La Rinascente buys Danish department store Illum

By

Dominique Muret

Published
Mar 11, 2013

Italy’s La Rinascente has bought Illum, an historic Danish department store founded in Copenhagen in 1891, as announced by a press release from the company. The press release has not given exact figures for the transaction.

The department store measures 21,000m² and offers a selection of goods from fashion and beauty to homeware, carrying a mix of Scandinavian and international brands.

The deal marks La Rinascente’s first venture abroad. Since being taken over by Thai-based Central Retail Corporation – a department store leader in South Asia – “new opportunities have unfolded for the historic Italian brand; hence the acquisition of ILLUM which represents an important and tangible first step in this direction,” says the group in the press release.

“The growth project involves increasing and capitalizing on the value of the historic Danish department store through a process of repositioning the ILLUM brand, that will involve a prestigious restyling of the store and a consequent upgrading of the merchandise,” says the group. According the Italian publication Sole 24Ore, La Rinascente is looking to invest 50 million euros in Illum over the next five years.