "Thanks to Mollie, country-specific payment methods can now be offered. This allows us to reach customers abroad with their preferred payment method!" In addition, Mollie has impressed the Adenauer & Co team with its straightforward onboarding process.

Mollie & plentyShop: The Best Combination for Adenauer & Co

The combination of Mollie as an integration in plentyShop offers numerous advantages to companies. Plentymarkets has taken over the development and support of the Mollie plugin, saving time and effort. According to Axel Heiter, with an almost zero failure rate, very little support time needs to be spent. Particularly in the case of returns, Mollie's strength becomes apparent. "I would say that the weekly hours spent on returns processing have decreased by 20%. Manual transfers for returns are no longer necessary. There are fewer inquiries, and the work is quick and virtually error-free," explains Axel Heiter in our conversation. A robust returns management is a significant success factor in ecommerce, as the free returns option is now commonplace for many consumers. Furthermore, with the rapidly growing competition in online retail, focusing on customer needs continues to take centre stage.

Mollie supports the returns management of online shops like Adenauer & Co with a smart integration. Merchants can see all incoming and outgoing payments clearly in the Mollie dashboard. If a return is requested, merchants can track whether the invoice amount has been refunded in the dashboard. Moreover, merchants can incorporate payment methods that are particularly secure, such as payment in advance. This ensures that merchants receive payment before a product is shipped, unlike with invoicing. In the case of a return, merchants, thanks to the Mollie plugin, retain an overview of the transaction.

With the Mollie integration in plentymarkets, Adenauer & Co has created an online shop that not only aligns with the brand but also resonates with customers. The easy operation and plugin integration capabilities have convinced the Adenauer team of this combination – and to this day, the company continues to enjoy sustainable success.