Central Group

Last updated
Central Group
Native name
กลุ่มเซ็นทรัล
Company type Privately held
Industry
  • Retail
  • property development
  • brand management
  • hospitality
  • food and beverage
  • digital lifestyle
Founded1947;78 years ago (1947)
Founder
  • Tiang Chirathivat
  • Samrit Chirathivat
Headquarters
Bangkok
,
Thailand
Areas served
Key people
 Tos Chirathivat (executive chairman and CEO)
Products
Owner Chirathivat family
Number of employees
80,000 (2022)
Subsidiaries
Website centralgroup.com
Footnotes /references
[1]

Central Group is a Thai multinational conglomerate founded by Tiang and Samrit Chirathivat in 1947, and still privately owned by the Chirathivat family as of 2025. Its publicly-traded subsidiaries include Central Retail, Central Pattana (commercial real estate development), and Central Plaza Hotel (hospitality group and restaurant operator). Its privately-held subsidiaries operate several European department stores, including those acquired from the former KaDeWe Group and Selfridges Group, and financial services.

Contents

History

Founder Tiang emigrated from Hainan Island to Bangkok in 1925. He set up his first shop in the Thon Buri district on the outskirts of Bangkok across the Chao Phraya River from the city center. He moved across the Chao Phraya River to a location near the grand Oriental Hotel (now the Mandarin Oriental), where he opened a store with his eldest son, Samrit, in 1947. [2] In 1956, the family opened Central Department Store, the biggest department store in Thailand at that time, in Wang Burapa district, Phra Nakhon, Bangkok. The company's property development arm, Central Pattana, was founded in 1980, and opened its first shopping centre, CentralPlaza Ladprao in Chatuchak District, Bangkok, in 1983. Besides expansion through physical presence in the Bangkok retail space, Central Group has in recent years built an online presence among ASEAN e-tailers and a strong presence of luxury department store collection in Europe.

Public subsidiaries

Central Retail

List of Central Retail department stores
NameYear
founded		Notes
Big C 1993
Central Department Store 1927One location in Indonesia [3] [4]
Go!
Lanchi Mart
Robinson Department Store 1979Acquired by Central in 1995
Tops Supermarket 1996
Robins 2014Vietnamese rebranding of Robinsons Department Store
Zen 1989Rebranded to Central in 2019

Central Pattana

List of Central Pattana properties
CityNameYear
opened		Gross floor area
Ayutthaya Central Ayutthaya 2021160,000 m2 (1,700,000 sq ft)
Bangkok Central Bangna 2001500,000 m2 (5,400,000 sq ft)
Central EastVille201590,000 m2 (970,000 sq ft)
Central Embassy 20141,000,000 m2 (11,000,000 sq ft)
Central Ladprao 1982310,000 m2 (3,300,000 sq ft)
Central Pinklao 1995370,000 m2 (4,000,000 sq ft)
Central Rama II 2002273,000 m2 (2,940,000 sq ft)
Central Rama IX 2011214,000 m2 (2,300,000 sq ft)
Central Rama III 1997188,000 m2 (2,020,000 sq ft)
Central Ramindra 199386,000 m2 (930,000 sq ft)
CentralWorld 2002830,000 m2 (8,900,000 sq ft)
The Esplanade Ratchada 2021105,000 m2 (1,130,000 sq ft)
Marche Thonglor202362,000 m2 (670,000 sq ft)
Chanthaburi Central Chanthaburi202292,000 m2 (990,000 sq ft)
Chiang Mai Central Chiangmai Airport 1996250,000 m2 (2,700,000 sq ft)
Central Chiangmai2013260,000 m2 (2,800,000 sq ft)
Chiang Rai Central Chiangrai 2011110,000 m2 (1,200,000 sq ft)
Chonburi Central Chonburi 2009156,000 m2 (1,680,000 sq ft)
Central Si Racha2021140,000 m2 (1,500,000 sq ft)
Khon Kaen Central Khonkaen 2009200,000 m2 (2,200,000 sq ft)
Central Khonkaen Campus202667,000 m2 (720,000 sq ft)
Ko Samui Central Samui201476,000 m2 (820,000 sq ft)
Krabi Central Krabi202547,500 m2 (511,000 sq ft)
Lampang Central Lampang2012110,000 m2 (1,200,000 sq ft)
Nakhon Pathom Central Salaya 2014185,500 m2 (1,997,000 sq ft)
Central Nakhon Pathom2024126,000 m2 (1,360,000 sq ft)
Nakhon Ratchasima Central Korat2017233,000 m2 (2,510,000 sq ft)
Nakhon Sawan Central Nakhon Sawan2024133,300 m2 (1,435,000 sq ft)
Nakhon Si Thammarat Central Nakhon Si2016125,000 m2 (1,350,000 sq ft)
Nonthaburi Central Chaengwattana 2008310,000 m2 (3,300,000 sq ft)
Central NorthVille 2003210,000 m2 (2,300,000 sq ft)
Central WestGate 2015352,000 m2 (3,790,000 sq ft)
Central WestVille202393,000 m2 (1,000,000 sq ft)
Pattaya Central Marina 199570,000 m2 (750,000 sq ft)
Central Pattaya 2009210,000 m2 (2,300,000 sq ft)
Phitsanulok Central Phitsanulok 2011100,000 m2 (1,100,000 sq ft)
Phuket Central Phuket 2018400,000 m2 (4,300,000 sq ft)
Rayong Central Rayong2015155,000 m2 (1,670,000 sq ft)
Samut Prakan Central Village Luxury Outlet201980,000 m2 (860,000 sq ft)
Megacity Bangna2021500,000 m2 (5,400,000 sq ft)
Samut Sakhon Central Mahachai 2017131,250 m2 (1,412,800 sq ft)
Shah Alam, Malaysia Central i-City [a] 2019259,000 m2 (2,790,000 sq ft)
Songkhla Central Hatyai2013295,000 m2 (3,180,000 sq ft)
Surat Thani Central Suratthani 2012130,000 m2 (1,400,000 sq ft)
Ubon Ratchathani Central Ubon2013186,284 m2 (2,005,140 sq ft)
Udon Thani Central Udon 2009250,000 m2 (2,700,000 sq ft)
  1. ↑ Central i-City is the only CPN-owned mall that does not feature Central Department Store or any Central Group retail stores.

Central Plaza Hotel

Central Group owns and manages visitor accommodation at all major Thai tourist destinations and around the world under own banners as well as international brands. Hotels cover every segment from luxury to economy. Central’s own brands comprise Centara Reserve, Centara Grand, Centara Boutique Collection, Centara, Centra by Centara and Cosi, while internationally-branded hotels include Park Hyatt Bangkok and Hilton Pattaya. In the Maldives, Centara Grand is opening its fourth location on February 1, 2025. In Japan, Central Group is a co-investor in StayFactory Hotel Group, whose brands include Hotel Hillarys, Hotel Relief, and Hotel Stork. In Switzerland, Central Group has also comprised Central Hotel Zurich company and Globus supermarket.

Central Group has also pioneered restaurant chains in Thailand, and operates well-known local, regional, and international food brands such as Mister Donut, KFC, Auntie Anne’s, Pepper Lunch, Chabuton, The Terrace, Yoshinoya, Ootoya, Tenya, Katsuya and Fezt. [5]

Private subsidiaries

European luxury stores

List of Central Group department stores in Europe
CountryNameYear
founded		Year
acquired		Notes
Denmark Illum 18912013
Germany Alsterhaus 19122015
Kaufhaus des Westens 19072015
Oberpollinger 19052015
Italy La Rinascente 18652011
Ireland Arnotts 18432022Joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund
Brown Thomas 18481983Joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund
Netherlands De Bijenkorf 18702022Joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund
Switzerland Globus 19072020
United Kingdom Selfridges 19082022Joint venture with the Saudi Arabian Public Investment Fund

Financial services

One of Central Group's aspirations towards the New Central New Economy strategy is to create convenience for both merchants and consumers with financial services and Fintech, with the ultimate goal of a cashless society in Thailand.

References

  1. ↑ "Achievements: Employees". Central Group. Retrieved 2022-02-11.
  2. ↑ Ono, Yukako (10 September 2017). "For Thailand's retail giant Central Group, it is no longer all in the family". Nikkei Asian Review. Retrieved 10 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "CENTRAL GROUP on Instagram: "[#CGUPDATE] เปลี่ยนคุณให้เป็นอีกคน เริ่มต้นความสนุกครั้งใหม่ กับ ZEN ที่เปลี่ยนชื่อเป็น CENTRAL @ centralwOrld แล้ววันนี้ #CENTRALGroup…"". Instagram. Archived from the original on 2021-12-24. Retrieved 2019-11-29.
  4. ↑ Image imggmi.com Archived 2019-01-11 at the Wayback Machine
  5. ↑ "Hospitality". www.centralgroup.com. Retrieved 19 November 2023.
  6. ↑ "Financial Services & FinTech". centralgroup.com. Retrieved 2023-08-03.
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