dm-drogerie markt (usually abbreviated as dm) is a chain of retail stores headquartered in Karlsruhe, Germany, offering cosmetics, healthcare items, household products and health food and drinks. The company was founded in 1973, when it opened its first store in Karlsruhe. Its founder is anthroprosophist Götz Werner.
In its industry sector, dm-drogerie markt is Germany's largest retailer measured by revenues.Rekordumsatz: Der Siegeszug der Drogeriekette DM. Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung, 24 October 2013 (in German)
dm has more than 79,700 people employed in more than 4,000 stores in twelve European countries. In the 1970s, dm only had outlets in Germany and Austria. In the 1990s, it opened stores in the Czech Republic, Hungary, Slovenia, Slovakia, and Croatia. In the 2000s, the company expanded to Serbia, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Romania, Bulgaria, North Macedonia, Italy and Poland.
In 2015, dm planned to organize a fundraising campaign for a Kurdish community in Germany, supported by Rupert Neudeck. The campaign sparked outrage among nationalist German Turks. They accused dm of supporting the Kurdish PKK and terrorism and called for a boycott of dm. The company withdrew from its efforts, stating that it did not want to provide "a breeding ground for escalation."
In March 2017, for the first time in its history, dm-drogerie markt started selling to consumers outside Europe with the Alibaba Group's Tmall global cross-border flagship store in China. This expansion was initiated and is managed by a Shanghai-based Tmall Partner oddity Asia.
Employee rights The company is known for promoting its flat hierarchical structures and high level of social commitment. Götz Werner has asserted that the well-being of employees is more important than the company's returns.Best Brands Awards: Götz Werner ist die beste Unternehmermarke. Wirtschaftswoche, 7 February 2013 (in German)
In 2002, 28 years after the company's founding, the first independent works councils were introduced within the group in Germany. Some employees in two distribution centers had taken the initiative and established co-determination structures. Management then decided to establish works councils in all branches. One works council member called this a "clever move" by dm management, as they had targeted selected employees at the time and thereby deliberately sidelined employees who were critical of management.Annette Jensen: . In: Hans-Böckler-Stiftung (Hrsg.): . Nr. 10/2008. Bund-Verlag, 2008, ISSN 0723-5984
Locations Figures for the number of stores in Europe as of 6 December 2025: CountrySinceNo. of storesAustria 1976 381Bosnia and Herzegovina 2006 94Bulgaria 2009 119Croatia 1996 180Czech Republic 1993 261Germany 1973 2156Hungary 1993 263Italy 2017 93North Macedonia 2012 25Poland 2022 75Romania 2007 167Serbia 2004 134Slovakia 1995 172Slovenia 1993 101
See also Müller Rossmann
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