Galeries Lafayette group finalises sale of BHV to SGM

The sale of the BHV Marais department store in Paris, and of the BHV branch in the Parly 2 shopping mall west of the French capital, which was announced in February, has now been finalised. The two stores, previously owned by the Galeries Lafayette group, are now the property of Société des Grands Magasins (SGM), a commercial real estate developer based in Lyon, France. In 2021, SGM bought seven Galeries Lafayette branches outside Paris, and is currently managing them as master franchisor.

The two stores bought by SGM employ 1,300 people, of whom about 100 in Parly 2. The 38,000-square-metre BHV Marais has been located in the same building opposite Paris’s Hôtel de ville (the city hall) for 160 years. BHV has been renovated and has changed its commercial approach in recent years, with fashion losing out to homeware and interior decoration products.

The acquisition also includes a set of shops on nearby rue des Archives, and the building home to a branch of Italian deli chain Eataly, still operated by Galeries Lafayette.

“Having been the owner of the [BHV stores] for 30 years, the Galeries Lafayette group is convinced that SGM will be the most committed and innovative operator in order to continue to tap the potential of these two department stores, with the help of their staff,” said Galeries Lafayette in a press release. The group intends to concentrate its efforts and investment on its core business, the Galeries Lafayette branches in some of the world’s major cities.

SGM, founded by the Merlin family in 2018, soon specialised in buying up city-centre shopping malls that need reviving, in which it introduces budget retailers like Action, Normal and Primark, and notably leisure operators. SGM’s portfolio currently includes 11 malls, after acquiring the Saint-Jacques shopping centre in Metz in summer.

Frédéric Merlin, president of the SGM group, said that his staff will “engage fully with all [BHV] employees to continue to expand this prestigious store, and its Parly 2 branch, while preserving the DNA and values of BHV. The goal is to provide a high-quality shopping experience, and to contribute fully to the lively lifestyle of this vibrant district in the heart of Paris.”

SGM, which has 650 employees, said in May that it had secured a loan to buy BHV, as well as the relevant competition authority’s approval.

One of Paris’s most iconic retail giants, BHV Marais has in the past been the flagship of a significant chain of stores under the BHV brand, which grew to about 30 branches throughout France, before many of them closed down in the 1990-2000s. The two remaining BHV branches besides BHV Marais and Parly 2, both located in Lyon, closed in 2019.