Selfridges acquisition creates one of the world’s leading luxury department store groups

CENTRAL GROUP AND SIGNA HOLDING COMPLETE ACQUISITION OF SELFRIDGES GROUP.

Following the announcement in December 2021, Central Group and Signa Holding have completed the acquisition of the luxury retailer, Selfridges Group, from the Weston Family. This transaction has created one of the world’s leading luxury department store groups, with presence in 8 countries in Europe and flagship stores in the cities’ most sought after locations, particularly the iconic Selfridges Oxford Street – the #1 shopping destination in the heart of London which occupies an entire city block.

Selfridges Group portfolio, which comprises 18 stores under 4 banners in 3 countries, namely Selfridges in England, Brown Thomas & Arnotts in Ireland, and De Bijenkorf in the Netherlands, are now integrated with Central and Signa’s combined existing portfolio of 22 luxury department stores and 2 new stores to open soon in Dusseldorf and Vienna.

The current holdings comprise Rinascente in Italy and Illum in Denmark, which are wholly owned by Central Group, and KaDeWe, Oberpollinger, and Alsterhaus in Germany, and Globus in Switzerland, which are jointly owned by Central Group and Signa Holding. The integration will also include Selfridges Group’s unrivalled e-commerce platforms, which draw over 30 million online visitors monthly and ship to over 130 countries worldwide.

Stefano Della Valle, Chief Executive Officer of Central and Signa’s luxury department store group in Europe, will lead Selfridges Group under his expanded role. Anne Pitcher, current Managing Director of The Selfridges Group, will as already planned remain in the Company’s leadership team until the end of the year to ensure a smooth integration into the newly formed group.

Tos Chirathivat, Executive Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Central Group, and Dieter Berninghaus, Chairman of the Executive Board of Signa Holding will be the new Co-Chairman of the Group.

“We are long-term investors with a well-established partnership and shared vision to reshape and reinvent the luxury retail industry. We are committed to create the world`s leading luxury omni-channel platform for all our customers through both online and offline channels. We are excited to meet and work with our new colleagues, as well as brand partners to achieve this vision.” – said Tos and Dieter.

Selfridges Group is a recognised leader in driving the sustainability agenda with ground-breaking campaigns Project Ocean and Project Earth launched in 2011 and 2020 setting new standards for the retail sector. Ground-breaking initiatives such as Resellfridges and Circular Room have helped ensure the business continues to set the pace as customers think more about circularity.

Selfridges luxury department store was founded by Harry Gordon Selfridge, changing the world of retail forever when the first store was opened on Oxford Street in 1909. Since then, the brand has opened three stores in Manchester and Birmingham.

Selfridges has been a key reinventor of retail with innovation across in-store experiences and brand partnerships with leaders in luxury. This includes Dior at Alto rooftop collaboration, the opening of Selfridges Cinema, and helping to launch industry disruptors and emerging retail innovators including Charlotte Tilbury and Pangaia.

A leader in sustainability, Selfridges launched its sustainability strategy with Project Ocean in 2011, a complete store takeover spearheaded by Alannah Weston that raised awareness of the issue of overfishing and ocean pollution. In 2020, the brand’s sustainable credentials grew further with the launch of Project Earth, marking a new chapter in the brand’s history – the start of a challenging yet vital journey to change the way we shop. The initiative builds on the industry-leading steps Selfridges has taken over the last 10 years to place sustainability at the heart of the business by committing to reinventing materials, models and mindsets underpinned by the company’s commitment to Science Based Targets and to achieve Net-zero carbon by 2040 in line with the Paris Agreement.