‘A’ RATING ASSIGNED TO CCC BY MSCI ESG IN RECOGNITION OF ITS SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT PERFORMANCE
CCC has been assigned a rating of ‘A’ by MSCI ESG, which honours companies that stand out for their sustainable development initiatives. It is the second upward revision of CCC’s rating in just two years. The ‘A’ score puts CCC on a par with global industry leaders. A key pillar of the CCC Group’s GO.22 strategy, sustainable development efforts are what the increasingly conscious customers expect these days. The MSCI ESG rating embodies the Company’s success in the implementation of its stated strategy. CCC achieved the ambitious goal of securing the ‘A’ rating a year earlier than originally planned. The Company consistently pursues responsible business initiatives, delivering on the goals set in its GO.22 Sustainable Development Strategy.
The MSCI ESG index analyses three pillars of responsibility: E (environment), S (society) and G (governance). CCC was first included in the index in 2018 with a rating of ‘BB’. The rating was then upgraded to ‘BBB’ in 2019 and to ‘A’ in late August 2020. Companies are rated on a scale of CCC (laggard), B, BB, BBB, A, AA, AAA (leader).
‘Over the last three years, we have been consistently climbing the sustainable development ratings ladder. We owe our success to the efforts we take to protect the environment and society, as well as to our responsible corporate management. This year, we have announced our first comprehensive sustainable development strategy, in which we committed ourselves to take concrete actions. This is what investors, employees and customers expect nowadays. We are also sending a clear message to the market, because the key purpose of ESG ratings is to provide relevant non-financial data to help make informed investment decisions,’ said Marcin Czyczerski, President of the CCC Management Board.
Currently, 59% of peer companies worldwide have ratings lower than CCC, and 14% of industry players, including Nike and the LVMH Group (Louis Vuitton), have the same rating of A.
The sustainable development strategy is one of the pillars of the CCC Group’s GO.22 business strategy for 2020–2022. The strategic areas are responsible product, responsibility towards the environment, responsibility towards employees and responsibility towards society.
At present, 90% of the waste generated in business activities is recycled or otherwise recovered. CCC has withdrawn plastic bags from its brick-and-mortar and online stores in all countries, using recycled paper packaging only. The Group subsidiary eobuwie.pl uses solely eco-friendly shipping packaging and boxes.
The overriding sustainable development goal is to minimise the negative impact of our business by further reducing greenhouse gas emission indicators, increasing electrical energy efficiency and reducing waste volumes (in each case by 7% by 2022) and implementing circular economy principles. Further environmental measures include increasing the number of the Go for Nature eco-friendly product lines and raising the percentage of recyclable cardboard packaging to 80%. The Group’s Management Board also plans to further enhance employee development opportunities, and continue to promote diversity and equality.
Although the A rating from MSCI ESG is certainly something to be proud of, we are not ones to rest on our laurels. We know it’s just a foretaste of our future achievements. Our greatest ambition is to deliver the goals set out in our sustainable development strategy. An ESG rating is not an end in itself, but it allows us to easily measure progress and evaluate the delivery of responsible business commitments we have undertaken towards our stakeholders. We do not see ESG as a cost. On the contrary, we consider it an opportunity, a source of competitive advantage, a market differentiator. This is particularly true in the context of recent changes in consumer behaviour, including the growing environmental awareness. We strive to meet those expectations,’ said Marcin Czyczerski, President of the CCC Management Board.
CCC also features high in the Ranking of Responsible Companies compiled by the Responsible Business Forum. In the latest ranking, published at the beginning of June, CCC reached 2nd place in the industry classification (compared with 4th place in 2019) and maintained 5th place in the general classification.
