Closing in February Jelmoli closes its doors in Zurich for good

SDA

2.10.2024 - 10:24

A store with tradition: Jelmoli will remain open until February 2025. (archive picture)
A store with tradition: Jelmoli will remain open until February 2025. (archive picture)
Keystone

The lights are set to go out for good at Zurich department store Jelmoli next February. According to the owner, a further extension is not planned.

No time? blue News summarizes for you

  • The final closure of Jelmoli in Zurich is now set for February 2025.
  • The closure has already been postponed twice. Now customers have final clarity.
  • Part of the Jelmoli space will be leased long-term by Manor to open a flagship store.
  • The remaining floors will be converted into office space.
  • CEO René Zahnd explained that the department store format was no longer profitable.

The closure was originally planned for the end of 2024, but a few weeks ago it was announced that another two months would be added. However, this is now to remain the case. "We will finally close Jelmoli in February 2025", said René Zahnd, CEO of the owner company Swiss Prime Site (SPS), in an interview with the French-speaking Swiss business newspaper "L'Agefi" (issue of 2.10.).

In February 2023, the real estate company decided to renovate the Jelmoli building near Bahnhofstrasse and adapt it to current market requirements. The closure of Zurich's oldest department store made headlines across Switzerland.

In an interview, CEO Zahnd recalled that SPS had not only purchased the Jelmoli store in 2009, but also a real estate portfolio worth CHF 4 billion. The total area of the building in Seidengasse in Zurich is 27,000 square meters. This retail space would therefore have to be reduced by creating more offices.

"This was also emphasized by the 30 or so national and international groups with whom we discussed a takeover," he said. However, Jelmoli's operating result would have deteriorated further with a smaller space. "We have no purchasing power with a single department store," he said.

Manor moves in

As far as a shop-in-shop concept with a few luxury boutiques is concerned, he also believes that this segment is already sufficiently represented in Zurich. Zurich needs a more diverse retail offering.

Three floors in the Jelmoli building were leased on a long-term basis in July by the Manor department store group, which will build its flagship store in Zurich city center on three floors. The remaining 20,000 square meters on the upper floors are to become office space, supplemented by catering and leisure facilities.

Zahnd said today: "Manor, with a 100% commitment from its parent company Maus Frères to create the reference store in Switzerland, is a very good fit - in a segment that was Globus' before the transformation."

The reactions to the Manor decision were positive in any case. And it was the only time he received a letter of thanks from the city council.

SDA