- CEO
- Alexander van der Laan
- Full Time Employees
- 19,983
- Sector
- Retail trade
- Industry
- Specialty stores
- Address
- Luise-Rainer-Strasse 7-11 Dusseldorf NW Germany 40235
- IPO Date
- Mar 21, 2024
- Business
- Douglas AG operates as Europe's leading omnichannel premium beauty retailer, offering fragrances, color cosmetics, skincare, haircare, accessories, nutritional supplements and in-store beauty services through its DOUGLAS, NOCIBÉ, Parfumdreams and Niche Beauty brands; it retails over 750 premium and private label brands including Armani, Chanel, Dior, La Mer, Lancôme, MAC Cosmetics and own brands such as Douglas Collection, Dr. Susanne von Schmiedeberg, One.two.free, #INNERBEAUTY and The Botanist. The company serves customers through approximately 1,920 stores and extensive e-commerce platforms featuring tools like AR Beauty Mirror and AI Fragrance Finder, with operations spanning 22 omnichannel markets across Europe including DACHNL (Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Netherlands, Belgium), France (and Monaco), Southern Europe (Italy, Spain, Portugal, Andorra, Croatia, Slovenia), Central-Eastern Europe (Poland, Czech Republic, Slovakia, Hungary, Romania, Bulgaria, Latvia, Lithuania, Estonia) and additional presence in 27 countries overall. Founded in 1821 as a soap factory by John Sharp Douglas in Hamburg, Germany, and evolving through the 1910 opening of the first Parfümerie Douglas store, the company is headquartered in Düsseldorf, Germany, and employs around 19,200 people; Douglas AG, a subsidiary of Kirk Beauty International S.A., listed on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange in March 2024 (ticker: DOU.DE) after changing its name from Kirk Beauty A GmbH in February 2024. In recent developments under its "Let it Bloom" strategy, Douglas expands its store network by targeting around 200 new openings and 400 refurbishments by end-2026, having added 22 new stores including flagships in Antwerp and Paris La Défense in Q3 2025 while refurbishing 39; it launched the "WELCOME TO BEAUTY" international brand campaign platform in September 2025, relaunched its Beauty Card loyalty program with enhanced personalization starting in the Netherlands and Belgium, introduced exclusive brands like TYPEBEAUTY by Rita Ora and XO Khloé by Khloé Kardashian, rolled out Green Lease sustainability agreements covering 170 stores, commenced operations at its North OWAC supply chain facility in Poland in 2025 and sold off its online pharmacy Disapo. The company reported solid Q3 2024/25 sales growth of 3.2% to €1.0 billion, confirmed full-year guidance for sales slightly above €4.5 billion and adjusted EBITDA margin around 17%, and earned recognition as the World's Top Company for Women in retail by Forbes in 2024 and 2025.