GS Retail Publishes First Sustainability Management Report Post-Merger... "Includes 7 Key Strategic Tasks"

'Green Life Together' Mid- to Long-Term Vision
Regular Operation of ESG Promotion Council... Execution Review Included

GS Retail's ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) Sustainability Management Report.

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Chun-han] GS Retail announced on the 4th that it will publish its first sustainability management report since the merger on its official website. This is the second report following the first publication last year and the first since the integration with GS Home Shopping.

This report contains the ESG (Environmental, Social, and Governance) strategies and achievements of the integrated GS Retail across various sectors. To ensure the execution of ESG strategies linked to management strategies, an ESG Promotion Council chaired by the CEO is regularly operated, and an ESG Working Committee composed of six key executives and operational teams monitors the implementation of strategic tasks. Additionally, to promote practical ESG activities, a self-directed research group has been established, creating an organizational system where each Business Unit (BU) independently checks the progress of task implementation and discovers new agendas.

Since the integration, GS Retail has established a new ESG strategic framework and selected seven strategic tasks under the mid-to-long-term ESG vision called "Green Life Together": Green Products, Green Stores, Green Environmental Management, Together Employees, Together Partners, Together Customers, and Together Social Contribution.

In the environmental sector, GS25 stores equipped with the self-developed Smart Energy Management System (SEMS) increased to a cumulative total of 11,241 nationwide by last year, actively leading energy savings and greenhouse gas emission reductions. The company is actively expanding eco-friendly stores, including three green stores designated by the Ministry of Environment and one store certified for green building. In the social contribution sector, approximately 50 self-support stores have been established, including Naeil Store (supporting vulnerable groups' self-reliance), Dream Store (supporting youth independence), and Senior Store (supporting employment for the elderly), all born from social welfare programs supporting the independence of socially disadvantaged groups.

A GS Retail official stated, “Since the integration, we have continuously worked to improve governance by efforts such as appointing female outside directors to secure board diversity, introducing and operating an outside director evaluation system, and appointing directors for shareholder communication. This report was published as a PDF with freely accessible links on the website to uphold the eco-friendly purpose.”