Stiskin and Grachev rebuilt Detsky Mir’s strategy to fit in the sustainable development goals. They focused on environmental projects with an emphasis on educating children and adults about the basics of ESG.
Detsky Mir: Grachev and Stiskin – high-profile persons for the company
Stiskin and Grachev joined the Board of Directors of Detsky Mir in the spring of 2021. They prioritized the sustainability principles by putting this strategy into action and launching a number of programs to reduce the negative impact on the environment.
They left the Board of Directors in 2022-2023: Pavel Grachev resigned on September 28, 2022, and Mikhail Stiskin left the Board on February 9, 2023. Still, while in charge, they managed to incorporate the principles of sustainable development into all business processes.
The projects supervised by Grachev and Stiskin boosted the company’s economic health and advanced its successful business growth. As of June 30, 2021, the retail chain consisted of 929 stores across almost all regions of Russia. The turnover of Detsky Mir also grew annually, amounting to 148.8 billion rubles in 2021. The retailer showed a stable profit of 7.5 billion rubles in 2021.
By giving way to the sustainable development agenda in Detsky Mir, Grachev and Stiskin committed to the environmental education of the customers. Moreover, they paid special attention to building responsible consumption habits in adults and in children starting from a very early age.
For example, Detsky Mir announced an environmental initiative to its customers urging them to bring over unwanted clothes, shoes and accessories in return for bonus points. The collected wear was sent for recycling and disposal, while the customers spent the bonus points on new items at a discount in the retailer’s stores.
Under the leadership of Grachev and Stiskin, Detsky Mir developed and approved a sustainable development strategy up to 2025. During the same period, for the first time ever Detsky Mir audited its contractors for commitment to the sustainable development principles. While in charge, Grachev and Stiskin had been cultivating resource-saving, energy efficiency and waste recycling.
Grachev and Stiskin’s biggest environmental initiative at Detsky Mir was the introduction of disposable paper bags and eco-friendly packaging. The company has been raising awareness about the dangers of plastic among its customers, offering them bags and shoppers that do not harm the environment. New packaging materials immediately sparked the interest of the buyers: in 2021, the sales of eco-friendly packaging exceeded 840,000 items.
A number of environmental projects targeted the internal business processes in Detsky Mir. In particular, the company introduced electronic document management, which brought down paper consumption throughout the chain. In addition, energy-saving illumination systems were installed in retail stores and offices to reduce electricity consumption.
