HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

El Corte Inglés S.A. is a Spanish
department store A department store is a retail establishment offering a wide range of consumer goods in different areas of the store under one roof, each area ("department") specializing in a product category. In modern major cities, the department store mad ...
chain founded in 1940 by Ramón Areces and César Rodríguez. It is the last such remaining in
Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...
and
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
, and has been a member of the
International Association of Department Stores The International Association of Department Stores (IADS) is a retail trade association founded in 1928 by a group of department stores with the goal of introducing modern management methods derived from the scientific management movement to the ...
since 1998. It is the largest department store group in Europe, and the third-largest in the world.


History

In 1934, the founders Ramón Areces Rodriguez and Cesar Rodriguez Gonzalez bought a tailor's shop (which began in 1890) located on one of
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
's central streets, '' calle Preciados'', at the corner of ''calle Carmen'' and ''calle Rompelanzas.'' They made it into a
limited company In a limited company, the Legal liability, liability of members or subscribers of the company is limited to what they have invested or guaranteed to the company. Limited companies may be limited by Share (finance), shares or by guarantee. In a c ...
. The property where the shop was located had been owned by Julián Gordo Centenera since 1930. The prime location of the property soon attracted the attention of an Asturian businessman, Pepin Fernandez, who was looking to expand a business called ''Sederias Carretas'' which he had started in 1934 with a capital contribution from his cousin Cesar Rodriguez Gonzales. His plan was to purchase all of the properties on the block to construct a new building to house his business, a vision which was later realized in the form of Galerias Preciados. Around 1920, at 15, Areces had gone to
Havana Havana (; ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of La Habana Province, Havana is the country's main port and commercial center.Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...
, and worked at the famous retail chain Almacenes El Encanto, where he learned the basics of department store business. Cesar Rodriguez had asked Pepin Fernandez to hire his nephew Ramon Areces in ''Sederias Carretas'' shortly after his return from Cuba. Pepin refused, so Cesar requested that he at least allow Ramon to operate El Corte Inglés while plans to acquire the block and construct the new building were finalized. Pepin, who had also learned the department store business at ''Almacenes El Encanto'', accepted the request, and transferred ownership of El Corte Inglés to Cesar on 23 December 1935, and acquired the property where it was located on behalf of ''Sederias Carretas'' soon after. Once Cesar took ownership of El Corte Inglés, he designated Ramon Areces as manager, a position which he held until his death, including during the
Spanish civil war The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
. When the war ended in 1939, El Corte Inglés moved to ''calle Preciados'', on the corner of ''calle Tetuan'', near the location of ''Almacenes el Aguila'', to make way for the new Galerias Preciados building. In 1940, Areces turned the tailor's shop into a ''sociedad limitada'''','' registering with 1 million pesetas of capital and shares divided equally between Cesar Rodriguez, who became the first president of El Corte Inglés S.L., and Ramon Areces, whose share of the capital contribution came from a loan facilitated by his uncle. As the business expanded, eventually Cesar Rodriguez became the majority shareholder, although Areces remained in charge of strategic decisions and the day-to-day operations of the business. In 1945 and 1946, El Corte Inglés acquired its new building and expanded to encompass 2,000 square meters of retail space on 5 floors, and shifted to a department store organizational style similar to that of Galerias Preciados, which had been operational since 1943. The company saw continuous growth until 1952, when it converted its legal structure from a ''sociedad limitada'' to a ''sociedad anónima'' in which Cesar Rodriguez remained president and majority shareholder, a position which he held until his death in 1966. After this, Ramon Areces, who until then had been managing director, became the president and largest shareholder. The competition between El Corte Inglés and Galerias Preciados in the 1950s and 60's caused a revolution in Spanish retail distribution. Seasonal discounts, organized ad campaigns, air conditioned stores, massive use of publicity, large scale use of
display window A display window, also a shop window (British English) or store window (American English), is a window in a shop displaying items for sale or otherwise designed to attract customers to the store. Usually, the term refers to larger windows in t ...
s, customer loyalty cards,
point of sale The point of sale (POS) or point of purchase (POP) is the time and place at which a retail transaction is completed. At the point of sale, the merchant calculates the amount owed by the customer, indicates that amount, may prepare an invoice f ...
data collection, and more. The expansion of El Corte Inglés began in 1962 with the opening of its second department store in
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
, and expansion continues until the present. Expansion also diversified into other formats including Hipercor, first introduced in
Seville Seville ( ; , ) is the capital and largest city of the Spain, Spanish autonomous communities of Spain, autonomous community of Andalusia and the province of Seville. It is situated on the lower reaches of the Guadalquivir, River Guadalquivir, ...
in 1980. In 1969, the company started to branch out of the retail sector, first opening a travel agency, Viajes El Corte Inglés, in 1969, followed by a telecom and computing equipment wholesaler, Investronica, in 1980, and an
IT services Information technology service management (ITSM) are the activities performed by an organization to design, build, deliver, operate and control IT services offered to customers. Differing from more technology-oriented IT management approach ...
and
software development Software development is the process of designing and Implementation, implementing a software solution to Computer user satisfaction, satisfy a User (computing), user. The process is more encompassing than Computer programming, programming, wri ...
company, Informática El Corte Inglés (IECISA), in 1986. After Areces died in 1989, his nephew
Isidoro Álvarez Isidoro Álvarez (1935 – 14 September 2014) was a Spanish businessman and CEO of El Corte Inglés, where he worked for 60 years, 25 of which as chairman. Álvarez died on 14 September 2014 from respiratory problems. References {{DEFAULTSOR ...
became his successor and continued to expand the business while emphasizing self-reliant financing methods, opaque management techniques, and careful investment. In 1995, El Corte Inglés bought out Galerías Preciados, which was its only serious competitor. Galerias Preciados had entered bankruptcy. In addition to acquiring its arch-rival, El Corte Inglés purchased all of the
Marks & Spencer Marks and Spencer plc (commonly abbreviated to M&S and colloquially known as Marks & Sparks or simply Marks) is a major British multinational retailer based in London, England, that specialises in selling clothing, beauty products, home produc ...
stores in the
Iberian peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...
in 2001. El Corte Inglés entered into a partnership with
Repsol Repsol S.A.
El Nuevo Herald, 2012-05-31
Originally an init ...
in 1998, through which El Corte Inglés would operate convenience stores at Repsol fuel stations. These stores were initially known as Repsol-Supercor, or Repsol-Opencor after 2008, while those not attached to fuel stations were called Opencor. In 2001, El Corte Inglés opened a retail fashion outlet called Sfera. Its first
big-box store A big-box store, a hyperstore, a supercenter, a superstore, or a megastore is a physically large retail establishment, usually part of a chain of stores. The term sometimes also refers, by extension, to the company that operates the store. The ...
, Bricor, specializing in
home decor A home, or domicile, is a space used as a permanent or semi-permanent residence for one or more human occupants, and sometimes various companion animals. Homes provide sheltered spaces, for instance rooms, where domestic activity can be pe ...
and DIY supplies, opened in 2006. In October 2013, the firm sold a 51% stake in the financing department to the Spanish banking group Grupo Santander for around €140 million. From 2014 to 2018 the CEO of the company was Dimas Gimeno. In March 2018, El Corte Inglés closed its store on La Rambla of
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
. In 2019, El Corte Inglés sold IECISA to GFI for €300 million. In June 2020, El Corte Inglés bought the private security and services company MEGA 2 for 28 million euros.


International expansion

The first attempts at international expansion happened in 1981 with the acquisition of the Harris Company, a chain of mid-sized department stores in the
United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
. The venture was unsuccessful, and in 1998 El Corte Inglés made a deal with Gottschalks, an American department store chain. Gottschalks took over management of the Harris Company's stores and gave El Corte Inglés 16% of Harris Company stock. It turned out to be a total loss later, when Gottschalks declared
bankruptcy Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the deb ...
in the aftermath of the
2008 financial crisis The 2008 financial crisis, also known as the global financial crisis (GFC), was a major worldwide financial crisis centered in the United States. The causes of the 2008 crisis included excessive speculation on housing values by both homeowners ...
. That experience led to the company taking a much more conservative approach with its 2001 expansion in Portugal, with a store in
Lisbon Lisbon ( ; ) is the capital and largest city of Portugal, with an estimated population of 567,131, as of 2023, within its administrative limits and 3,028,000 within the Lisbon Metropolitan Area, metropolis, as of 2025. Lisbon is mainlan ...
, followed in 2006 with a store in
Vila Nova de Gaia Vila Nova de Gaia (; ), or simply Gaia, is a city and a municipality in Porto District in Norte Region, Portugal, Norte Region, Portugal. It is located south of the city of Porto on the other side of the Douro River. The city proper had a populati ...
, opposite the city of
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
. In 2006, just as it opened its second store outside of Spain (in ''Vila Nova de Gaia''), the company announced expansion outside the Iberian Peninsula: Italy was to be the first country to host a store, but owing to the ongoing Eurozone crisis, the plan was suspended, as well as the opening of the third store in Portugal. Various food products bearing the El Corte Inglés brand are marketed in Latin American stores.


Business units

The business group is divided into the following areas of activity, which are usually commercially configured as companies whose shareholding belongs in its entirety or overwhelmingly majority to El Corte Inglés S.A .:


Retail

* El Corte Inglés S.A. The parent company, dedicated to distribution through department stores. This was the main activity of the company since its inception. In 2010 it still accounted for 59% of total revenues and about 63.7% of net profit. As of 28 February 2013, El Corte Inglés has 86 centres, 84 in Spain and 2 in Portugal. * Hipercor. Chain of
hypermarket A hypermarket or superstore is a big-box store combining a supermarket and a department store. The result is an expansive retail facility carrying a wide range of products under one roof, including full grocery lines and general merchandise. In ...
s dedicated to the distribution of food and household appliances. Hipercor was a response to the entry of French capital into the Spanish market in the 1980s, including
Alcampo Alcampo is the 2nd biggest hypermarket chain in Spain. History The first store opened in 1981 in Utebo (Zaragoza) and it was Auchan's first establishment outside French territory. In August 2022, an agreement was announced with Dia for the pu ...
, Pryca and Continente, with the latter two merging and now operating under the
Carrefour Carrefour Group, S.A. (, ), is a French multinational retail and wholesaling corporation headquartered in Massy, Essonne, Massy, France. It operates a chain of hypermarkets, grocery stores and convenience stores. By 2024, the group had 14,000 ...
brand. As of 28 February 2013, Hipercor has 42 centres in Spain. * Bricor.
Home improvement The concept of home improvement, home renovation or remodeling is the process of renovating, making improvements or making additions to one's home. Home improvement can consist of projects that upgrade an existing home interior (such as electr ...
and home decor retailer. Bricor was a response to the consolidation of the sector by the Adeo group, which was formed from the Auchan group, which owned Alcampo, among other interests. The
Auchan Auchan () is a French multinational retail group headquartered in Croix, France. It was founded in 1961 by Gérard Mulliez and is owned by the Mulliez family, who has 95% stake in the company. With 354,851 employees, of which 261,000 have 5% ...
group also owns the Leroy Merlin, Aki and Bricomart brands in Spain. As of 28 February 2013, Bricor had 16 stores: 14 in Spain and 2 in Portugal. * Supercor / Supercor Exprés.
Supermarket A supermarket is a self-service Retail#Types of outlets, shop offering a wide variety of food, Drink, beverages and Household goods, household products, organized into sections. Strictly speaking, a supermarket is larger and has a wider selecti ...
and
convenience store A convenience store, convenience shop, bakkal, bodega, corner store, corner shop, superette or mini-mart is a small retail store that stocks a range of everyday items such as convenience food, groceries, beverages, tobacco products, lotter ...
chain. Supercor emerged to compete with mid-sized local grocery stores at the end of the 1990s, such as Caprabo,
Eroski Eroski is a Spanish supermarket chain headquartered in Elorrio, Basque Country (autonomous community), Basque Country. It is run as a worker-consumer hybrid co-operative within the Mondragón Corporation group, with nearly 1,000 outlets spread a ...
, and Mercadona. Supercor Express is a smaller sized convenience store format which was adopted by the company in 2011. The sum total of convenience stores, including Supercor, Supercor Express, and Opencor was 238 as of 28 February 2013. *
Sfera SFera is a science fiction society from Zagreb, Croatia. It was founded in 1976, thus marking the beginnings of organized science fiction fandom in the region. SFera is the official organizer of SFeraKon, an annual Croatian science fiction conve ...
. Fashion retailer stores group. over as of the end of 2022, 490 points of sale - mostly freestanding stores - owned and franchised, including 75 stores-in-store within El Corte Inglés department stores in Spain and Portugal. Sales in fiscal 2020 were 461 million euro. There are stores (as of December 2022) in: It was conceived as a response to chains like H&M, and the Spanish brands
Mango A mango is an edible stone fruit produced by the tropical tree '' Mangifera indica''. It originated from the region between northwestern Myanmar, Bangladesh, and northeastern India. ''M. indica'' has been cultivated in South and Southeast As ...
, Zara, and Springfield, the latter two of which belong to Inditex and Cortefiel respectively.


IT and communications

In the IT and communications fields, El Corte Inglés has three subsidiaries, which are listed in order of establishment: * Informática El Corte Inglés (IECISA). Dedicated to IT consulting,
software development Software development is the process of designing and Implementation, implementing a software solution to Computer user satisfaction, satisfy a User (computing), user. The process is more encompassing than Computer programming, programming, wri ...
and computing services. * Investrónica. Consumer computing and telephony wholesaler, and former computer manufacturer under the Inves brand. Integrated in IECISA from 2015. * Telecor. Telecommunications services for consumers and businesses.


Service sector

In the service sector, the El Corte Inglés group owns: * Viajes El Corte Inglés. Travel agency group from a wholesale and retail point of view. As travel agency it has 599 branches worldwide, 506 of which are in Spain and 93 abroad. * Seguros El Corte Inglés (CESS). Insurance company dedicated to
insurance brokerage An insurance broker is an intermediary who sells, solicits, or negotiates insurance on behalf of a client for compensation. An insurance broker is distinct from an insurance agent in that a broker typically acts on behalf of a client by negotia ...
and financial and real estate mediation. It has 105 branches, most of which are located in the El Corte Inglés department stores, although some are dedicated Seguros El Corte Inglés storefronts. * Financiera El Corte Inglés. A
financial services Financial services are service (economics), economic services tied to finance provided by financial institutions. Financial services encompass a broad range of tertiary sector of the economy, service sector activities, especially as concerns finan ...
company that finances purchases for customers and distributes the El Corte Inglés shopping card. Present in Spain and Portugal. 51% of the capital of Financiera El Corte Inglés belongs to
Banco Santander Banco Santander S.A. trading as Santander Group ( , , ), is a Spanish multinational financial services company based in Santander, with operative offices in Madrid. Additionally, Santander maintains a presence in most global financial centres ...
as of 2014. * MEGA 2. A security and terciary service company present in Spain and Portugal. * Grupo Sicor. Provision of services related to physical and digital security, integral services, cleaning and maintenance, logistics, and employment. * Sweno. A telecomm company. * Sweno Energia. A residential and commercial electrical utility. * Bitcor. A cryptocurrency company.


Auxiliary businesses

El Corte Inglés owns 100% of a number of businesses auxiliary to their main business functions, unless otherwise noted. * ''Industrias y Confecciones S.A.'' (INDUYCO). Integrated into the group in 2010. * ''Ason Inmobiliaria de Arriendos S.L.'' A real estate and rental management company. * ''Construcciones, Promociones e Instalaciones S.A.'' A construction and renovation company. * ''Editorial Universitaria Ramón Areces S.A.'' A publisher of text books for Spanish universities. * ''Tourmodial Operadores S.A.'' A travel services company. * Parinver S.A. (75.83%). A holding company which owns some hotel groups and other businesses. The company has partial ownership in other businesses: * 50% of ''Gestion de Puntos de Venta S.A.'' (GESPEVESA) which manages Opencor stores at Repsol fuel stations. * 50% of ''
Sephora Sephora is a French multinational retailer of personal care and beauty products, offering nearly 340 brands alongside its own private label, the Sephora Collection. Its product range includes cosmetics, skincare, fragrance, nail color, beauty t ...
Cosmeticos España S. L.'' * 6.15% of ''Euroforum Escorial S.A.,'' a training and corporate events company. * 4,36 % of ''Parque Temático de Madrid S.A.'' which operates Parque Warner Madrid. * 1.7% of IAG.


E-commerce

El Corte Inglés' website was the largest in terms of the number of its customers in Spain, with 3.7 million customers in 2011. In 2013, 3.5 million customers and 137 million visits were registered. In December 2016 they reached their monthly peak, with more than 14 million unique users and more than 30 million visits to www.elcorteingles.es, increasing to 32 million in January 2017, becoming the most visited Spanish commercial website in Spain. It was the second most visited ecommerce website in Spain in 2017, behind
Amazon.com Amazon.com, Inc., doing business as Amazon, is an American multinational technology company engaged in e-commerce, cloud computing, online advertising, digital streaming, and artificial intelligence. Founded in 1994 by Jeff Bezos in Bellevu ...
. Since 1999 its General Director of Electronic Commerce and Distance Sales Division is Ricardo Goizueta Sagues and the Digital Director or Chief Digital Officer (CDO) is, since 2012, José María Fernández Ortega.


Corporate affairs

According to
Deloitte Deloitte is a multinational professional services network based in London, United Kingdom. It is the largest professional services network in the world by revenue and number of employees, and is one of the Big Four accounting firms, along wi ...
's report on "Global Powers of Retailing," El Corte Inglés ranked 97th in 2020, down 27 places from 2019, when it ranked 69th. This made it the 3rd largest retailer by volume in Spain, behind
Inditex Industria de Diseño Textil, S.A. (Inditex; , ; ) is a Spanish multinational clothing company headquartered in Arteixo, Galicia, Spain. The largest fast fashion group in the world, it operates over 7,200 stores in 93 markets worldwide. The compa ...
and Mercadona. Total retail revenue in 2020 amount to €12,077 million. As of 2008, it was the second largest family business in Spain, and the 66th largest in the world. The company's retail revenue and net profit both increased continuously until 2007, when they began to drop. The company has not since returned to its 2007 peak of revenue, which was close to €18,000 million, with €747.6 million net profits. Since then, both revenue and profits declined until 2015, and then increased until 2019.


Shareholders

Although the company is known for jealously guarding its privacy, numerous statements have indicated that the Ramón Areces Foundation is the biggest shareholder, with 37% of the company's shares willed to the foundation by its founder. Isidoro Alvarez controls these shares as president of the foundation, together with his own shares, which are believed to be somewhere between 15 and 27% of total shares, making him the largest shareholder. Cartera de Valores IASA is the second biggest shareholder, with 22% of shares. Approximately 9% of shares are owned by the children of Luis Areces, Ramon Areces' brother, via the ''Corporacion Ceslar''. Equal parts of approximately 3% of the shares, were divided between the four brothers of the Areces Fuentes brothers, sons of Ramon Areces' other brother Celestino. The brothers acquired these shares through inheritance after the liquidation of the holding company. After a lengthy legal conflict, however, they sold their shares to El Corte Inglés. Ingondel S.L. which held 6% of El Corte Inglés' capital, was property of descendants of César Rodríguez. It was acquired in 2009. A 7% share is in the hands of Cartera Mancor, S.L., which is also made up of the descendants of César Rodríguez, by way of Paloma García Peña. Approximately 3% is held by other members of the administrative council, and the remainder is divided between the treasure and some 3000 directors and executives of the company. It is presumed that these shareholders are always employees while they hold shares, since there are restrictions on the transfer of shares. The administrative council of El Corte Inglés is composed of the following individuals: * Marta Álvarez Guil. elected president 11 July 2019. * Cristina Álvarez Guil. * Jesús Nuño de la Rosa y Coloma. * Fernando Becker Zuazua. *
Manuel Pizarro Moreno Manuel Amador Miguel Pizarro Moreno (born Teruel Teruel () is a city in Aragon, located in eastern Spain, and is also the capital of Teruel (province), Teruel Province. It had a population of 35,900 as of 2022, making it the least populated p ...
. * Víctor del Pozo Gil. * Hamad bin Jassem bin Jabr Al Thani, represented by Shahzad Shahbaz. * Cartera Mancor, S.L, represented by Paloma García Peña. * Corporación Ceslar, represented by Ana Carlota Areces Galán. * Antonio Hernández-Gil (secretary). * Juan Moral-de la Rosa (vice-secretary)


Business model

Like Galerias Preciados in its time, El Corte Inglés' business model was based on introducing American style department stores to Spain during a period where Spain was emerging from economic isolation and
autarky Autarky is the characteristic of self-sufficiency, usually applied to societies, communities, states, and their economic systems. Autarky as an ideology or economic approach has been attempted by a range of political ideologies and movement ...
. As such, its business model revolved around the idea of a store where customer could buy everything, hence its slogan "The store for all your shopping" (''La tienda de todas tus compras).'' Stores aimed not only to offer a wide variety of articles, but also goods of different levels of quality, with goods divided into departments with additional services such as home deliveries, wedding lists, repairs included in sale price, etc., as well as satisfaction and quality assurances through money-back guarantees. This model depends on the performance of the following actors:


Customers

The company's main business model has remained constant until the present. Its social and
corporate responsibility Corporate responsibility is a term which has come to characterize a family of professional disciplines intended to help a corporation stay competitive by maintaining accountability to its four main stakeholder groups: customers, employees, shareh ...
documents emphasize five pillars of commitment to the customers: quality, service, assortment, specialization, and guarantees. This approach has been used to build
customer loyalty In marketing and consumer behaviour, brand loyalty describes a consumer's persistent positive feelings towards a familiar brand and their dedication to purchasing the brand's products and/or services repeatedly regardless of deficiencies, a co ...
. In the food department, the company has launched a
generic brand Generic brands of consumer products (often supermarket goods) are distinguished by the absence of a brand name, instead identified solely by product characteristics and identified by plain, usually black-and-white packaging. Generally they imitat ...
called Aliada. The El Corte Inglés shopping card is a credit card which was introduced in 1968, and is one of the most popular in Spain, with 11.58 million active cards in Spain in 2017. Card holders have a one-month
grace period A grace period is a period immediately after the deadline for an obligation during which a late fee, or other action that would have been taken as a result of failing to meet the deadline, is waived provided that the obligation is satisfied duri ...
to pay off the balance of their card, with an option to defer payment for up to three months without interest, although administrative fees apply. Payment can also be deferred with low
interest In finance and economics, interest is payment from a debtor or deposit-taking financial institution to a lender or depositor of an amount above repayment of the principal sum (that is, the amount borrowed), at a particular rate. It is distinct f ...
payments for up to 36 months. The card also grants holders the right to at least 2 hours free parking in store parking garages, and allows the purchase of any product sold in El Corte Inglés centers. Since 2006, the card can also be used to pay for fuel at Repsol fuel stations.


Human resources

In 2011, the company's workforce was made up of 99,323 employees, down from 102,699 the previous year. 93% of those had long-term contracts, and 71% were full-time. The median age of employees was 39 years, with 13 years of experience. 37% of total employees were male compared to 63% female, although in management males outnumbered females. Annual reports indicated that in 2012, the total number of employees further declined to 96,678, 94% of whom were full time, and 64% of whom were female. The relationship between El Corte Inglés and its employees has traditionally been formal, familiar, and paternalistic, with the company trying to establish feedback between the company and its employees. The company provides training and educational assistance, financial services, and discounts or financing for purchasing goods and services. The company has received criticism for discriminating against women, harassment of
labor unions A trade union (British English) or labor union (American English), often simply referred to as a union, is an organization of workers whose purpose is to maintain or improve the conditions of their employment, such as attaining better wages ...
, is directly implicated in exploitative labor practices. In the majority of the company's locations, union elections are won by Fetico or FASGA, a national retail union accused of being a yellow union by the UGT and
CCOO The Workers' Commissions () since the 1970s has become the largest trade union in Spain. It has more than one million members, and is the most successful union in labor elections, competing with the Unión General de Trabajadores (UGT), which is ...
. Some companies in the El Corte Inglés group, such as Induyco, have been criticized by groups like
Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent non-governmental organizations (NGOs), focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. It began as the Oxford Committee for Famine Relief ...
for issues of
precarious work Precarious work is a term that critics use to describe non-standard or temporary employment that may be poorly paid, insecure, unprotected, and unable to support a household. From this perspective, globalization, the shift from the manufacturing ...
and exploitation of textile workers in
third world The term Third World arose during the Cold War to define countries that remained non-aligned with either NATO or the Warsaw Pact. The United States, Canada, Taiwan, Japan, South Korea, the Southern Cone, NATO, Western European countries and oth ...
countries.


Suppliers

The company has pursued
vertical integration In microeconomics, management and international political economy, vertical integration, also referred to as vertical consolidation, is an arrangement in which the supply chain of a company is integrated and owned by that company. Usually each ...
since early on, especially with textiles, when Ramon Areces and other shareholders founded Induyco in 1949, and which became a ''sociedad anonimo'' in 1955. Induyco, in spite of having a non-proprietary relationship with El Corte Inglés, initially had El Corte Inglés as its exclusive wholesale client, and its employees were offered benefits as if they belonged to the same group. Later, Induyco still had El Corte Inglés as its majority client, although the relationship was no longer exclusive, though its share structure remained the same, and Isidoro Alvarez was the president. In 2010 El Corte Inglés integrated Induyco into its corporate structure, and in 2012 it ceased activities. In the field of texties, in addition to Induyco, the company created ''Confecciones Teruel'' in 1975 and ''Industrias del Vestido'' in 1976. Both companies got the majority of their capital from the Induyco group which itself was part of ''Investronica'' and ''Invesgen''. Its creation was motivated by labor conflicts which occurred at Induyco during those years. In the field of supplying special materials for sale, the company created ''Mostoles Industrial'' in the same way as Induyco. ''Mostoles Industrial'', unlike Induyco, retained El Corte Inglés as its exclusive customer while having a non-proprietary relationship with it. ''Mostoles'' is most well known for its production of kitchen furniture for the "Forlady" brand. On the side of real estate development, the company created ''Construcción, Promociones e Instalaciones S.A.'' in 1976, whose capital is derived in its entirety from the El Corte Inglés group, and which is responsible for the construction of new stores and renovation of existing ones.


Publicity and advertising

El Corte Inglés has one of the biggest advertising budgets in Spain. In 2011, the group was the biggest advertiser in Spain, with an investment of 171.3 million euros, and as an individual El Corte Inglés itself was the third biggest, with a budget of 99.8 million euros. The company periodically conducts large publicity campaigns like ''Semana Fanstisca'' (Fantasic Week) and the ''Ocho Dias de Oro'' (the Eight Golden Days) by announcing discounts on its products. On the
Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a Religion, religious and Culture, cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by coun ...
holiday, it organizes an animation spectacle called "Cortylandia" in its main stores. Furthermore, part of El Corte Inglés'
company culture Organizational culture encompasses the shared norms, values, corporate language and behaviors - observed in schools, universities, not-for-profit groups, government agencies, and businesses - reflecting their core values and strategic direction. ...
includes sponsoring a number of activities that also serve as a form of advertising. For example, the El Corte Inglés Rally is a rally race that ran on the
Canary Islands The Canary Islands (; ) or Canaries are an archipelago in the Atlantic Ocean and the southernmost Autonomous communities of Spain, Autonomous Community of Spain. They are located in the northwest of Africa, with the closest point to the cont ...
from 1977 to 2001.


Flagship stores


Madrid-Castellana flagship

The chain's (
flagship A flagship is a vessel used by the commanding officer of a group of navy, naval ships, characteristically a flag officer entitled by custom to fly a distinguishing flag. Used more loosely, it is the lead ship in a fleet of vessels, typically ...
) department store is El Corte Inglés Castellana in Madrid's
Salamanca Salamanca () is a Municipality of Spain, municipality and city in Spain, capital of the Province of Salamanca, province of the same name, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. It is located in the Campo Charro comarca, in the ...
district, in the Castellana neighborhood, just west of
Paseo de la Castellana Paseo de la Castellana, commonly known as La Castellana, is a major thoroughfare in Madrid, Spain. Cutting across the city from south to north, it has been described as the "true structuring axis" of the city. History and description The street ...
boulevard and Nuevos Ministerios station. It opened on 7 October 2011 on the site of the Windsor Building which caught fire in 2005 and was demolished. In its place was built the Torre Titania tower and El Corte Inglés Castellana complex, designed by architects Pablo Muñoz López and Pedro Vilata Capón/Capont. The complex encompasses several buildings. The largest has 27 floors, including five below ground dedicated providing parking for 1,600 cars. There are two block of two technical floors each which house engine rooms, air treatment units, elevator machinery, etc. There is a total floor area of of which is dedicated to retail sales, thus ranking among the 20 largest department store locations currently in operation worldwide. The company spent around 300 million euro from 2008 through 2011 with the construction of a new building at Castellana 85, dedicated to decoration, that was then integrated with the existing one. After the remodeling and reorganization, merchandise was presented in a differentiated and themed way, in addition to new brands, services, and spaces, such as the ''Gourmet Experience'' a
food hall A food hall is a large standalone location or department store section where food and drinks are sold. Overview Unlike food courts made up of fast food chains, food halls typically mix local artisan restaurants, butcher shops and other food- ...
with sales of gourmet products, and dining options such as seafood, Asian, Italian, Iberian specialties, hamburgers, grilled meats and fish, cheeses, skewers, fresh pastries, and fresh juices. The Castellana flagship location carries the most comprehensive collection of designers of any large store in Spain. Designer boutiques in the store include
Hermès Hermès International S.A. ( , ) is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house established in 1837. It specializes in leather goods, silk goods, lifestyle accessories, home furnishings, perfumery, jewelry, watches and ready-to-wear. Since the ...
,
Louis Vuitton Louis Vuitton Malletier SAS, commonly known as Louis Vuitton (, ), is a French Luxury goods, luxury fashion house and company founded in 1854 by Louis Vuitton (designer), Louis Vuitton. The label's LV monogram appears on most of its products, ...
, Cartier,
Armani Giorgio Armani S.p.A. (), commonly known as Armani, is an Italian luxury fashion house founded in Milan by Giorgio Armani which designs, manufactures, distributes and retails haute couture, ready-to-wear, leather goods, shoes, accessories, and ...
, Armani Jeans, Armani Collezioni,
Gucci Guccio Gucci S.p.A., doing business as Gucci ( , ), is an Italian Luxury goods, luxury fashion house based in Florence. Its product lines include handbags, ready-to-wear, footwear, accessories, and home decoration; and it licenses its name and ...
, Loewe, Dockers, Ralph Lauren, Bulgari,
Dior Christian Dior SE (), commonly known as Dior, is a French Multinational corporation, multinational luxury goods company that is controlled and chaired by French businessman Bernard Arnault, who also heads LVMH. , Dior controlled around 42% of ...
, Dior Homme, Georges Rech,
Versace Gianni Versace S.r.l. (), usually referred to as Versace ( ), is an Italian luxury elite fashion company founded by Gianni Versace in 1978. The company produces Italian-made ready-to-wear and accessories, as well as '' haute couture'' under it ...
,
Hugo Boss Hugo Boss AG (stylized in all caps) is a designer fashion company headquartered in Metzingen, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. The company sells clothing, Fashion accessory, accessories, footwear, and Leather, leather goods. Hugo Boss is one of the ...
, Boss Woman, Ermenegildo Zegna,
Tommy Hilfiger Thomas Jacob Hilfiger ( ; born March 24, 1951) is an American fashion designer and the founder of Tommy Hilfiger (company), Tommy Hilfiger Corporation. After starting his career by co-founding a chain of jeans/fashion stores called People's P ...
, Dolce&Gabbana, Burberry (men/women), Façonnable, Pal Zileri, Paul & Shark, Lacoste, Pavillon Christofle, CH by Carolina Herrera, Escada Sport, James Purdey and Sons, Lloyd's, Purificación García,
Calvin Klein Calvin Richard Klein (born November 19, 1942) is an American fashion designer. In 1968, he launched the company that later became Calvin Klein. In addition to clothing, he has also given his name to a range of perfumes, watches, and jewellery. ...
, Caroll Paris, Amitie, and Episode. The store has its own brands (Emidio Tucci, Dustin). Also in the complex is a branch of the Madrid-based Aldeo jewelers, carrying such jewellery designers as Boucheron, Blancpain and
Hamilton Hamilton may refer to: * Alexander Hamilton (1755/1757–1804), first U.S. Secretary of the Treasury and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States * ''Hamilton'' (musical), a 2015 Broadway musical by Lin-Manuel Miranda ** ''Hamilton'' (al ...
.


Preciados–Callao store

The Preciados–Callao store complex in the heart of Madrid consists of 4 buildings, including the original flagship Madrid stores of El Corte Inglés and Galerías Preciados: * Calle de Preciados #3–5, 7 stories, original flagship of the chain, opened 1945 at #3, expanded 1955 to #5 - men's, women's and children's clothing and accessories including some sports apparel, cosmetics and fragrances, plus a café and restaurant * Plaza de Callao #2. Built 1964-8, architects Antonio Perpiñá Sebriá( es) and Luis Iglesias on site of Hotel Florida as the flagship of Galerías Preciados which moved from adjacent Preciados #28, now
Fnac Fnac () is a French multinational retail chain specializing in the sale of entertainment Media (communication), media and consumer electronics. Fnac was founded by André Essel and Max Théret in 1954. Its headquarters is located in ''Le Flavia' ...
. 9 stories - home and other non-apparel departments including the ''Gourmet Experience''
food hall A food hall is a large standalone location or department store section where food and drinks are sold. Overview Unlike food courts made up of fast food chains, food halls typically mix local artisan restaurants, butcher shops and other food- ...
on floor 9 *Plaza de la Puerta del Sol #10, 4 stories - sports clothing and accessories, sporting goods *Calle Maestro Victoria #6, 1 story (pet supplies)


Brands

* ''El Corte Inglés'' department stores, ''Hipercor'' hypermarkets, ''Supercor'' urban supermarkets ; Clothing * ''Alía'' * ''Dustin'' * ''Easy Wear'' * ''Emidio Tucci''
(men's formalwear) * ''Énfasis'' * ''Formul@ Joven'' * ''Gloria Ortiz''
(clothing, accessories) * ''Lloyd's'' * ''
Sfera SFera is a science fiction society from Zagreb, Croatia. It was founded in 1976, thus marking the beginnings of organized science fiction fandom in the region. SFera is the official organizer of SFeraKon, an annual Croatian science fiction conve ...
'' * ''Yera'' * ''Unit'' ; Sports apparel * ''Boomerang'' * ''Runfit'' (Hipercor only) ; Cosmetics * ''Línea Pura'' * ''Oleada'' * ''Plantea'' (skin care) * ''Veckia'' ; Home furnishings (only at El Corte Inglés stores) * ''Privium'' * ''Urban-Chic'' * ''Urban-Class'' * ''Casa Actual'' ; Home appliances and electronics * ''Saivod'' * ''Ansonic:'' (only in Hipercor) * ''Digrato'' (coffee machines/capsules) * ''Inves'' (software) ; Culture * ''Ámbito Cultural'': cultural events, expositions, literary prizes, cinematography, musical and painting awards, scholarships. * ''Cineclub'': collection of classic cinema. * ''Pitiflú'': children's entertainment, including storytelling, magic shows, workshops, puppet shows, children's theater and circus events. * ''Rubiños 1860'': bookstore. ; Food * ''Aliada'': generic brand * ''Special Line'':
diet food Diet food (or dietetic food) refers to any food or beverage whose recipe is altered to reduce fat, carbohydrates, and/or sugar in order to make it part of a weight loss program or Dieting, diet. Such foods are usually intended to assist in weigh ...
s ; Telecom * ''Sweno'' * ''Telecor'' ; Cryptocurrency * ''Bitcor'' ; Private security * ''Sicor'' ; Other * ''La Tienda en Casa'': telesales via television and internet * ''Oralli'': travel accessories * ''Doblecero'': loyalty card * ''Primeriti'': private online sales club


Gallery

Torre Titania (Madrid) 08.jpg, Exterior of the flagship store at the Torre Titania in Castellana,
Madrid Madrid ( ; ) is the capital and List of largest cities in Spain, most populous municipality of Spain. It has almost 3.5 million inhabitants and a Madrid metropolitan area, metropolitan area population of approximately 7 million. It i ...
(2014) El_Corte_Inglés_(6033309835).jpg, Aranda de Duero store El Corte Inglés Barcelona Plaça de Catalunya 2013.jpg, Plaça Catalunya store,
Barcelona Barcelona ( ; ; ) is a city on the northeastern coast of Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second-most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within c ...
El Corte Inglés, en Córdoba (España).jpg, Córdoba store Elche - Centro Comercial Ciudad de Elche (El Corte Inglés, Hipercor) 09.jpg,
Elche Elche (, ; , , , ; officially: ''/'' ) is a city and Municipalities of Spain, municipality of Spain, belonging to the province of Alicante, in the Valencian Community. According to 2024's data, Elche has a population of 234,800 inhabitants,
(Elx) store, 2009 El Corte Inglés Murcia 2023-12 Christmas-Navidad.jpg,
Murcia Murcia ( , , ) is a city in south-eastern Spain, the Capital (political), capital and most populous city of the autonomous community of the Region of Murcia, and the Ranked lists of Spanish municipalities#By population, seventh largest city i ...
store at Christmastime 2023 Oporto (Portugal) (25643990184).jpg,
Porto Porto (), also known in English language, English as Oporto, is the List of cities in Portugal, second largest city in Portugal, after Lisbon. It is the capital of the Porto District and one of the Iberian Peninsula's major urban areas. Porto c ...
,
Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...
store Hipercor Xanadu.jpg, The Hipercor and El Corte Inglés stores at Xanadu mall, Madrid area


Notes


References


External links


Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Corte Inglés, El Retail companies established in 1940 Companies based in Madrid Department stores of Spain Privately held companies of Spain Spanish brands Spanish-language websites 1940 establishments in Spain El Corte Inglés (group)