STEVEN B TANGER
DIRECTOR AND CEO, TANGER FACTORY OUTLET CENTERS, INC.
In 2018, we celebrated our 25th year as a public company. I am pleased to present Tanger Outlets’ 2018 Corporate Responsibility Report for this milestone year. In our third report, which covers results from calendar year 2018, we highlight Tanger’s environmental, social and governance (ESG) activities, and provide our stakeholders with additional information about our company’s ESG performance.
Tanger actively embraces corporate responsibility and our practices reflect our culture and demonstrate resilience and a focus on long-term value creation for all of our stakeholders, including shareholders, retail partners, employee team members, customers and community partners.
In 2018 we accomplished and made progress on our 2017 goals, and chief among these is our commitment to transparency and public reporting of ESG matters. In this report, you will find examples of Tanger’s commitment to sustainable business practices:
Our ENVIRONMENTAL EFFORTS continue to have a positive impact on energy and water usage. In 2018 we decreased water usage by more than 7% in stable centers, those in operation for the full years of comparison, which was driven by a pilot program for irrigation controls. Electricity usage in 2018 was down 2.8% in stable centers, driven by LED lighting (LED) retrofits. We increased free electric vehicle (EV) charging use by more than 50%.
Our COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT remains strong, with 2018 charitable giving through our TangerCARES Program exceeding $1.1 million, and more than $19.2 million since 1994. We partner with communities throughout the portfolio, and contribute both financially and through our volunteerism program, which allows each full-time employee 40 hours per year for volunteer service.
Our COMMITMENT TO A DIVERSE, COLLABORATIVE, ENTREPRENEURIAL WORKPLACE is a part of one of our identified material issues – Culture. In 2018 we increased the diversity of our Board by electing Susan Skerrit, the second female board member. This brings our Board gender composition to 22% female. We are proud to announce that as of December 31, 2018, out of 645 employees, female employees made up 70% of our corporate employees, 88% of field employees and 50% of our Executive Leadership Team.
As we accelerate our efforts in the ESG areas impacting our business, we continue to work to not only improve our long-term performance, but also to increase transparent communication with investors, employees and the communities we serve.
I am pleased to share this comprehensive report on our 2018 progress and hope you enjoy reading about our efforts, and the places, partnerships and people that make it possible.
Sincerely,
STEVEN B. TANGER
CHIEF EXECUTIVE OFFICER