Douglas Perfumery

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Perfumery Douglas GmbH

logo
legal form Limited Liability Company (GmbH)
founding 1910
Seat Düsseldorf (Germany)
management
  • Matthias Born (CFO)
Number of employees 20,000 in 2,400 branches
(in 26 countries)
sales around EUR 3.5 billion
(financial year 2018/19)
Branch Perfumery , retail
Website www.douglas.de

The Parfumerie Douglas [ 'glass you (] listen ? / I ) is an international perfumery - store chain based in Dusseldorf . The company was part of Douglas Holding and since June 1, 2015, 85 percent has been owned by the financial investor CVC Capital Partners and 15 percent by the Kreke family. The first perfumery, which was called "Perfumery Douglas", opened in Hamburg in 1910 . With more than 2,400 perfumeries in 26 countries and sales of around 3.5 billion euros (fiscal year 2018/19), Douglas is the market leader in Europe . Audio file / audio sample

history

The company's name comes from the Scottish en Seifensieder John Sharp Douglas. He came from a village near Glasgow and on January 5, 1821, founded a soap factory in Hamburg's warehouse district . This was first mentioned in the “Hamburg Address Book” in 1827 as “JS Douglas, Engl. Seifenfabrik, Kehrwieder, Herbst Hof”. On November 5, 1828, the Hanseatic city granted John Sharp Douglas civil rights as number 663 of the Citizens' Protocol. Two years later, on July 23, 1830, he married the mother of his six children, Johanna Catharina Francisca Becker.

Douglas' soap products quickly became successful: for example, the “Coconut Oil Soda Soap” developed in 1830 or the “Chinese Heavenly Soap” introduced around 1840. Thanks to modern manufacturing processes in soap production, it was possible to shorten the saponification process: the lye no longer had to boil for days and the soap could be skimmed off within a few hours. The time and energy saved meant that Douglas was also able to offer its scented soap to a wider range of buyers at more affordable prices.

JS Douglas sons

Douglas died in 1847 and the business was continued by his sons Thomas and Alexander under the name "JS Douglas Sons". In 1851 they presented their soap products at the first world exhibition in London and received various awards: the “Heavenly Soap” was awarded a medal. In the same year the "Egyptian Toilet Soap" was developed.

In September 1878 the brothers Thomas and Alexander separated as business partners and sold the company to the Hamburg merchants Gustav Adolph Hinrich Runge and Johann Adolph Kolbe. These kept the name "JS Douglas Söhne" and expanded the product range to include leather goods, travel accessories and fashion items ("fantasy articles"). In 1888 Gustav Adolph Kolbe took over from his late father Johann Adolph and two years later became the sole owner of the company. In 1909 he gave his wife Berta power of attorney to take responsibility for the soap factory.

The first Douglas perfumeries

In 1909, Berta Kolbe was the first woman to take over the management of JS Douglas Söhne. She received a business inquiry from Anna and Maria Carstens: The sisters wanted to open their own perfumery under the established name "Douglas". The women get into the business: On May 24, 1910, Berta Kolbe gives the Carstens sisters by contract "Miss Carstens the right to add the name 'Perfumery Douglas' to the company of the business to be founded" - on the condition that the sisters use their soap products in future exclusively from the soap factory. The Carstens sisters opened the first "Perfumery Douglas" on Neuer Wall in Hamburg, which is still there today.

After their death in 1929, the Carstens sisters passed the perfumery on to their godchildren Hertha and Lucie and their father, the painter Johannes Harders. From 1931 the company was called "Parfümerie Douglas Harders & Co." and thus reflected the new owner structures. In 1936 the Erhard Hunger family took on the management. He reduced the soap business and expanded the range to include branded products, for example Elisabeth Arden . By 1969, Erhard Hunger expanded the Douglas perfumery to six branches in Hamburg .

The soap factory JS Douglas Söhne also remained and produced soap , sunscreen and toothpaste until the 1990s .

From perfumery to corporate group

In 1969, the six Douglas perfumeries were taken over by the then listed Hussel AG. Under the direction of the then CEO of Hussel AG, Jörn Kreke , Hussel AG pushed ahead with the expansion of the perfumery branch through further takeovers and branch openings. These were initially grouped under the name Hanhausen-Douglas GmbH. In the course of this development, Hussel AG was restructured into a holding company with two operating companies: one for confectionery and one for perfumeries. In 1973 Hanhausen-Douglas GmbH took over the Austrian Ruttner chain. From 1976 onwards, all perfumeries finally operated under the same name “Parfümerie Douglas”, the associated company under “Parfümerie Douglas GmbH”.

Growth in Europe

In the 1980s, Parfümerie Douglas GmbH expanded into the Netherlands , France , Italy and the United States of America. Douglas also continued to grow in Germany, for example through the takeover of Er + Sie perfumeries. As a result of these developments in the perfumery area of ​​Hussel Holding AG, a company restructuring took place, which was completed in 1989 with the establishment of Douglas Holding AG, which took the place of Hussel Holding AG.

After the fall of the Berlin Wall , Douglas opened branches in eastern Germany in the 1990s and expanded into Switzerland , Spain and Portugal .

Since the 2000s Douglas has also been represented in Poland , Hungary , Monaco , Slovakia , the Czech Republic , Latvia , Lithuania , Romania , Bulgaria , Turkey , Denmark and Croatia . In addition to the growing stationary trade, Douglas has also been selling its products via its own online shop since 2000.

In June 2001, Dr. Jörn Kreke as part of the Annual General Meeting after 32 years at the head of Douglas Holding the position of CEO to his son Dr. Henning Kreke .

In 2005 Douglas took over the French competitor Lavigne and thus took over all Elytis branches.

In the wake of the economic crisis and due to a low market share, the company withdrew from Slovakia , Estonia , Denmark and finally also from the United States of America in the 2009/10 financial year.

Takeover by a financial investor

In 2012, the Kreke family, together with the private equity investor Advent International, made a public takeover offer to the other shareholders for the listed parent company of the Douglas Group, Douglas Holding AG, which at that time also included Thalia , Christ , AppelrathCüpper and Hussel. After the successful takeover, Douglas Holding AG was delisted in 2013 . With the withdrawal from the stock exchange, the realignment of the conglomerate began, which by 2014 became a pure perfumery chain again.

Douglas then continued to grow internationally and in 2014 took over the French perfumery chain Nocibé with 455 branches. The 170 French Douglas branches that existed at the time were then renamed Nocibé. In addition, the company expanded to Norway . In 2019 Douglas had around 2,400 stores worldwide.

Change of ownership and strategic realignment

Interior of a Douglas branch (2017)

For 2015, a new IPO of Perfumery Douglas Germany was initially planned. On June 1, 2015, 85 percent of the Douglas perfumery was sold to the financial investor CVC Capital Partners . The Kreke family continues to hold a minority stake of 15 percent in the company.

Exterior view of a Douglas branch in Centro Oberhausen (2017)

The manager Isabelle Parize then took over the management of Douglas in February 2016. In addition, the company headquarters were relocated from Hagen to Düsseldorf in October 2016 . According to the company, they want to bundle all customer-oriented departments and online activities from Cologne in one place.

In the same year the company withdrew from Turkey due to a low market share .

In March 2017, Douglas signed an agreement to acquire the perfumery chain Bodybell in Spain , which was concluded in July 2017. In the same month the company also announced that it had signed an agreement to acquire the Spanish perfumery chain Perfumerías If. This acquisition was completed in November 2017. In May Douglas announced that it had signed an agreement to acquire Italian perfume chains Limoni and La Gardenia. This acquisition was successfully completed in November of the same year.

New Douglas logo from 2018

Tina Müller Group has been CEO of Douglas since November 2017 . Müller had the logo of the cosmetics chain changed and wants to focus on more advice and luxury. This includes the trial introduction of the Douglas Pro concept, in which licensed pharmacists are to advise customers in some branches. The manufacturers of pharmacy cosmetics then adjusted their depot contracts.

In March 2019, Douglas launched the online booking platform "Douglas Beauty Booking" together with the Munich software company Shore for services and treatments related to beauty.

In August 2019 it was announced that Douglas plans to part with around 70 of its 2400 branches across Europe by the end of 2020. Most of these are branches outside of Germany that no longer have long-term development prospects, even though they are profitable. At the same time, the company announced that it would invest in modernizations and new flagship store openings in metropolitan regions and attractive locations, as well as expand in high-growth and high-demand locations, especially in Eastern Europe.

distribution

The following table shows the distribution of Perfumery Douglas as of September 2016:

country represented
since 		Number of
branches
BulgariaBulgaria Bulgaria 2008 21st
GermanyGermany Germany 1910 450
FranceFrance France * 1986 498
ItalyItaly Italy 1989 543
CroatiaCroatia Croatia 2008 28
LatviaLatvia Latvia 2007 25th
LithuaniaLithuania Lithuania 2007 24
MonacoMonaco Monaco 2002 4th
NetherlandsNetherlands Netherlands 1980 92
AustriaAustria Austria 1973 46
PolandPoland Poland 2001 138
PortugalPortugal Portugal 1998 25th
RomaniaRomania Romania 2007 27
SwitzerlandSwitzerland Switzerland 1991 9
SpainSpain Spain 1997 319
Czech RepublicCzech Republic Czech Republic 2004 21st
NorwayNorway Norway 2014 0
HungaryHungary Hungary 2001 19th
SlovakiaSlovakia Slovakia 2017 7th
TurkeyTurkey Turkey 2006 1

* Since 2014 under the brand name Nocibé.

criticism

Douglas came under public criticism in Austria in 2019. Three employees were dismissed, although the company denies that the establishment of a works council should be the reason. As a result, the Private Employees, Printing, Journalism, and Paper Union supported a lawsuit in court brought by the dismissed employees. In 2020, the labor and social court approved the employee and declared the termination to be ineffective. As a result, the employee was dismissed without notice shortly afterwards on the grounds that she was damaging her reputation.

Web links

Commons : Douglas Holding  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Douglas GmbH: 2017/18 Year End Financial Report. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, December 11, 2018, accessed on January 3, 2019 .
  2. ↑ FY 2018/19 Financial Results. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, December 18, 2019, p. 19 (pdf) , accessed December 18, 2019 (English).
  3. ^ Douglas IPO called off. Focus , June 1, 2015, accessed April 8, 2017 .
  4. ^ Douglas GmbH: Douglas company profile. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, accessed September 6, 2019 .
  5. ↑ FY 2018/19 Financial Results. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, December 18, 2019, p. 19 (pdf) , accessed December 18, 2019 (English).
  6. ↑ a b c Inga Griese: The Douglas case: From a lye to the beauty empire. In: THE WORLD. August 28, 2010, accessed on January 9, 2018 (German).
  7. ↑ Hamburg address book for the year 1827. In: Hamburg address book for the year 1827: directory of persons and companies. Retrieved January 9, 2018 .
  8. ↑ a b c d e Douglas, the beauty pioneer. In: Petra. 4 SEASONS DIGITAL.NET GmbH, October 1, 2010, accessed on January 9, 2018 .
  9. ↑ The illustrated exhibitor: a tribute to the world's industrial jubilee . Cassell, London 1851, p. 39 .
  10. ^ Eva-Maria Bast: Queens of fragrances: The Douglas sisters . Bast Medien GmbH, 2019, ISBN 3-946581-66-8 , p. 192 .
  11. ↑ 100 years of business in beauty. Hamburger Abendblatt, May 21, 2010, accessed on July 27, 2017 .
  12. ↑ An Irishman brought the scent to Hamburg. Hamburger Abendblatt, September 16, 2002, accessed on January 9, 2018 .
  13. ↑ a b c Douglas GmbH: A fragrance event - Douglas opens 1,000. Perfumery in the heart of Madrid. October 19, 2007, accessed January 10, 2018 .
  14. ↑ a b Jörn Kreke, Hugo Müller-Vogg: The Douglas Story. Jörn Kreke on trading with heart and mind. Hoffmann and Campe Verlag, Hamburg, ISBN 978-3-455-50172-8 , pp. 82-92 .
  15. ↑ a b c d e Douglas GmbH: Where Douglas comes from. In: company website. Douglas GmbH, accessed January 15, 2018 .
  16. ↑ Douglas founder Dr. Jörn Kreke celebrates his 75th birthday. In: Perfumery News. May 5, 2015, accessed January 15, 2018 .
  17. ↑ https://www.stimme.de/deutschland-welt/wirtschaft/wt/Einzelhandel-Kosmetik-Parfuemeriekette-Douglas-uebernehmen-franzoesischen-Konkurrenten;art270,564997
  18. ↑ Douglas says goodbye to the stock exchange after 50 years. In: Manager Magazin. May 28, 2013, accessed January 16, 2018 .
  19. ↑ a b dpa: Financial investor CVC takes over majority. In: Wirtschaftswoche. June 1, 2015, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  20. ↑ New fragrances with Isabelle Parize. In: Handelsblatt. February 16, 2016, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  21. ↑ Douglas GmbH: Douglas starts investment program to accelerate growth and strengthen its position as a leading European omnichannel provider. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, February 16, 2016, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  22. ↑ Alexandra Knape: Douglas closes all stores in Turkey. In: manager magazin. December 5, 2016, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  23. ↑ Douglas GmbH: Takeover of Bodybell completed - Douglas becomes the leading perfumery chain in Spain. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, July 6, 2017, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  24. ↑ Douglas completes acquisition of Perfumerías If - 102 new branches in Spain. In: Perfumery News. Perfumery News, November 11, 2017, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  25. ↑ Florian Kolf: Douglas sets fragrance brand in Italy. In: Handelsblatt. May 18, 2017, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  26. ↑ Douglas GmbH: Takeover of Limoni and La Gardenia completed - Douglas now also a leader in the Italian beauty sector. In: Douglas Corporate Website. Douglas GmbH, November 15, 2017, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  27. ↑ Opels Tina Müller becomes boss at Douglas. In: manager magazin. September 26, 2017, accessed January 30, 2018 .
  28. ↑ Douglas is looking for a pharmacist
  29. ^ Because of Douglas: New Eucerin depot contract
  30. ↑ Douglas Beauty Booking - The new online booking platform for beauty services in Berlin - Douglas. Retrieved on May 7, 2019 (German).
  31. ↑ welt.de of August 23, 2019: Perfumery chain Douglas wants to close around 70 branches , accessed on August 25, 2019
  32. ↑ Douglas GmbH: Strong profitable growth in the third quarter. In: Douglas GmbH press release. Douglas GmbH, August 29, 2019, accessed on November 21, 2019 .
  33. ^ Financial Report. September 30, 2016, accessed February 16, 2017 .
  34. ↑ Terminations: Douglas denies allegations on ORF from September 4, 2019, accessed on September 4, 2019
  35. ↑ Douglas works council candidate dismissed without notice on ORF from June 20, 2020 accessed on June 20, 2020

Coordinates: 51 ° 24 ′ 26.7 "  N , 7 ° 28 ′ 47.9"  E