- European luxury department stores including KaDeWe in Berlin, Alsterhaus in Hamburg, Oberpolliger in Munich, Germany operated by the KaDeWe Group, which comes under Thailand's Central Group, has been named as The "Most Innovative Department Store in the World" by the Intercontinental Group of Department Stores (IGDS), the largest association of department stores in the world, with more than 40 members.
- The Wine & Spirits Team at KaDeWe in Berlin also received another award from IGDS, as being amongst the Top 3 in the world with the third place in the category "World's Best Team at a Department Store"
KaDeWe Group department stores under Central Group, founded more than a century ago and now owned by the Central Group of Thailand, has long been the most well-known name among German department stores, with a distinct architectural presence for its three city-center locations.
The awards ceremony for the prestigious trophies was organized at the IGDS WDSS 2023 in Dubai. KaDeWe Chief Executive Officer Andre Maeder accepted the award on behalf of the entire KaDeWe Group from Jury Chairman Michael Ganci, Senior Vice President at NuORDER, USA. Guests joining the event from Central Group of Thailand included Yuwadee Chirathivat, Executive Director of Central Retail Corporation; Sean Hill, Managing Director of Central Group Europe; and Natira Boonsri, Tapida Norpanlob, Rvisra Chirathivat, and Arcan Chirathivat.
Andre Maeder, CEO of the KaDeWe Group "We are full of joy and simply incredibly proud! For the KaDeWe Group, the award as 'Most Innovative Store of the World' from the international industry is both a great appreciation and confirmation of our strategy. We are very honored by the award, and we thank the IGDS jury. We thank our owners, Signa and Central Group, for their trust and continued support. A special thanks goes to all our teams for their commitment for making KaDeWe, Alsterhaus and Oberpollinger what they are in present as well as will be in the future: the most innovative retail icons in the world." Andre Maeder, CEO of the KaDeWe Group said.
The most prestigious award in international retail industry from the world's largest association of department stores have two categories of awards which are:
- The award for the "Most Innovative Department Store in the World" aims to recognize and celebrate the most progressive and transformative department stores in the world, and was given to KaDeWe in Berlin, Alsterhaus in Hamburg and Oberpollinger in Munich
- "World's Best Team at a Department Store", awarded to the Wine & Spirits Team at KaDeWe in Berlin, is given for the team that manages excellence in wine and beverages from all around the world.
In the past, Rinascente in Italy, and Selfridges in the United Kingdom, also under Central Group, have received an award as The "Best Department Store in the World" from Global Department Store Summit (GDSS), the leading summit of department stores organized by IGDS.
Currently the number of visitors per day at KaDeWe in Berlin is around 50,000 visitors, Alsterhaus is around 15,000 visitors per day, and Oberpolliger is 30,000 visitors per day. Tourists from the European Union, Germany and other countries will sharply increase during the festive season.
Central Group and its department stores aims to transform all dimensions align with lifestyle and digital trends to initiate exciting experiences for customers, reinforcing all its stores as a destination for tourists to visit.
Source: Central Group