Gwangju Shinsegae Launches Full-Scale 'ESG Activities' to Enhance Corporate Value

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Shin Dong-ho] Gwangju Shinsegae Co., Ltd. (CEO Lee Dong-hoon) announced on the 2nd that it will strengthen its ‘ESG (Environment, Social Contribution, Governance) management activities,’ which have established a new paradigm.

Recently, unlike the traditional method of judging corporate value solely based on financial performance, various activities are being evaluated by sufficiently reflecting non-financial factors such as corporate value and sustainability from a long-term perspective.

Accordingly, Gwangju Shinsegae announced through the March shareholders’ meeting and the 26th anniversary of the establishment of its local corporation in April that it will strengthen activities to enhance corporate value by reinforcing social responsibility.

First, to create a sustainable environment and a culture of ethical consumption, Gwangju Shinsegae will hold an eco-friendly campaign under the theme ‘On-Green Market’ at the event hall on the first floor of the main building from the 4th to the 10th.

The brands participating in this event include ‘Plastic Product,’ which uses yarn made from plastic and is growing based in Gwangju; ‘Museum Jaehee,’ a designer shoe brand using materials such as bamboo and eel leather, specialties of Damyang; ‘Nakes,’ which uses eco-friendly materials such as organic cotton and cactus leather; ‘119REO,’ which creates fashion items from expired firefighting equipment and donates part of the proceeds to firefighters; ‘BBYB,’ pursuing unique vegan fashion using materials like fake leather; ‘Hyochang Soap,’ which makes classic soaps inspired by basic natural oils; and ‘Earth Shop,’ which offers products for sustainability such as bamboo toothbrushes and natural loofah sponges, totaling nine brands.

During the event period, customers who purchase over 100,000/200,000/400,000 KRW with affiliated cards will receive a 5% Shinsegae gift certificate as a benefit.

Also, from May 28 to June 10, Zerogram, which has developed ultralight equipment and conducted various eco-friendly activities over the past decade, is introducing eco-friendly products under the concept of ‘Summer Camping in the City’ at the event hall in the basement level 1 of the new building.

Visitors can see clothing made from recycled fabric and discarded PET bottles reborn as eco-friendly materials, as well as lightweight and safe backpacking equipment.

Gwangju Shinsegae is also steadily carrying out community contribution activities.

In cooperation with the Gwangju Youth Center, a campaign supporting daily life for Gwangju youth overcoming COVID-19 will be held throughout June at the event hall on the first floor.

During the event, part of the proceeds amounting to 10 million KRW will be provided to local youth through the Gwangju Youth Center.

The purpose of this campaign is to raise funds to support goods for local youth who face increasingly diverse situations and unstable employment conditions after COVID-19.

Due to income reduction, many local youth are experiencing difficulties in covering living expenses.

Since 2020, Gwangju Shinsegae has been conducting monthly campaigns to provide 10 million KRW each month to support local residents living in hardship.

So far, the funds raised through these campaigns have reached 150 million KRW, demonstrating continuous support for the local community.

Representative fundraising events include campaigns for flood recovery support in the Gwangju area, support for play kits for vulnerable families, and treatment cost support for pediatric cancer patients.

Furthermore, to expand ESG activities, Gwangju Shinsegae established an ESG Committee on the 13th of last month.

This ESG Committee plans to expand activities beyond existing social contribution efforts to all areas of ESG, and will review major ESG-related issues and strategies and provide advisory roles.

Han Jang-hee, an outside director, was appointed as the chairperson of the ESG Committee.

Gwangju Shinsegae is receiving high local praise as a signal of strengthening ESG management through the establishment of the ESG Committee.

Gwangju Shinsegae has laid the groundwork for becoming a nationwide brand by discovering local brands such as dessert brand Kitchen205, Hexagonal Coffee, and golf equipment specialist brand Spol, while practicing eco-friendly management through energy-saving machinery, facility improvements, introduction of eco-friendly materials, and spreading green consumption culture.

This year as well, it continues regional-friendly projects such as scholarship programs supporting 130 million KRW in tuition for local high schools and actively sponsoring the Gwangju Biennale, a representative international contemporary art exhibition for regional cultural development, which continues to grow as a world-class cultural and artistic festival.

CEO Lee Dong-hoon said, “I believe ESG management is not about grand gestures of things that have never existed before, but about steadily practicing small things step by step,” and added, “We will strive to practice it consistently, not just once.”

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.