The six shopping malls of the group adopt measures to reduce energy and water consumption, for garbage recycling and plants recovery
The Almeida Junior group has sustainability actions as premises. In 2004, Neumarkt Shopping, in Blumenau, was the first to buy energy at auction, which represented lower consumption in the following year. Between 2016 and 2019, all six units of the group adhered to the use of LED light bulbs and also entered the free energy market. The result: in 2022 the group reached the mark of BRL 43.7 million in energy savings. There were BRL 37.7 million savings in the free energy market contracts and BRL 6 million with the use of LED lamps. The release of the balance takes place now in view of the proximity of the world environment day, celebrated this Sunday, June 5th.
The separation and recycling of waste produced in the network’s six shopping malls and rainwater harvesting are other examples of concrete sustainability actions at Almeida Junior. “The environmental issues are much more than a trend, than measures for the economy, it is a reality in our routine, it is a pillar of the company that, increasingly, is guided by the implementation of ESG rules (acronym for Environmental, Social, and Governance practices),” says CEO Jaimes Almeida Junior.
The use of sustainable technologies, the adoption of practices that encourage the improvement of the environment and quality of life are present in all six shopping malls: Neumarkt and Norte Shopping (Blumenau), Balneário Shopping (Balneário Camboriú), Garten Shopping (Joinville), Continente Shopping (Greater Florianópolis) and Nações Shopping (Criciúma). “Almeida Junior included effective ESG actions in its business plan. And it will continue to increase its commitment to the practices, as it believes that it has a strong active role in building a better future for the next generations”, adds the CEO.
Attentive to market trends, Almeida Junior has been operating in the free energy market for a long time. Based on short, medium and long-term energy consumption planning, a partnership is signed with traders to mediate with distributors, through bilateral contracts, with individually negotiated amounts, as well as contracted terms and volumes. Also in the energy area, all shopping malls have already replaced their metallic vapor and fluorescent lamps with LED models, which are more economical and less polluting. And the ceilings have skylights to facilitate the delivery of natural lighting and reduce energy consumption.
Almeida Junior also had electric car chargers a few years ago, through a partnership with BMW. In 2021, the company signed a new partnership, this time with Porsche Brazil, and installed new charging stations for electric vehicles to increase the state’s electric transmission corridor. Today, the six shopping malls add up to a total of 17 stations available. Free of charge, visitors can recharge their cars restfully, while enjoying the services offered by the company’s shopping malls, such as a food court, the movies and stores.
Waste Recycling and Water Saving
Each month, in the network’s six shopping malls, around 44.8 tons of cardboard and paper, nearly three tons of plastics and another 715 kilograms of metallic items are collected and sorted. Organic waste is removed by a specialized company that composts it.
In different units of the network, rainwater is also collected, directed to a cistern that feeds the bathrooms and supplies water for use in the gardens and for cleaning and also in the air conditioning system. And artesian aquifer is used to supply approximately 70% of the water need. And all units have smart faucets in the bathrooms, with sensors that release water only when the hands are under the faucet, which generates 60% savings compared to common equipment.
Almeida Junior shopping malls also have nurseries for replanting the plants that decorate the six units. Together, the nurseries of the six units total 400 square meters of area where ferns, lilies, orchids, aglaonemas, among other species are treated. In this way, they receive all the due care to return to their vivacity and natural beauty.
About Almeida Junior
The company was founded by entrepreneur Jaimes Almeida Junior and today is the largest company in the shopping malls segment in the South of the country. With six shopping malls in Santa Catarina, totaling 225 thousand square meters of GLA (Gross Leasable Area) and more than 1,500 stores, Almeida Junior has 71% market share in the state.
