[atourgates]

While "a major department store in every town" is probablty a thing of the past, my impression is that at least in major European capitals, the "national" department stores are still going strong.

I make it a point to try and visit them when I can. A couple hours in Selfridges in London, Galeries Lafayette in Paris, Stockmann in Helsinki, Nordiska Kompaniet in Stockholm or Magasin du Nord in Copenhagen will tell you something about the country you're visiting, and keep you well entertained. I never buy anything outside of maybe a snack from their over-the-top food halls (most recently Moomin-shaped-gummies in Helsinki), or a sometimes surprisingly affordable lunch at one of their lunch counters (it's hard to beat the view you get along with your lunch or apéro at the top Galeries Lafayette on their terrace).

But in any case, none of these flagships have ever seemed empty or disused. On the contrary, I'm always surprised that while I might be astounded by the prices on display, there are always hundreds of local shoppers who seem to be quite happy to pay them.

[morsch]

I'm Germany, the writing is on the wall. 30y ago, there were three chains operating nationally (Karstadt, Galeria Kaufhof, Hertie, maybe there were others), each represented in bigger and even medium cities, often multiple times.

They've all merged into one chain, and the resulting company is perpetually on the brink of bankruptcy. Every year or two, they announce store closures. This year, 9 out of 92 were closed, fewer than planned, because each closure gets heavy local opposition. That's down from 171 in 2020.

Despite the opposition, the last time I went to one, it was a ghost town. I'm sure it wasn't prime time, but still, a weird vibe. Expensive, too.

What killed it? Online shopping and non-food specials in discounters like Aldi.

[jillesvangurp]

In the Netherlands, most of the traditional department stores have imploded and are long gone. I live in Germany currently and the local chains here have been struggling for decades as well.

The exception to this seems to be flagship luxury stores with exclusive and expensive stuff on display. Here in Berlin that would be the Alexanderplatz Galeria and the KaDeWe on Kudamm. Both attract a lot of tourism. But the chains that own them are struggling as well. Tourists of course look but there's only so much they are going to stuff in their hand luggage when they fly back home. And they don't come back that often. The issue is that the locals ignore these stores because they can get better deals online for essentially anything sold inside those stores.

KaDeWe filed for bankruptcy and is being restructured. And the group that owns Galeria is also being restructured. And not for the first time. Most of these things have been handed off between various hedge funds for decades now and they are just milking these things for short term profit.

Online shopping killed off that market. If I need socks, I get them on Amazon.

[heikkilevanto]

Couple of years ago I went to Helsinki for my birthday, and got a gift card for Stockmann department store. I was so disappointed. I found the "department" for cooking things. But I did not find a section for frying pans or scissors. I found a section for Fiskars brand, and others. Fiskars had frying pans, scissors, and everything they make, up to and almost including their wood splitting axes. Other brands had their frying pans, pots, cutting boards, aprons, salt shakers, and whatever. I felt that I was supposed to decide first on what brand I wanted, and then what kind of thing. Maybe some people shop that way, but for me it certainly didn't work. Same thing with Magasin du Nord in Copenhagen. All about brands. A little bit of friendly service, but nothing special. But yes, they are busy with tourists and even some locals shopping. Glad we still have a few shops that specialize in the kind of things they sell, and can provide good service. That is the kind of shops I want to support, even at a bit higher prices.

[watt]

And? Fiskars frying pans are pretty good!

[_DeadFred_]

You can't really compare items if they are separated out by brands and not all together in a common 'pans' area. Being able to compare is a huge part of going to an actual physical store to look at the items. They are removing one of the huge reasons to go to the physical location.

[Ekaros]

Stockmann is dying slowly. They already shed at least food and electronics in at least their other stores in other cities. Also they are constantly losing money. I would not call that going strong, just barely surviving...

[orthoxerox]

I have no idea how Stockmann makes money. It's overpriced compared even to other brick-and-mortar shops, and doesn't sell anything unique.

[TimK65]

Nordiska Kompaniet is no longer a proper department store, but a collection of boutiques. This has been the case for a couple of decades. The real department store that's left in Stockholm is Åhléns, but it's very mid-market, not fancy.

[redwood]

Maybe most people in there are like you, sightseeing

[tpm]

I also enjoy El Corte Ingles in Spain.

Sadly the German department stores seem to be dying and in the eastern countries the stores died in the 90's after the fall of communism.

[wodenokoto]

> Magasin du Nord in Copenhagen

I'd recommend you go to Illum instead next time you are in Copenhagen.