From a small novelty shop to Europe's largest upmarket department store chain
In short: What began in 1893 as a 70-square-metre novelty shop in Paris has evolved into a global retail powerhouse. Today, Galeries Lafayette is Europe's largest upmarket department store chain by store count, boasting a massive flagship in the heart of Paris and a growing international presence.
Established in 1893, the brand began as a small 70-square-metre gift shop run by Alphonse Kahn and his cousin Théophile Bader at the intersection of rue de la Chaussée d'Antin and rue La Fayette. By 1896, the company had purchased its first full building, and by 1905, it had expanded to include several properties on Boulevard Haussmann. This flagship location, the Galeries Lafayette Haussmann, remains a 70,000 m2 landmark, famous for its Art Nouveau architecture, including a 43-metre high Neo Byzantine dome designed by Ferdinand Chanut and a staircase designed by Georges Chedanne.
The store's history is marked by periods of intense innovation and dark historical shifts. In the 1920s, it established arts workshops under Maurice Dufrêne to produce affordable household goods. However, during the Nazi occupation of France in 1940, the store underwent a forced 'Aryanization.' This process saw the removal of Jewish owners, including Théophile Bader, Raoul Meyer, and Max Heilbronn, along with 129 Jewish employees, as their property was seized and transferred to non-Jewish owners.
In the modern era, the group has navigated shifting retail landscapes by focusing on international and online expansion. This strategy included converting 22 French stores into franchises in 2018 and another 11 in 2021. The group's reach now extends far beyond France, with locations in places like Dubai, where it unveiled a gold ATM in 2011, and Doha, Qatar. As of 2026, the chain operates 50 stores in France and nine international locations, primarily in Asia.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Galeries Lafayette
- Also: Wikidata — Galeries Lafayette · CC0
- Also: Wikidata — Galeries Lafayette Haussmann · CC0
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