Brazil`s Magazine Luiza SA: Changing the Face of Retail in Tune with the Times

In 1957, a small gift shop called ‘Cristaleira’ in Franca (a municipality in Sao Paulo state), Brazil, was acquired by a couple – Pelegrino Jose Donato and Luiza Trajano Donato. The shop, run as a mom-and-pop business, was later renamed as Magazine Luiza S.A. (Magalu), after the name topped a customer poll held on radio by the founders asking for a new name for their business.

In 1974, Magalu opened its first large department store. The store, spread over an area of more than 5,000 square meters, sold furniture, household appliances, and electronics,. In 1976, Magalu acquired a retailer called ‘Mercantil’, which enabled it to gain access to stores in the interior areas of Sao Paulo. Over the years, the Donato couple invited several of their relatives to join the company that gradually grew to encompass almost 30 stores by the end of the 1970s...