About You had previously ended its collaboration with Kliemann.
(Photo: IMAGO/APress)
Dusseldorf In addition to the hardware store chain Toom and the beverage manufacturer Berentzen, the whirlpool manufacturer Nordpool has now also ended its collaboration with the Youtuber Fynn Kliemann. The mirror reported on Wednesday evening.
The aid organization Viva con Agua, the energy supplier EWE and the CBD shop Vaay had already terminated their cooperation with Kliemann on Monday.
The Youtuber and entrepreneur, who became known for his home improvement clips, had worked with Toom for his videos. The hardware store chain “suspended all ongoing cooperation measures immediately after publication of the report,” the “Spiegel” quoted a company spokeswoman as saying. The company is currently also examining legal means.
In addition, according to the report, the whirlpool manufacturer Nordpool should no longer work with Kliemann. “Due to the current reporting, we, like other partners, are clearly distancing ourselves from the cooperation entered into with Fynn Kliemann,” said a spokesman for the company.
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The cooperation is said to have involved the delivery of a whirlpool for Kliemann’s holiday home in Nordstrand. He rented it through the LDGG website, which the Youtuber also operates.
LDGG had advertised that it would “offer holidays at reasonable prices”. Guests could voluntarily pay more to give vacations to people with less money. So far, however, none of these vacations have been booked because no one wanted and was able to manage the money for Kliemann. The ambiguities in the administration of donations had already caused a break between Tafel Deutschland and Kliemann.
ZDF Magazin Royale revealed mask deal
The trigger for the consequences was the reporting by ZDF Magazin Royale about an alleged mask fraud. On Friday, Jan Böhmermann stated on his show that Kliemann is said to have knowingly deceived customers and the public.
At the beginning of the corona pandemic in 2020, Fynn Kliemann switched the production of his textile company Oderso from sweaters to fabric masks. These should be “cheap, fair and from Europe”. In 2020 he was even awarded the German Sustainability Prize for the business model.
Instead of in Portugal, however, the masks sold and marketed by Kliemann are said to have been produced in Bangladesh and Vietnam. The YouTuber also did not sell the masks at cost, as stated. Fynn Kliemann and his business partner Tom Illbruck from Global Tactics are said to have made a profit of around one million euros from the deals.
In addition, Böhmermann accused the entrepreneurs of having passed on the first batch of 100,000 unusable masks from Bangladesh to refugees in Greece and Bosnia. In the reporting, the two entrepreneurs were celebrated for the “donation”.
Viva con Agua: “Not compatible with our values”
Above all, Viva con Agua, a Hamburg NGO that supports projects for clean drinking water worldwide, was a long-standing partner of Kliemann. In an official statement on the website, the aid organization said: “The events described are in stark contrast to our values and our idea of community-oriented entrepreneurship.” Viva con Agua is therefore ending all business relationships with Kliemann and his companies. The aid organization had advertised prominently with him until the very end.
In addition to Viva con Agua, EWE and Vaay, the second division club FC St. Pauli, the online fashion retailer About You and Tafel Deutschland ended their collaboration with Kliemann at the weekend. Tafel Deutschland justified the step with the lost trust in the influencer. He had collected donations when renting out his holiday homes, but did not manage them transparently. He was also stripped of the German Sustainability Award.
Kliemann is now not only feeling the consequences of the companies and business partners, but also those of his fans. Since the scandal became known, thousands of followers have unfollowed him on his social media channels.
Fynn Kliemann: Mask affair causes massive image damage
Last Monday, Kliemann said again: “Everyone rightly expects clarification. Not again with an overheated statement this time,” wrote the influencer on Instagram. He needs time “until I have clarity about the details” and promised: “I can and will answer.”
EWE, Viva con Agua and Vaay have ended their collaboration with Fynn Kliemann. The trigger is the Youtuber’s mask scandal.
(Photo: imago images/Future Image)
In a video he apologized beforehand, but at the same time announced that About You and other wholesalers were informed about the countries of origin of the masks. Those cheating allegations just wouldn’t be true. He announced this on Friday.
A survey by the market research company Appinio, which is available exclusively to the Handelsblatt, shows that the scandal is causing massive damage to Kliemann’s image. 60 percent of those surveyed who have heard of Fynn Kliemann have only known him since the scandal became known. But Kliemann not only increased his fame through the mask affair. Respondents are also convinced that the businessman will never recover from this scandal.
More: “Crisis can also be cool” – Youtuber Fynn Kliemann criticized after Böhmermann revelations
This article first appeared on May 10, 2022 at 2:55 p.m.