Irma (supermarket)

Irma was a high-end chain of supermarkets in Copenhagen and other parts of eastern Denmark.

[1] The Irma chain traces its history back to 1886 when Karen Marie Schepler established a store named Tavnsborggade Mælkeforsyning at Ravnsborggade 13 in the Nørrebro district of Copenhagen.

The store started as a retailer of milk and eggs but later expanded into packaged groceries such as tea and sugar.

[2] None of Schepler's heirs wanted to take over the company and it was therefore sold to a consortium of four egg wholesalers.

FDB (today Coop amba) acquired Irma for DKK 300 million in 1982.

FDB unsuccessfully attempted to expand the chain geographically with the opening of three stores in Odense and they closed again in the late 1980s.

The media attention better economic times boosted the sale and the plans to close the chain were therefore cancelled.

At 38%, Irma on Torvegade in Christianshavn was the supermarket where organic products accounted for the largest share of the total sales worldwide.