Ghistelinck Automotive drives sustainability forward with delaware

The challenge: meet the growing demand for sustainability  

The Ghistelinck Automotive portfolio includes a wide range of mobility solutions – stock cars, lease cars, trucks, … – from different brands, such as Mercedes-Benz, Volkswagen, Audi, Seat, Cupra and Skoda. The passion for cars, quality and craftsmanship can be felt in every fiber of Ghistelinck Automotive, including their sustainability initiatives: “Sustainability has always been in our company’s DNA,” says Jeroen Vermeire, CFO at Ghistelinck Automotive. “Since 2005, for example, Ghistelinck has relied entirely on green energy and every new showroom or workshop is built for eco-efficiency.” Moreover, Ghistelinck's sustainability strategy is centered on several key points: efficiently managing resources, providing energy-efficient mobility solutions, minimizing waste production, and investing in sustainability where it clearly benefits the customer journey. 

Still, suppliers and customers increasingly demand more concrete proof of sustainability efforts. Moreover, the upcoming CSRD (Corporate Sustainability Directive) regulations trigger the need for a more structured approach to CSR reporting at companies like Ghistelinck, encouraging them to integrate and streamline scattered ESG initiatives. Enter delaware. 

The solution: starting a double materiality assessment  

“delaware supports businesses at every stage of their sustainability journey, from materiality assessment to data through to reporting,” explains David Swillen, delaware’s sustainability lead. “Ghistelinck asked us to help prioritize sustainability topics, as well as structure and manage the necessary data for sustainability reporting. It was especially our ability to combine DMA and data management expertise that stood us apart.” Just like many businesses, they know they’d struggle to define the data points on which the upcoming legislation will need them to report, identify and find the necessary data sources, and capture the data they need for compliant sustainability reporting.” 

The first step in the journey was an awareness session, where delaware informed the participants about the upcoming CSRD legislation as well as the opportunities that sustainability can bring for Ghistelinck. 

In a second step, David and his colleagues conducted a CRSD-aligned double materiality assessment. A crucial phase in any sustainability journey, the assessment helps businesses understand and assess the potential and actual positive or negative impacts of their business on people and the environment, and vice-versa.  

The approach: tailoring sustainability efforts to Ghistelinck’s unique needs 

David explains: “Even though the upcoming European legislation creates an acute and concrete need, this doesn’t mean that every company automatically becomes a full-blown sustainable organization. Assessing what sustainability topics are relevant to an organization requires a phased approach and the consideration of multiple stakeholders, which often spans several months and involves lengthy surveys and interviews. We chose to take a flexible and tailored approach, offering Ghistelinck the tools they need to adapt and take on their sustainability journey step-by-step.”  

This tailored approach considered the company’s structure, business activities and existing information. delaware identified and documented the stakeholders and the European Sustainability Reporting Standards (ESRS), next to desk research to prepare for the double materiality assessment: “Mercedes-Benz and are D’Ieteren two key stakeholders for Ghistelinck, so we thoroughly reviewed their sustainability reports to understand their materialities and strategies. We also analyzed trends and challenges in the automotive sector and consulted delaware colleagues with extensive industry experience,” says David.  

The double materiality assessment itself involved inviting several employees from throughout the organization to align on sustainability topics and related opportunities and risk. The delaware sustainability experts helped identified the data points that Ghistelinck would need for CSRD-compliant reporting. David explains: “For each materiality, the CSRD sets a series of  measures. For most companies, it is hard to find, collect and manage the sustainability-related information they need to report on those KSIs (Key Sustainability Indicators), as data sources are dispersed, there are many different data types with a different level of granularity and quality, and so on.” 

“We adopted a consensus-based model, gathering the insights of a total of 26 employees to determine the materialities. By talking to people from every team, we ensured that every business activity was represented, while the sessions remained efficient and targeted. The workshop sessions were well-received, with participants noting a "good balance between involvement and guidance." These sessions significantly contributed to establishing the double materiality that is now supported by a broader group within the organization. 

The results: transparency on materialities and clarity on ESG data collection and process

delaware consolidated all the input into a clear report, providing Ghistelinck with an overview of its materialities and their translation into concrete data points.