Schocken Department Stores
A pre–World War II German department-store chain known for its commercial expansion and landmark modernist buildings.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Schocken Department Stores, also known as Kaufhaus Schocken and historically as I. Schocken Sons, was a German department-store chain that operated before and during the political upheavals surrounding World War II. The business was developed by brothers Simon Schocken and Salman Schocken. Simon entered the family of the Leipzig department-store business Warenhaus Ury Gebrüder through marriage, and the brothers subsequently expanded the enterprise beyond its original base by opening another store in Zwickau. Their approach combined the broad merchandise range associated with the department-store format with highly visible urban architecture and modern retail presentation. The company became one of Germany’s largest department-store operators during the 1920s. Its best-known buildings were in Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Chemnitz. The Nuremberg store at Aufseßplatz was built in 1925–1926, the Stuttgart store was constructed between 1926 and 1928, and the Chemnitz store was developed from 1927 to 1930. All three were designed by Erich Mendelsohn and are frequently treated as important examples of modern architecture applied to commercial retail. The Stuttgart and Nuremberg buildings were later demolished, while the Chemnitz building became the most enduring architectural remnant associated with the chain. By 1930, the company had grown to twenty stores and was described as Germany’s fourth-largest department-store company. Simon Schocken died in a car accident in 1929, leaving Salman as the sole owner. The company’s growth and architectural prominence were interrupted by the rise of Nazism. Because Salman Schocken was Jewish, the business was subjected to forced sale under the Nazi regime’s antisemitic expropriation policies, commonly described as “Aryanisation.” The department stores were transferred to Merkur AG. After World War II, Salman Schocken recovered a 51-percent interest in the business. He later sold that regained stake to Helmut Horten GmbH. The Horten business subsequently became part of Kaufhof and, through later corporate developments, came under Metro ownership. These transactions ended the Schocken family’s direct control of the department-store enterprise and represent the chain’s transition from a family-owned Jewish retail business to a component of larger postwar German retail groups. The Schocken name also became associated with cultural publishing. In 1931, Salman Schocken founded a publishing house that issued books in German and Hebrew. That publishing activity later moved to Mandatory Palestine and the United States and developed into Schocken Books, which is affiliated with Random House. The publishing business was separate from the department-store chain, but it reflects Salman Schocken’s broader interests in culture, literature, and Jewish intellectual life. The department-store brand itself is no longer active.
History
Schocken Department Stores developed from the retail activities associated with the Ury family’s Warenhaus Ury Gebrüder business in Leipzig. Simon Schocken married into the owner family, after which he and his brother Salman Schocken expanded the enterprise. A second store was established in Zwickau, marking the transition from a single retail operation into a chain. The company was known as I. Schocken Sons from 1907 and grew substantially during the following decades. The chain’s expansion coincided with the spread of the modern department-store format in Germany. Rather than operating only as small specialist shops, department stores brought many categories of merchandise together in large urban buildings. Schocken’s most prominent architectural expression of this strategy appeared in Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Chemnitz. Erich Mendelsohn designed the stores in Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Chemnitz, which were built in stages from the mid-1920s through 1930. Their streamlined forms, horizontal emphasis, and integration into busy city locations made them significant examples of modern commercial architecture. The Nuremberg building at Aufseßplatz was completed in 1925–1926, the Stuttgart store followed in 1926–1928, and the Chemnitz store was built between 1927 and 1930. Simon Schocken died in a car accident in 1929. Salman then became the sole owner. By 1930, the business operated twenty stores and ranked as Germany’s fourth-largest department-store company, demonstrating the scale reached by the family enterprise before the Nazi period. The Nazi seizure of power transformed the company’s ownership and operating environment. Salman Schocken was Jewish, and his department-store business was subjected to the regime’s discriminatory economic policies. He was forced to sell the stores to Merkur AG in a process generally referred to as Aryanisation. The transfer was part of the broader expropriation of Jewish-owned businesses under National Socialism and represents the central rupture in the company’s history. Following World War II, Salman Schocken regained a 51-percent share of the company. He later sold this interest to Helmut Horten GmbH. Horten subsequently became associated with Kaufhof, and later corporate ownership placed the business within Metro’s corporate orbit. The original Schocken department-store identity therefore disappeared through postwar consolidation rather than continuing as an independent family-controlled chain. The buildings had different physical fates. The Nuremberg and Stuttgart stores were demolished, while the Chemnitz building remained the principal surviving architectural reminder of the chain. The Schocken legacy also continued through Salman Schocken’s publishing activities. In 1931 he established a publishing house for German- and Hebrew-language books; the publishing operation later moved to Mandatory Palestine and the United States and became associated with Schocken Books. That cultural enterprise was distinct from the retail chain but is closely linked to Salman Schocken’s historical identity. The department-store business is now defunct.
- 1931
Salman Schocken founded a publishing house
[1]Salman Schocken established a publishing house issuing books in German and Hebrew; the publishing activity later developed into Schocken Books.
- 1930
The chain reached twenty stores
[1]The company had twenty stores and was described as Germany’s fourth-largest department-store company.
- 1930
Chemnitz store completed
[1]The Chemnitz Schocken store, designed by Erich Mendelsohn, was completed during the 1927–1930 construction period.
- 1929
Simon Schocken died
[1]Simon Schocken died in a car accident, after which Salman Schocken became the company’s sole owner.
- 1926
Stuttgart store constructed
[1]The Stuttgart Schocken store was built between 1926 and 1928 to designs by Erich Mendelsohn.
- 1925
Nuremberg Schocken store constructed
[1]The Schocken store at Aufseßplatz in Nuremberg was built during 1925–1926 and became one of the chain’s notable modernist buildings.
- 1907
The company was known as I. Schocken Sons
[1]The department-store enterprise was operating under the name I. Schocken Sons by 1907.
The department stores were forcibly transferred to Merkur AG
[1]Under Nazi rule, Salman Schocken was compelled to sell the department-store business to Merkur AG through an Aryanisation process.
Postwar ownership passed to Helmut Horten GmbH
[1]After recovering a 51-percent share following the war, Salman Schocken sold it to Helmut Horten GmbH.
Products and positioning
A large-format German department-store chain that combined broad retail merchandise with prominent modernist commercial architecture.
Department-store retail
General department-store merchandise
The Schocken chain used the broad department-store model, bringing multiple categories of consumer merchandise together under one retail operation. The available reference material does not provide a detailed category-by-category product catalogue, so the assortment is best described generally rather than through named proprietary product lines.
Retail locations
Schocken department stores
The stores themselves were the brand’s principal offering: large urban retail locations serving German consumers before World War II. The Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Chemnitz buildings were especially notable because Erich Mendelsohn designed them as integrated examples of modern commercial architecture.
Controversies
Forced sale during Nazi Aryanisation
After the Nazi rise to power, Salman Schocken was forced to sell the department-store business to Merkur AG because of antisemitic persecution and the regime’s expropriation of Jewish-owned enterprises. The transaction permanently displaced the Schocken family from control of the retail chain.
Brand decisions
- Expansion from a local business into a national chainStrategy
Background
Simon and Salman Schocken expanded the enterprise associated with Warenhaus Ury Gebrüder by opening an additional store in Zwickau and developing a wider chain.
Action taken
The brothers pursued multi-location department-store growth, eventually building a twenty-store business.
Aftermath
By 1930, Schocken was described as Germany’s fourth-largest department-store company.
- Use of modernist architecture for major storesStrategy
Background
The company’s most prominent locations were developed during a period when department stores were becoming major urban and architectural institutions.
Action taken
Schocken commissioned Erich Mendelsohn to design stores in Nuremberg, Stuttgart, and Chemnitz.
Aftermath
The three buildings became recognized milestones of modern commercial architecture, although the Nuremberg and Stuttgart structures were later demolished.
- Sale of the recovered postwar stake to Helmut Horten GmbHM&A
Background
After World War II, Salman Schocken recovered a 51-percent interest in the department-store business.
Action taken
He sold the recovered stake to Helmut Horten GmbH.
Aftermath
The business later became associated with Kaufhof and ultimately with Metro, ending the Schocken family’s direct ownership.
Recent events
- 1930
Schocken Department Stores reached twenty stores[1]
Other
By 1930, the company was identified as Germany’s fourth-largest department-store company, with twenty stores.
Salman Schocken sold his recovered stake to Helmut Horten GmbH[1]
M&A · Other
After the war, Schocken recovered a 51-percent interest and subsequently sold it to Helmut Horten GmbH. The Horten business later became part of Kaufhof and ultimately entered the Metro group.
Sources1 sources
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