 | |
| Abbreviation | IADS |
|---|---|
| Formation | 1928 |
| Founder | Emile Bernheim, Pierre Laguionie, Ragnar Sachs, Frank Chitham, Sven Bögelund-Jensen |
| Type | Retail trade association |
| Headquarters | Paris, France |
| Selvane Mohandas du Ménil | |
| Website | www.iads.org |
The International Association of Department Stores (IADS) is a retail trade association founded in 1928 by a group of department stores with the goal of introducing modern management methods derived from the scientific management movement to their retail format.
In the middle of the 1920s, American management theories, the north face as the scientific management of F.W. Taylor, started spreading in Europe. The International Management Institute (I.M.I.) was established in Geneva in 1927 to facilitate the diffusion of such ideas. [1]
Edward Filene, a member of the I.M.I. Board of Directors and Chairman of Filene's department store in Boston, decided—with Emile Bernheim of Innovation in Brussels (later known as Galeria Inno), Pierre Laguionie of the Printemps in Paris and Ragnar Sachs of Nordiska Kompaniet in Stockholm—to apply I.M.I.'s teachings about scientific management to the department store retail format. They created the Association of Department Stores in Paris in 1928 [2] [3] under the supervision of the first General Secretary Werner Kaufmann, [4] and were joined the same year by Harrods of London and Magasin du Nord of Copenhagen.
According to James B. Jefferys, [5] the interest of the IADS was first its limited scope, with memberships restricted to one per country to promote cooperation, and second its scientific approach, through methods laid out by one of the early General Secretaries of the IADS, Dr Hrant Pasdermadjian (1936-1954) [6] [7] (although his approach was severely judged in America). [8] During his tenure, Pasdermadjian published scientific manuals on the different department store functions. as well as his book on department stores. [9] [10] His successor for 30 years, Dr James B. Jefferys, continued the task of bringing management research to department stores and continued publishing works on retailing. [11]
After Kaufmann, Hermann Maria Spitzer, [12] Pasdermadjian and Jefferys, Erik Kalderen, of Sweden's Nordiska Kompaniet department store, became its first secretary, serving in that role for five years. He was followed by Maarten de Groot van Embden for 25 years, [13] [14] Armelle Mesguich for five years, and most recently Selvane Mohandas du Menil, [15] who took office part way through the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic, [16] [17] during which most stores were under lockdown. [18] There have been eight general managers in the 85 years between 1936 and 2021.
As of 2021, IADS is the fifth oldest retail association in the world, after the Australian Retail Association (founded 1903), the National Retail Federation in the United States (founded 1911), the Austrian Retail Association (founded 1921) and the German Retail Federation. [19]
IADS shares retail management experience and best practices, [20] through meetings for CEOs, [21] [22] main functions at senior level in the member companies, [23] dissemination of information and reports [24] [25] about department stores, and statistical and other surveys [26] and consultancy on specific issues as requested by member companies, [27] such as the increasing competition coming from online retail channels. [28] [29]
The membership has varied from 4 to 25 companies, with an increasingly greater internationalisation: since the 1990s it has included members from Asia and the Americas such as Beijing Hualian Group, The Mall Group, and Falabella.
As of 2023, it comprises 12 department store companies within its purview, with operations in 19 countries. The membership reflects the variety of the department store format, [30] and includes in alphabetical order: Beijing Hualian Group (China), Breuninger (Germany), Centrobeco (Venezuela), El Corte Inglés (Spain), El Palacio de Hierro (Mexico), Falabella (Chile), Galeries Lafayette (France), Lifestyle International (Hong Kong), Magasin du Nord (Denmark), Manor (Switzerland), The Mall Group (Thailand), SM Store (Philippines). Boyner (Turkey) and Chalhoub Group (UAE) joined the association in 2023.
A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store made a dramatic appearance in the middle of the 19th century, and permanently reshaped shopping habits, and the definition of service and luxury. Similar developments were under way in London, in Paris and in New York City (Stewart's).
Nordiska Kompaniet is the name of two luxury department stores located in Stockholm and Gothenburg, in Sweden.
Debenhams plc was a British department store chain operating in the United Kingdom, Denmark and the Republic of Ireland, and is still operating as a franchise in seven Middle East countries. It was founded in 1778 as a single store in London and grew to 178 locations across those countries, also owning the Danish department store chain Magasin du Nord. In its final years, its headquarters were within the premises of its flagship store in Oxford Street, London. The range of goods sold included middle-to-high-end clothing, beauty, household items, and furniture.
La Samaritaine is a large department store in Paris, France, located in the first arrondissement. The nearest métro station is Pont-Neuf, directly in front at the quai du Louvre and the rue de la Monnaie. The company was owned by Ernest Cognacq and Marie-Louise Jaÿ who hired architect Frantz Jourdain to expand their original store. It started as a small apparel shop and over time expanded into an ensemble of department store buildings with a total of 90 different departments. It has been a member of the International Association of Department Stores from 1985 to 1992.
The Galeries Lafayette is an upmarket French department store chain, the biggest in Europe. Its flagship store is on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris but it now operates a number of locations in France and other countries. In 2019, Galeries Lafayette recorded earnings of over five billion euros. It is a part of the company Groupe Galeries Lafayette and has been a member of the International Association of department stores since 1960.
Filene's was an American department store chain; it was founded by William Filene in 1881. The success of the original full-line store in Boston, Massachusetts, was supplemented by the foundation of its off-price sister store Filene's Basement in 1908. Filene's, in partnership with Abraham & Straus, Lazarus, and Shillito's, was an original member of the holding company Federated Department Stores upon its establishment in 1929.
Le Bon Marché is a department store in Paris, France. Founded in 1838 and revamped almost completely by Aristide Boucicaut in 1852, it was one of the first modern department stores. It was a member of the International Association of Department Stores from 1986 to 2011.
Printemps is a French chain of department stores with a focus on beauty, lifestyle, fashion, accessories, and men's wear. Its flagship store, known in French as "le Printemps Haussmann", is located on Boulevard Haussmann in the 9th arrondissement of Paris, along with other well-known department stores like the Galeries Lafayette. Since 2013, the company has been the property of a Luxembourg-based Qatari-backed investment fund, Divine Investments SA.
The Beijing Hualian Group is a leading Chinese retailer founded in 1998, headquartered in Beijing. It is one of the fifteen large national retail enterprises supported by the Ministry of Commerce and the only Chinese retail enterprise member of the International Department Store Association. Headed by Ji Xiao An the chairman of the board of the Beijing Hualian Group, the group's main activities include the operation of supermarkets and department stores, as well as the sale of general merchandise, textiles, daily-use products and fresh fruits and vegetables. The group has been a member of the International Association of department stores since 2006.
Decathlon is a French sporting goods retailer. With over 2,080 stores in 69 countries and regions (2023), it is the largest sporting goods retailer in the world.
Edward Albert Filene was an American businessman and philanthropist. He is best known for building the Filene's department store chain and for his decisive role in pioneering credit unions across the United States.
Stockmann Helsinki Centre is a culturally significant business building and department store located in the centre of Helsinki, Finland. It is one of many department stores owned by the Stockmann corporation. It is the largest department store in the Nordic countries in terms of area and total sales. The store is known for carrying all the internationally recognised luxury brands, and Stockmann's enjoys a reputation as the primary high-end department store in Finland. Stockmann Delicatessen, the food and beverage department located at the basement level, is renowned for the quality and choice of its foodstuffs. The Stockmann logo represents a set of escalators, which are commonly, but wrongly believed represent the first escalators in Finland. The first escalators in Finland were installed in the Forum department store, Turku (1926).
La Rinascente is a high-end Italian department store chain that operates nine stores in Italy, including two flagship locations in Milan and Rome.
The Bazar de l'Hôtel de Ville or Le BHV is a French department store chain with its flagship location at 52 Rue de Rivoli in the 4th arrondissement of Paris and faces the Hôtel de Ville where it gets its name, the flagship is served by the Hôtel de Ville Metro station. The chain is owned by Groupe SGM. The chain operates two full line stores and four specialised stores alongside the main stores.
Falabella is a Chilean multinational company. It is the largest retail company in Chile followed by Cencosud and one of the largest in Latin America. It operates its flagship Falabella department stores in addition to Mall Plaza shopping centers, Tottus hyper & supermarkets, Banco Falabella banks, and Sodimac home improvement centers. The company has 491 stores and 42 shopping malls. The stores are divided into 111 department stores branded as Falabella, 251 home improvement stores under the brand Sodimac and 129 supermarkets branded as Tottus. In Peru the company owned the Saga Falabella, listed in the Lima Stock Exchange. It was renamed to Falabella in 2018.
Magasin is a Danish chain of department stores. It has seven department stores with its flagship store located on Kongens Nytorv in Copenhagen. The company is a subsidiary of the German department store retailer Peek & Cloppenburg Düsseldorf, Magasin du Nord has been a founder and remained a member of the International Association of Department Stores since 1928.
Off-price is a trading format based on discount pricing. Off-price retailers are independent of manufacturers and buy large volumes of branded goods directly from them. The off-price retail model relies on the purchase of over-produced, or excess, branded goods at a lower price, thus being able to sell to consumers at a discount compared to other stores which purchased an initial run. Among the largest retailers of this type are TJX Companies and Ross Stores. The model is more common in countries that import fashion-oriented or household goods, as the discount role in producer countries is usually filled by factory outlets or small-scale open-air marketplaces.
Pimkie is a French fast fashion label and chain store for young women. Its headquarters is in Villeneuve-d'Ascq, France. They have offices in Germany and Spain. The first shop was opened in 1971 in Lille.
Department stores are an established retail format globally. The format has origins in France, the United Kingdom and United States, among many others.