PENNY, a major Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) retailer in Romania, has made a hugely significant sustainability commitment, pledging to make 300 stores greener by 2029 through its adoption of BREEAM. By committing to the biggest ever BREEAM programme for a retailer in CEE, PENNY has established itself as an international sector leader in sustainability.
BREEAM has been developed by Building Research Establishment (BRE) for master-planning projects, infrastructure and buildings, to allow asset owners to recognise and reflect the value in higher performing assets across the built environment lifecycle, from new construction to in-use and refurbishment. Two million businesses are now registered with BREEAM in 89 countries, with PENNY one of the top 15 companies to use the initiative at a global level.
From now on, new stores in the PENNY network will be recertified in BREEAM every three years. Over the longer-term, the plan is to recertify some of the existing stores and major refurbishments on a three-year basis.
Gael Temple, head of sales, BRE, said: “PENNY adopting the BREEAM standard is a major step forward for Romania, as well as Europe more widely. The value BREEAM delivers to customers is clear. Companies can make significant improvements in the environmental, social and economic sustainability of their buildings – something which is reflected in the achievements made by PENNY.
“Ultimately, we need large-scale action in the commercial buildings sector, and major businesses will help deliver this much-needed change. We look forward to working closely with PENNY in this regard over the coming years, as it further solidifies itself as a sustainability leader.”
Daniel Gross, CEO, PENNY Romania, added: “Our commitment to certify BREEAM across our chain of stores represents one of the most extensive sustainability initiatives, not only at a national level, but also at a European level. PENNY is taking on a much-needed pioneering role to respond to climate change, to which we all need to take firm and far-reaching action.”