Department stores The Jelmoli department store in Zurich made haggling superfluous
Jelmoli made haggling superfluous for the first time because the department store offered fixed prices. This picture dates from 1940 (archive image)
Image: Keystone
In October 1952, the department store put a state-of-the-art escalator into operation. (archive picture)
Image: Keystone
In 1970, Jelmoli opened a new floor especially for young shoppers. It was called "Spotlite". (archive picture)
Image: Keystone
Jelmoli was also known for its large and modern sports department - the picture was taken in 1995 (archive picture).
Image: Keystone
Jelmoli made haggling superfluous for the first time because the department store offered fixed prices. This picture dates from 1940 (archive image)
Image: Keystone
In October 1952, the department store put a state-of-the-art escalator into operation. (archive picture)
Image: Keystone
In 1970, Jelmoli opened a new floor especially for young shoppers. It was called "Spotlite". (archive picture)
Image: Keystone
Jelmoli was also known for its large and modern sports department - the picture was taken in 1995 (archive picture).
Image: Keystone
Exactly 125 years ago, the Jelmoli department store opened in Zurich's city center - following the example of the Grands Magasins in Paris. Zurich's oldest department store revolutionized shopping by making haggling superfluous with fixed prices.
The origins of the Jelmoli story can be traced back to Giovanni Pietro Guglielmoli. He came to Zurich from Italy in 1833 on behalf of a textile trading company and henceforth called himself Johann Peter Jelmoli. Construction of the department store on the site of the former Seidenhöfe began in 1887 and it finally opened exactly 125 years ago, in 1899.
The Jelmoli glass palace not far from Bahnhofstrasse impressed the people of Zurich with its shop windows on four floors. What was new here was that prices were fixed and no longer had to be haggled over.
A new era of shopping
With this revolutionary concept, Jelmoli ushered in a new era of shopping. The department store quickly became one of the most successful addresses in Zurich.
The business was then gradually expanded. Various conversions and extensions led to the current location. Until the 1990s, there was also a department store chain under the name Jelmoli with locations in numerous Swiss cities.
In the 1990s, however, sales and profits in the department store business declined steadily. A consumer slump made itself felt. Only the traditional Glaspalast survived from Jelmoli. After various changes of ownership, Jelmoli has been owned by the real estate company Swiss Prime Site (SPS) since 2009.
Manor moves in
The Zurich Jelmoli era in the Glaspalast will now definitely come to an end at the end of February 2025. The reasons given for the closure include online shopping and changing consumer behavior. Both are putting the stores under increasing pressure.
However, the department store will not be closed: Manor will move into the Glass Palace in 2027 and use 13,000 square meters of space on three floors; a restaurant is also planned. Manor had given up its previous location on Bahnhofstrasse after years of legal disputes due to a sharp rise in rents.
Now that Manor has moved in, half of the "new" Jelmoli building has been let. The other half of the space on the upper floors will be used for offices as well as restaurants and leisure facilities. There will also be a restaurant on the roof terrace.
SDA
