Clint Mahlman, COO and Senior Vice-President, London Drugs Ltd.

From the 2013 Influencer Index: This London Drugs COO made going green a priority long before it was fashionable 

The catalyst behind London Drugs’ green initiatives, COO Clint Mahlman makes sustainability a priority for his own company, as well as on a national level.

Speaking to the significant impact that London Drugs’ “What’s the Green Deal?” recycling program and waste-management stewardship is making in the retail industry, Mahlman humbly says he’s happy to use his background and title to get things done, “but there’s large teams and lots of great partners that are equally as important to making this happen.”

A board member for the Recycling Council of B.C. and the Electronic Products Recycling Association, he adds that “business needs to stand up and take a lead in how we approach our philosophy around waste and how it gets introduced into the waste stream.”

Retail expert David Ian Gray of DIG360 Consulting Ltd. points to Mahlman’s ability to balance a business with an environmental agenda: “He’s embraced change in a sector that I don’t think is really known for change, particularly on the issue of trying to get harmonization across Canada on environmental regulations. You’d normally see that on a well-capitalized national chain, possibly even a global chain, and you’re seeing that impact from a regional chain, London Drugs, which is pretty impressive.”