Globus

Globus is a Swiss department-store company founded in Zurich in 1907. The brand operates nine department stores across Switzerland, with a presence in major urban markets including Zurich, Geneva, Basel, Bern, Lausanne, Lucerne and St. Gallen. Its business is positioned toward upscale and luxury-oriented retail rather than broad mass-market department-store trading. The stores offer a wide assortment spanning clothing, cosmetics, jewelry, household products and food. A particularly distinctive part of the format is Globus Delicatessa, the group’s premium delicatessen and food business. Delicatessa gives the department stores a strong specialty-food identity, combining food retail with the broader lifestyle and hospitality experience associated with the Globus format. The brand has also been associated with Globi, a Swiss comic character and former mascot whose books became a familiar part of Swiss popular culture. Globus developed as a national Swiss department-store chain during the twentieth century and became established in the country’s principal cities. The group has also included specialist retail businesses such as Herren Globus, a menswear chain, and Office World, an office-supplies retailer. These activities broadened the group beyond the traditional department-store format, although the Globus department stores remain its best-known consumer-facing brand. From 1931 until 2020, Globus belonged to the International Association of Department Stores. During that period, several Globus chief executives served in leadership roles, including presidencies, within the association. This reflected the company’s long-standing place in the European department-store sector. Ownership changed materially in 2020, when Migros, Switzerland’s largest retailer, sold Globus to the KaDeWe Group. At that time, the KaDeWe Group was jointly associated with Signa Holding and Thailand’s Central Group. The transaction placed Globus within an international luxury-department-store ownership structure while preserving its Swiss store network and brand identity. The ownership structure was affected by the financial collapse of Signa Group in late 2023. In September 2024, Central Group acquired full ownership of the Swiss Globus department stores, making it the sole owner of all nine branches. Globus therefore remains an active Swiss retail brand under Thai ownership. Its current proposition continues to center on curated upscale merchandise, premium food, urban department stores and a distinctly Swiss retail heritage.

Globus was established in Zurich in 1907 and grew into a Swiss department-store company serving the country’s principal urban markets. Its development followed the broader European department-store model, bringing multiple retail categories together under one brand. Over time, the chain became associated with upscale merchandise, including clothing, cosmetics, jewelry, household products and food. A defining feature of the Globus format is its premium food business, Globus Delicatessa. The delicatessen sections helped distinguish the chain from more general department stores by giving food a prominent role in the customer experience. Globus has also carried a broader cultural identity through Globi, its former mascot and the subject of Swiss comic books that became familiar to generations of Swiss children. By the modern period, Globus operated stores in major Swiss cities, including Basel, Bern, Geneva, Lausanne, Lucerne, St. Gallen and Zurich. Zurich has two listed department-store locations, while another location is associated with the Glatt shopping center in Wallisellen near Zurich. The group’s wider activities have included Herren Globus, a menswear chain, and Office World, an office-supplies business. Globus was a member of the International Association of Department Stores from 1931 through 2020. During its membership, Globus executives participated in the association’s leadership, and various chief executives served as association presidents. The affiliation placed the Swiss retailer within the international professional network of established department-store companies. For much of the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries, Globus was owned by Migros, Switzerland’s largest retailer. In 2020, Migros sold the business to the KaDeWe Group. The buyer was connected to Austrian investment and real-estate group Signa Holding and Thailand’s Central Group, placing Globus within a cross-border luxury-retail portfolio. The ownership arrangement changed after Signa Group entered bankruptcy in late 2023. In September 2024, Central Group acquired complete ownership of the Swiss Globus department stores. The transaction made Central Group the sole owner of the nine-branch Swiss chain. Globus continues to operate as an active Swiss upscale retailer, retaining its department-store network, premium food identity and long-standing national brand heritage.

• 2024

  Central Group takes full ownership

  [1]Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org

  Central Group acquired full ownership of Globus in September 2024 and became the sole owner of all nine Swiss department stores.

• 2023

  Signa Group enters bankruptcy

  [1]Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org

  Signa Group’s bankruptcy created the ownership conditions for a subsequent restructuring of the Globus department-store business.

• 2020

  Migros sells Globus

  [1]Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org

  Migros sold Globus to the KaDeWe Group, associated at the time with Signa Holding and Central Group.

• 1931

  Globus joins the International Association of Department Stores

  [1]Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org

  Globus became a member of the International Association of Department Stores, remaining affiliated with the organization until 2020.

• 1907

  Globus is founded in Zurich

  [1]Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org

  Globus was founded in Zurich, Switzerland, beginning the development of the department-store business that later expanded into major Swiss cities.

An upscale Swiss department-store and lifestyle retailer combining fashion, beauty, home, jewelry and premium food, with Delicatessa serving as a distinctive specialty-food proposition.

• Upscale department stores · 1907

  Globus department stores

  The core Globus format is an upscale urban department store offering a curated mix of fashion, beauty, jewelry, household products and food. The stores are located in major Swiss cities and are designed as broad lifestyle destinations rather than single-category retailers. Their assortment combines traditional department-store breadth with premium positioning and a strong emphasis on quality, presentation and specialty food.

• Premium food and delicatessen

  Globus Delicatessa

  Globus Delicatessa is the group’s distinctive food and delicatessen proposition. It gives the department stores an extensive premium-food section and reinforces Globus’s positioning as a lifestyle retailer. The concept is associated with specialty food within the broader store environment, complementing fashion, beauty, home and other upscale categories.

• Menswear

  Herren Globus

  Herren Globus is the group’s menswear chain. It extends the Globus name into a specialist apparel format focused on men’s clothing and related products, alongside the wider assortment available in the department stores.

• Office supplies

  Office World

  Office World is an office-supplies retail chain included within the wider Globus group. It represents a specialist retail activity distinct from the upscale department-store and Delicatessa formats.

• 2024

  Central Group acquires full ownership of GlobusM&A

  Background

  The bankruptcy of Signa Group in late 2023 led to a change in the ownership structure surrounding Globus.

  Action taken

  Central Group acquired complete ownership of the Swiss Globus department stores in September 2024.

  Aftermath

  Central Group became the sole owner of all nine Globus department-store branches in Switzerland.

  Source

• 2020

  Sale of Globus to the KaDeWe GroupM&A

  Background

  Migros decided to sell its ownership in Globus after having owned the Swiss retailer. The buyer was the KaDeWe Group, associated with Signa Holding and Central Group.

  Action taken

  Ownership of Globus was transferred from Migros to the KaDeWe Group.

  Aftermath

  Globus became part of a cross-border luxury-department-store ownership structure while continuing to operate its Swiss network.

  Source

1. 1Globus (department store)en.wikipedia.org