“That technology architecture, which will be fully tailored for the need to keep our business model flexible, will allow us to offer seamlessly integrated shopping services and experiences, anywhere, anytime”, said Isla, adding that the “Store Mode” will mean customers can navigate the Group's stores from their mobile handsets in accordance with their preferences.

Isla also outlined the Company's ambitious targets regarding sustainability. The first goal is to reinforce the responsible management of in-store energy used consumption thanks to the centralised management platform known as Inergy, to which 3,587 stores are already connected up. Other targets include lifting the percentage of renewable energy and handling all materials used in the Group's stores, logistics platforms and head offices, in accordance with the Zero Waste programme.

In parallel, the Company plans to continue to make progress on the elimination of plastic, a strategy articulated around two milestones: in 2020 it will eliminate all plastic bags from its stores and online orders; by 2023 it plans to eliminate all single-use plastics from customer interfaces. The significance of the Join Life collections is set to continue to increase in tandem, representing 25% of the total in 2020, putting the Company on track for delivery of its goal of using 100%-sustainable fibres by 2025.

Emergency aid during the COVID-19 pandemic

During the Annual General Meeting, Inditex's executive chairman shared details regarding the assistance provided by Inditex during the global health emergency, when it assigned its entire supply and transport capacity to support the relief effort. Thanks to the air corridor it set up with China and 56 freight aircraft, Inditex was able to transport over 150 million items of personal protective equipment to Spain.

More specifically, Inditex shipped 2,300 ventilators, 2.5 million N95/FFP2 face masks, over 105 million surgical masks, nearly 38 million pairs of gloves, 425,000 face shields, 450,000 protective suits, 1.3 million surgical gowns, 100 hospital tables, 2 million tests and 17 robots to accelerate test processing, among other health equipment. This was done on behalf of multiple public authorities and private donors, including the Amancio Ortega Foundation and the Inditex Group itself, which also donated equipment worth €25 million.

Tax contribution and community investment

Pablo Isla then described how the Group works to create value for the communities in which it does business, quantifying Inditex's global tax contribution in 2019 of €6.74 billion. Of that sum, €1.87 billion was paid in Spain, where the Group is headquartered, €1.05 billion of which in the form of indirect taxes, implying an effective tax rate of 22%.

Inditex's executive chairman also underscored the more than 2.44 million direct beneficiaries of the community programmes to which Inditex donated €49.2 million in 2019 and outlined the main humanitarian aid, community well-being and educational programmes supported by Inditex's contributions in the past year.

Resolutions ratified at the Annual General Meeting

The Company's shareholders approved the Board's motion to pay out an ordinary dividend of €0.35 per share, due on 2 November 2020. The Company's dividend policy remains intact, namely a payout of 60%, plus an extraordinary dividend totalling €0.78 per share, originally to be paid in 2020 and 2021 and now to be distributed in 2021 and 2022.