Sustainable Brand Benchmark - Maus Frères Sa

Maus Frères SA is a Swiss holding company with a rich history that dates back to its establishment in Geneva in 1902. It is a family enterprise that has spanned over a century, encompassing four continents and four generations of the Maus and Nordmann families. The company began as a partnership between department store owner Léon Nordmann and brothers Ernest and Henri Maus, who were mercantile and hosiery wholesalers. Their first venture was a department store in Luzern, specializing in textiles, notions, and knitwear.

Despite its modest beginnings compared to the grand Parisian department stores of the day, the Maus Frères store demonstrated an avant-garde commercial retail sense with practices such as offering a keen quality-to-price ratio, centralized purchasing to reduce costs, and a focus on client comfort and satisfaction through personalized services and a guarantee on the quality and price stability of merchandise.

Over the years, Maus Frères SA has expanded strategically within Switzerland and internationally, maintaining a distinctly family business environment. The company has grown into a conglomerate of well-known retail brands and store chains, including the ownership of the Lacoste brand, among others.

Today, Maus Frères SA operates with the same astute business flair of its founders. The company is organized as a private partnership at the holding level, with operations monitored through Maus Frères SA, a joint stock company wholly owned by the founding Maus and Nordmann families. The company's headquarters are located at Rue De Cornavin 6, 1201 Genève, Switzerland, and it is managed by key principal Thierry Guibert.

The company's portfolio has diversified over the years, and it now includes department stores, sporting goods stores, hypermarkets, furniture stores, and other retail outlets, many of which are grouped under its flagship subsidiary Manor AG, Switzerland's leading department store chain. Maus Frères SA's approach to business has been characterized by a commitment to innovation, customer service, and strategic growth, ensuring its continued success and influence in the retail industry.