Denner (supermarket)
Denner is a discount supermarket chain in Switzerland. It is Switzerland's third-largest supermarket chain after Migros and Coop with 11.4% market share. It has been owned by the Federation of Migros Cooperatives since 2007.
As of 2022, Denner has 860 stores and a revenue of 3.7 billion CHF. Denner is the second largest wine-seller in Switzerland. In 2024, Denner generated net sales of approximately 3.9 billion Swiss francs. The company is led by CEO Torsten Friedrich. Founded in Zollikon in 1860, the company is headquartered in Zurich.
The first predecessor company of today's Denner Group was called "Reiff-Schwarz, Mercerie und Spezereihandel," which subsequently operated branches primarily in the upper Lake Zurich region, the Zürcher Oberland, and the Canton of Glarus. Over the course of time, the company was renamed several times, it was converted into a public limited stock company in 1935, and received its current name, Denner AG, in 1969 under the leadership of lawyer and sole owner Karl Schweri.
Corporate structure
Range and locations
Denner is a discount supermarket with a range of around 1,900 everyday items. At the turn of the millennium, Denner was the first in Switzerland to use extended shelf life milk. In 2016, the range was supplemented by IP Suisse products. In 2019, organic foods were added to the range with the Rossmann brand enerBiO. In October 2022, Denner added milk from Bio Suisse to its range.Since 2019, the discounter has increasingly relied on pre-baked goods, which are baked in the branches before being sold. Denner tryed to achieve low sales prices in Switzerland with the use of parallel imports. The company has distribution centers in Mägenwil in Aargau, Frauenfeld in Thurgau, Schmitten in Freiburg, Lyss in Bern, and Dietlikon in Zurich. Some of those branches also have a Swiss Post agency.
Corporate Management
Board of Directors
The Board of Directors of Denner AG currently consists of five members:- Michel Gruber
- Christian Biland
- Christine Rittner-Koch
- Isabelle Zimmermann
- Anita Weckherlin
Executive Management
The Executive Management of Denner AG currently consists of seven members:- Torsten Friedrich
- Roger Meier
- Serge Gafner
- Stefan Eberhard
- Thomas Rossel
- Christian Staub
- Daniel Heinzmann
History
Beginning
Heinrich Reiff-Schwarz from Greifensee founded the company "Reiff-Schwarz, Mercerie and Spezereihandel" in Zollikon near Zurich in 1860. It was started in 1860 and later developed by Karl Schweri. In 1863 Jakob Pfister became part owner. When Heinrich Reiff-Schwarz died in 1870, his widow Dorothea Reiff-Schwarz joined the business, which had colonial goods branches mainly in the area of upper Lake Zurich, the Zurich Oberland and in the canton of Glarus. After Dorothea Reiff-Schwarz's death in 1881, her son-in-law Julius Caesar Denner from Biel became a partner. In 1888 the company was renamed "Denner-Reiff & Cie. Consumgesellschaft" in Zurich and separated into "Pfister & Co., Consumgesellschaft" on Flössergasse in Zurich.After Caesar Denner's death in 1914, his son Hans Denner took over management and the company was now called "Denner & Co. Consumgesellschaft". Competition from Migros, which was founded in 1925, the global economic crisis at the end of the 1920s and poor business performance forced Hans Denner to convert the company into a stock corporation in 1935. In the same year the company moved to their current location on Grubenstrasse in Zurich and was given the name "Consum AG. Denner & Co."
Schweri era
The holding company "Aarauer Handelsgesellschaft AG" was founded on 30 May 1944. Karl Schweri was Vice President of the Board of Directors. On the same day, the operating company "Import- und Grosshandels AG" was founded in Sarnen with a branch in Zurich. The two companies took over "Consum AG" on 13 March 1947 along with "Denner & Co.", "Consum Bär-Pfister & Co. AG", "Domicilium AG" and "Kaufhausgenossenschaft". On 22 July 1947, Schweri was excluded from the activities of AHG and IGA due to internal conflicts with other major shareholders who were also suppliers to IGA and supplied them at overpriced prices. During a five-year power struggle, Schweri secretly acquired shares in IGA, eventually becoming the majority shareholder in 1951 and expelling his former partners. In 1958, 40 "Sommer AG Bern" stores were purchased and integrated into "Denner Grocery AG Bern". The first Denner Supermarkt opened in Zurich-Schwamendingen in 1962.The system of fixed retail prices for food and luxury foods fell on 2 February 1967 and after lengthy disputes between the IGA, the branded goods industry and its association Promarca, the first food and beverage discounter was opened in Zurich-Altstetten on 24 October 1967. This was the first time that the discount business model was introduced in Switzerland. A year-long battle against the tobacco cartel began with a referendum against a new tobacco tax law. The law, which was put to the vote in the referendum held on 7 February 1968, was rejected on 19 May 1968 with a voter turnout of 36.9 percent and 48.2 percent in favour. In 1969, the IGA was transformed into Denner AG.
In the fall of 1969, Denner announced it would sell a bottle of lager for 50 centimes in the future. As a result, all Swiss breweries that belonged to the beer brewers' association boycotted orders for lager beer in 60 cl bottles. Up to this point, Denner had purchased the 60 cl bottle of lager beer from his suppliers Hürlimann and Löwenbräu Zurich for 46 centimes net. The Swiss beer cartel set the minimum sales price at 70 centimes. The boycott was followed several different legal proceedings. On 28 November 1972, the Federal Court ruled that the boycott was legal. From autumn 1980, cartel members began supplying branded beer again after Denner had committed to complying with the minimum price set at the time of one franc. With effect from 1 November 1981, the beer brewers' association increased the so-called intervention price to CHF 1.10. Denner refused to comply with this increase and continued to sell the 58 cl returnable bottle of lager at Fr. 1.00, which was followed by another delivery ban. Denner demanded that the boycott be revoked as a precautionary measure. A constitutional complaint to the Federal Court was dismissed on 20 July 1982. Beginning in November 1982, a series of lawsuits, counter suits and proceedings surrounding the boycott and claims placed in advertising followed. On 6 May 1986, the Federal Supreme Court overturned a judgment of the Commercial Court of the Canton of Zurich dated 16 November 1984 with reference to the main lawsuit and referred the matter back to the lower court for a new decision. The legal dispute ended finally in 1993 with Denner's victory.
After a 20-year legal battle, Schweri forced the end of fixed prices for tobacco in 1996. During the legal battle, Denner distributed coupons for tobacco products that were promised to be paid out once the fixed prices were abolished.
In 2004, the sales of its 580 outlets exceeded CHF 1.8 billion.
In 2005 Denner acquired its rival discount chain Pick Pay.
In January 2007, it was announced that Migros has purchased a majority stake in Denner. After the entrance of the worldwide-known retailers Aldi and Lidl, Denner successfully defended its leading role in the discount category.
"One for all" is the company claim, as it describes itself as the "Retail's Robin Hood", who is fighting for cheaper prices for the customers.
At the end of 2016, the leading Swiss discounter Denner had 510 of its own discounter branches in all four language regions of Switzerland and in the Principality of Liechtenstein, as well as independent retailers who are supplied by the company Denner and operate under the names Denner Satellit and "Denner Partner". 20 locations are also operated in the franchise model as Denner Express or Denner partners. At the end of 2017, Denner had 811 points of sale. With over 300 wines in its range, Denner is the second-largest wine retailer in Switzerland after Coop. At the end of 2018, Denner employed a total of 5,075 people and 105 apprentices. Net sales in 2016 were 2.97 billion Swiss francs and 138.3 million purchases were registered. At the end of 2018, Denner had 817 branches.