About IADS
Founded in 1928, the International Association of Department Stores (IADS) brings together leading department stores from around the world to share insights, foster innovation, and shape the future of retail. As the only global alliance dedicated to this format, we support our members through research, collaboration, and expert guidance.
Timeline
From 1920 to 1940: A Pioneering Vision
1928
Foundation of IADS office in Paris
The Retail Research Group of Department Stores was born in Europe in the course of 1928 and its office established in Paris. In 1931, the name was changed to the present International Association of Department Stores.
1936
Monthly Retail Newsletter
Regular overview of relevant retail news published and distributed on paper until 2006 and available online since. The Retail News Letter archives have been donated to the Musée des Archives du Monde du Travail, a French museum located in Roubaix, in 2024, and are publicly accessible.
1939
IADS office moves to Copenhagen
From 1940 to 1970: Years of Growth and Development
1951
IADS office moves to Geneva
1953
Creation of early ACI in Brussels
A group of IADS members set up the Association Internationale de Commerce et de Gestion (later to become the ACI Association Commerciale Internationale) in 1953 with headquarters in Brussels.
1954
Publication of "The Department Store" by H. Pasdermadjian
The classic book on department stores written by the Third General Secretary of IADS.
1955
IADS office moves to Paris
From 1970 to 2002: New Challenges and Internationalisation
1970s onward
First Australian, Asian and Latin American members
1982
ACI office moves to Copenhagen
1995
IADS Academy
Young potentials programme.
1998
Launch of IADS website
2000 - 2020: An Exclusive and Top-Quality Association
2008-2009
First meetings on sustainability and online retailing
2010
IADS & ACI join forces in Paris
2017
New website launched
The ACI merges with the IADS.
2018
Monthly Retail Newsletter
IADS turns 90.
2020 - Onwards: The IADS reinvents itself as a strategic resource for its members
2020
In the midst of the pandemic, the Association initiated a transformational process in order to remain close to its members’ needs. A new partnership with NellyRodi is signed, the IADS publishes its first White Paper ever, made available to the general public, and, most importantly, provides operational and organised support to its members by answering their direct business-oriented requests in a simple and coordinated way.
2022
The IADS stands out in the world of global retail associations
By inking partnerships with Retail Hub, the IADS continues to provide a relevant, unique and business-oriented set of support and services to its members, that confirms its unique status in the world of retail associations.
2023
The IADS welcomes its first member from Middle East
2024
The IADS inks a partnership with RH-ISAC, the US retail and hospitality cyberdefence specialist.
The IADS welcomes its first member from USA.
The IADS partners with the Musée de l'Architecture in Paris for its landmark exhibition "La Saga des Grands Magasins" by providing access to archives and international department store companies
2025
The IADS organises its first CEO event ever in Korea
Relaunch of the IADS website.
About the IADS President
During the 64th General Assembly of the International Association of Department Stores (IADS) held in London in November 2023, the IADS members elected their Executive Committee for the new term, including their first female president since the inception of the Association in 1928. Ms. Kamshim Lau, Executive Director of Lifestyle International Holdings Limited (which operates SOGO department store in Hong Kong, HKSAR), was unanimously appointed President of the Association during its last General Assembly. Lifestyle International Holdings Limited has been a member of the IADS since 2013 and this election marked its 10th year of membership. Ms Lau was successfully re-elected for a new term during the 65th General Assembly held in Istanbul in November 2024.
Ms Lau, 36, has held the position of Executive Director at Lifestyle International Holdings Limited since 2016. Ms Lau has served as Vice-President of the IADS for the last three terms, demonstrating her strong partnership with Mr Holger Blecker, the CEO of Breuninger GmbH & Co (Germany) and the exiting President of the IADS. She is also a member of the Executive Commitee of the Hong Kong Retail Management Association (HKRMA) and a member of the Retail & Tourism Committee within the Hong Kong General Chamber of Commerce. Ms Lau holds a Bachelor of Arts degree from King’s College London and a Master of Arts degree from Columbia University in New York. This is the first time that a representative from Lifestyle International Holdings Limited is appointed President, and the second time that an Asian IADS member has held this position, after Mr Ji Xiao'An, the chairman of the board of the Beijing Hualian Group (which operates SKP department stores in China), who took the leadership role from 2015 to 2017. Ms Lau’s role will be to challenge even more the Association in a highly energetic context. Together with the renewed Executive Committee, her vision and expertise will allow the Association to remain the only expert department store body in the world, a role that IADS has played continuously since 1928.
What is IADS
Founded in 1928, the International Association of Department Stores (IADS) is the only expert body specialising in the department store retail format in the world. Consisting of leading department store members located around the globe, the Association acts as an international network, facilitating exchange and communication between IADS members, and conducts research to address current challenges department stores are facing to provide actionable insights for its members. The Association gathers leading department stores around the world, all key players in their respective markets, and represents more than €27.6bn cumulated annual turnover, achieved through more than 380 stores with 147,000 associates in 21 countries. These retail leaders are joined by a network of other department store and retail companies as corresponding members.Through its own activities and partnerships with NellyRodi, The Style Pulse, Retail Hub and RH-ISAC, the Association constantly stays up to date on its members’ questions and challenges and generates solution-driven problem-solving processes for its members so that they are prepared to face the future of the retail industry.
IADS Activities
The activities proposed by the IADS are designed to provide concrete answers to the questions asked by its members:
- Meetings impacting organisations at CEO, C-Suite and buying teams levels.
- In-depth knowledge of the market, thanks to a permanent watch accessible only to members of the Association, as well as market data processing.
- Promoting cooperation to prepare for the future, thanks to the IADS Academy program, a tailor-made seminar created 30 years ago and only open to our members' teams. Over the years, over 180 managers from 28 department stores and 21 countries have been trained there.
- An active and operational role through the processing of members' requests, including requests for benchmarking, brand contacts, market research, networking people, coordinating cooperation between members, and sharing best practices. This role is unique in the world of retail associations.
Through its various activities and skills, the association represents a key resource for its members in terms of strategic thinking and operational implementation.
Our Partners
Newstores
Newstores
Newstores is a confidential, by-mail-only daily newsletter designed for retail professionals who want to stay in the know, founded by John Ryan.
John Ryan is an analyst, consultant and journalist covering retail design, product merchandising, strategy, and marketing for a variety of companies and magazines.
John is, among other things, European editor of VMSD, a contributor to Retail Week and Stores + Shops in Germany. On the consultancy side, his clients range from Deloitte to Itab, Marks & Spencer to Sainsbury's. In a previous life, he spent 13 years at C&A.
Retail Hub
Retail Hub
Retail Hub scouts, filters and consolidates innovative solutions for retailers from across the globe on one interactive platform, making it easier for Brands and Retailers to find the solutions that fit their specific needs.
Using Artificial Intelligence, the platform is also able to predict trends and make personalized referrals to subscribers.
The international team of Business Analysts is scouting daily and conducts a rigorous stress test on all new startups, scaleups and unicorns ensuring that they are enterprise ready before adding them to the platform.
NellyRodi
NellyRodi
NellyRodi is a consulting agency in Business and Creative Intelligence.
Based in Paris, Tokyo and New York, it is a global reference for foresight applied to industries and services. The business, based on understanding new consumer standards and new uses, is to support brands, investment funds and institutions on their desirability and performance levers.
Backed by NellyRodi's international future-forward expertise, the organization not only provides strategic support at the highest levels (i.e. to senior management and investors), but also at the field and operational level.
The IADS and NellyRodi partner to reveal key insights and trending topics to IADS members during various merchandising and operational meetings.
Retail & Hospitality - ISAC
Retail & Hospitality - ISAC
The Retail & Hospitality Information Sharing and Analysis Center (RH-ISAC) is the trusted community for sharing sector-specific cybersecurity information and intelligence. The RH-ISAC connects information security teams at the strategic, operational, and tactical levels to work together on issues and challenges, to share practices and insights, and to benchmark among each other – all with the goal of building better security for consumer-facing industries through collaboration. RH-ISAC serves businesses including retailers, restaurants, hotels, gaming casinos, food retailers, consumer products, and other consumer-facing companies.
Fairs, Associations and Retail Resources
FIRA
FIRA
FIRA (Federation of International Retail Associations) promotes networking, collaboration, and information exchange among retail trade association executives around the world to enhance the success of the global retail industry through the development of more informed and effective retail trade associations.
IADS is a member of FIRA.
UIA
UIA
The Union of International Associations (UIA) is a research institute and documentation centre, based in Brussels.
A non-profit researcher on international organizations, international associations and the global challenges since 1907.
NRF Europe
NRF Europe
The debut of NRF 2025: Retail's Big Show Europe is bringing together the established heritage of Paris Retail Week (Comexposium Group) and the globally renowned National Retail Federation. The event will combine the power of two modern retail markets, Europe and North America. The content, agenda and global attendees will truly reflect the theme: Retail Together.
NRF 2025: Retail's Big Show Europe will be the most comprehensive retail gathering in Europe, addressing major challenges and opportunities including: seamless unified retail, store design innovation and technology, logistics, supply chain, CSR and ESG, marketplaces, payments innovation, CRM systems and data use. The event aims to bring together thousands of retail professionals to discover fresh solutions and explore future trends
Upcoming Conferences
16-18 September 2025: NRF 2025 - Retail's Big Show Europe,Paris, France.
We have privileged conditions for our members. ([email us](mailto:iads@iads.org))
Retail Together – NRF 2025: Retail's Big Show Europe Shaping the Future of Commerce - Press Release
IADS Expertise
The IADS is the only expert body on the department store retail format due to its close working relationships with member organisations and its constant monitoring of trends and changes in the industry.
We learn with our members and ensure that those learnings are translated into practical and actionable insights for our international network, making IADS the only global think tank on department stores in the world.
The Association closely follows relevant industry trends and changes to produce data and content (white papers, monitors, exclusive articles…) which allows us to be constantly aware of what is happening in the industry to best inform and advise our members.
Further, IADS’ Academy was founded 30 years ago and has trained 180+ executives over the period, some of whom have reached top positions among IADS members and non-members to this day (3 CEOs and 1 COO in 2020). Over the 28 years of existence, 28 companies have participated, from 21 countries.
Our reseach is made, including the annual White Papers available to the general public whenever possible, and when it is supporting the world of department stores at large.
IADS Presidents
IADS has been led since the beginning by far-sighted CEOs, many of who became true legends in retail since then. The vast variety of companies involved also reflect the richness that the Association inherited since then in terms of knowledge and working methods.