It was a place of joy and play. It was a shopping venue one must visit when staying in Zürich, from children to young adults, parents and grandparents. That was the flagship store of the Swiss retail chain Franz Carl Weber for toys and games in the centre of Zürich. The chain had gone through several turns since the 1980s, yet it continued to vibrate and flourish, as much as its devoted customers could see and feel. Sadly, the toy story of Franz Carl Weber (FCW) has been brought to an abrupt ending by the latest owner of the chain of stores and its cherished brand — the German drugstore retailer Müller. After 145 years the stores and probably also the brand of FCW are about to disappear from the Swiss scenery.

This retail business of toys and games was founded by Franz Carl Weber (1855-1948) in 1881 in Zürich. He started with a pharmacy selling also some toys but soon after decided to focus his business on toys. In the early years the first FCW store was established by the founder on Bahnhofstrasse 48. However, a decade later (1890) the store re-located to its address on Bahnhofstrasse 62 [1], where the flagship store of Zürich resided for most of its 144 years; it was famously known for several generations in that location throughout the 20th century and until 2016. The recollections told here belong mainly to this fabulous store. Due to financial difficulties the flagship store, which was too expensive to keep on the prestigious street, had to be moved to Bahnhofplatz 9, opposite the main railway station. Much of the magic of the store was retained in the replacement store, though it was not the same as before. Some recollections will be shared from that store as well.

The flagship store of Franz Carl Weber on Bahnhofstrasse 62 occupied a “thick slice” in a bloc of buildings which stretched between its front entrance on the main shopping street and Rennweg on its backside. It welcomed visitors from its front entry doors with some large item toys; and then it just absorbed shoppers into a world of toys and games of various kinds. I refer to my personal experiences as backwards as I can recall from the 1980s to the 2010s (there were surely changes made during this period). Naturally, my recollections are likely to ascribe with greater clarity to the more recent years.

The store entailed four floors. On the ground floor you could find, for instance, various dolls, puppets and teddies. There were also wonderful animal figurines (by Shleich) and figurines of story heroes from books and films. The upper floors felt spacious with areas for playing, creating, and watching demonstrations. It is remembered as a vivid and entertaining place. The younger visitors-shoppers had opportunities to explore and, in some cases, interact with toys and games. Their creativity could be expressed by building and constructing models (e.g., Lego, Fisher, Meccano) or by drawing and painting. Otherwise, children and teenagers would gather next to exhibits and demonstrations: from the more basic animal toys swimming in a water tub, framed tables with car models or other toys in motion, to the more advanced remote radio-operated vehicles, and the models of trains and their rail systems or racing cars with road systems (e.g., by Märklin).

The older adult visitors (e.g., parents, grandparents) would accompany the children or come to survey and choose toys or games as gifts to surprise the kids at home. The store introduced a new concept in later years (since 2005) named ‘Kids Town’ with a refurbished design, nonetheless the visitors that could be found there spanned a wide range of ages. The visitors-shoppers included also mature hobbyists. Consider, for example, the high-end models of train engines and cars with railways, models of vintage & luxury cars, and advanced or art-designed models for construction (e.g., Lego). Additionally, the FCW store offered a range of jigsaw puzzles, memory and cognitive (thinking) games (e.g., eMemo Art & Architecture, Quoridor), and various board games (social, competitive). All these games are classified by ranges of the ages qualified or recommended to play. Many games invite players from a wide span of ages, from youth to elderly, and some at higher levels of difficulty and required knowledge are actually more suitable for adults. In other words, adults do not leave their childhood entirely behind (e.g., carrying some hobbies to later years), and their enthusiasm experienced in a store like FCW may be shared with children and youth.

The FCW flagship store entailed different attractions in its interior design, displays and exhibits. An important character of its design was the play with bright, soft or deep colours. Its way of being colourful added to the atmospherics and experience of joy and fun in the store. It became more salient in the years post 1995. Perhaps more than anything it transmitted optimism.

The business history of Franz Carl Weber in its latest period of forty years was rather troubled, which seems not to match so well with experiences of joy and fun as described above. The shoppers-customers of FCW apparently did not feel much of those difficulties and ‘changes of hands’ (i.e., ownership & control) when visiting its flagship store (or other chain stores), and they were probably less aware of those troubles for a long time. Yet those financial and business difficulties cannot be ignored, and they must have had effects more discernible even to customers, especially in closure or at least changes in location and size of stores.

For a hundred years (1881-1984) Franz Carl Weber was held and managed as a family-owned retail business. In 1984 FCW ran into financial difficulties and was acquired by Denner (a large Swiss discount retailer of drugstores & supermarkets). This outcome seems to be attributed to broadening of the chain, that reached its peak in the 1970s, and to the renovation and expansion of the flagship store on Bahnhofstrasse in Zürich. Jan de Boer (writing in ‘I am Expat’, March 2024 [2]) suggested that the latter venture in particular created a large financial burden, with spiraling rental costs and “proved a sales nightmare”. A grandson of the founder named after him, Franz Carl Weber, passed away at the end of 2001 at age 77; he managed FCW with his brother. During his managerial tenure in the company the chain reached its peak of 50 stores nationwide in Switzerland, with further affiliates in Germany, Austria, France and the United States. According to SwissInfo (Jan. 2002, [3]): “The two brothers cemented the company into a strong brand, synonymous with games, toys and teddies.” He is said to have “masterminded” the expansion of the business in the footsteps of his grandfather. Eventually, however, the expansion and extensive development of the retail business took its toll, which forced the family to hand over FCW to Denner.

During the period of ownership by Denner the retail chain of FCW was reduced to only nine (9) stores, but later it added four more to end up with 13 stores. Yet, Denner itself suffered financial difficulties (in 2007 it was taken over by Migros) and could no longer hold to FCW. In September 2006 FCW was passed to a new owner, the French games retailer Ludendo Group, originally a family-owned business. Ludendo operated at the time a chain of 300 stores in five countries [4]. Whilst Ludendo was presiding over FCW the number of stores in Switzerland rose again to 21 by 2017 (representation abroad is no longer mentioned). During that period (2016) the flagship store in Zürich also had to change location off-Bahnhofstrasse (a ~10 minutes walk).

By 2018 Ludendo Group confronted its own financial difficulties and decided to sell FCW to a group of investors (it was part of a recovery plan ordered by court following a debt of €150m [1]). The investors that joined together to take hold of FCW included Marcel Dobler (a Swiss businessman, entrepreneur and politician), Simba-Dickie (a German toy maker), and Yves Burger (appointed CEO). Dobler was involved in efforts to save and keep up FCW since 2010 [2]. Ludendo and Simba-Dickie, based in the toy industry, were the last two companies in control of FCW that “tried to revive the traditional store — without success” [5].

The retail business of Franz Carl Weber was finally taken over in July 2023 by Müller, the major German retailer. Müller has been discreet in face of the media about its intentions and plans for the stores of FCW — until they were unveiled on the ground during 2024. That is, posters started to appear hanging or sticked to windows in the toy stores of FCW in different locations, letting shoppers know of the changes that are about to come, namely that those stores will be converted into the multi-category stores of Müller. Such posters were observed for example in stores in Bern, Basel and Luzern [2]. These posters arrived a year later to the flagship store on Bahnhofplatz 9 in Zürich, shortly before it closed down in June 2025. A store of Müller already resides in that location; another store in their chain that already existed in 2025 was visited in Luzern (Lucerne). In 2024 just 13 stores of FCW were left operating and they were not safe from conversion [5] as realised in the next two years.

The retail business of Müller is anchored in the drugstore domain, but its Swiss large stores are actually multi-category, including departments for a variety of products: drugstore (with limited selection of OTC medications), perfumery, household goods, hosiery, stationary (including greeting cards), pet supplies and more, followed with the addition of a department for toys and games. A troubling issue with Müller is its use of the locations of FCW stores to enable its expansion strategy in Switzerland. The retailer, which is intensively spreading in the country (growing from 69 chain stores in 2022 to 91 in 2024), is apparently taking advantage of the strategic locations of FCW stores secured in city centres to build strongholds for the Müller chain of stores. It seems, as has been suspected by industry experts from start, that Müller was interested in the locations (and real-estate assets attached) more than in the toys’ brand of Franz Carl Weber. Thus, it is likely to turn out that: “Toys, once the heart of FCW, will become a side note in history”. Therefore, the strategy exercised by Müller will predictably lead to the demise of the retail chain of Franz Carl Weber, and probably also the brand name with its famous logo of a rocking horse. [cf. 5]

• The toy stores of Franz Carl Weber were located across Switzerland. A number of locations could be traced through a Google Search and additional sources. Many of the stores in those locations are already obsolete, either replaced by a Müller store in the same site or shut down permanently. They include, for example: Zurich (flagship), Luzern, Bern, Basel (2), Winterthur, Chur, Aarau, Zug, Geneva (one of 2 stores closed in May 2026), Lausanne, Etoy (apparently valid), Matran, Neuchâtel, Thun, Wallisellen.
• The website of FCW [4] is now very modest, with minimal information. No information is provided on operating stores that remain; the online store has been eliminated and the toy museum closed as well.

Much thought, effort and resources seem to have been invested at the time in the design of the replacement store of FCW in Bahnhofplatz to preserve as much as possible the magical and enjoyable experience of shopping in the flagship store. It spread on three floors and offered a nice variety of toys and games, even if not as rich as in the former location. According to the architecture and design firm of Susanne Fritz, there was deliberate focus, in keeping with tradition, on “stimulating children’s imagination and senses through discovery, play and haptic experiences” [6]. The store also incorporated contemporary features and functions of digitalization in retail (e.g., omni-channel services). Walking around in the store was convenient, with broad pathways marked on both sides by product displays or exhibits of different forms. The store also dedicated areas, as ‘shop-in-shop’, to concepts of famous brands such as Lego (in the underground floor), Steiff and Schleich [6]. There was at least one playing area with a table for children. The impression was that FCW largely managed to restore and revive the joy and fun of shopping in this flagship store. One could again find opportunities to stay in for at least an hour, and there was a varied audience of shoppers in different age classes, children and adults. (Suggestion: see the video tour of this FCW toy store, from March 2022, by Hodophile Sumi)

A multi-category store of Müller in the ‘Old Town’ centre of Luzern (visited in 2025) may demonstrate the place dedicated to toys and games in its premises. It is located in-store in a corner area on the first floor, off the main area of the floor (serving cosmetics, accessories etc.). The toy section occupies three or four aisles with shelf displays, plus shelf displays along three walls (two shorter walls and nearly half of the long backwall). It is hard to entitle this section as “Franz Carl Weber” because no standing-out sign related to it by name or logo is recalled (except for the title boards in red reminiscent of FCW). A considerable selection of toys and games could be found there, a bit crowded, but the general feeling was for customers-shoppers to ‘grab-and-run’. Perhaps two or three adult shoppers (mothers?) came by during my visit — not quite a pleasant place for children. The FCW store had a concept of experience, an idea which the approach of Müller practically ‘kills’ it.

Serious doubt may be cast over the commitment of the retailer Müller to preserve the stores and brand of Franz Carl Weber and continue to support and develop its retail enterprise of toys and games. Müller may have misled FCW about keeping the brand, where instead it chose to “run down the brand”, as criticised by Dobler who expressed surprise about the course taken by the German retailer (quoted by Boer, [2] from an interview of Dobler to newspaper NZZ of Zürich). It is unclear what was agreed during negotiations. Still, it remains questionable to what extent Müller is truly interested in marketing toys and games.

The flagship store of Franz Carl Weber in Zürich embodied joy and fun, and it was humming during many hours of the day especially on weekends. It holds foremost for the store on Bahnhofstrasse but also when residing in Bahnhofplatz. The retail chain of FCW delivered on an idea of experience of children engaging, playing and buying toys and games, which was manifest primarily in its flagship store. The growing attraction of younger generations in the 21st century to digital games in their different formats does not cancel a desire to play with physical toys and games, particularly among the younger children. Moreover, youths and young adults look for engaging experiences in brick-and-mortar stores and prefer to combine between the physical and virtual (online, digital) domains. Furthermore, the flagship store of FCW in Zürich, on both locations, will most likely be missed dearly by anyone who shopped there. It is regretful that children in the future will be deprived from this experience.

Ron Ventura, Ph.D. (Marketing)

Sources:

[1] Franz Carl Weber in Wikipedia, Français

[2] “Franz Carl Weber to Disappaer from Swiss High Streets, Media Claim“, Jan de Boer, I am Expat, 28 March 2024

[3] “Swiss Toy Pioneer Dies“, SwissInfo, 5 January 2002

[4] Franz Carl Weber (FCW) official website, À propos de nous (About)

[5] “Traditional Company Franz Carl Weber Slowly Disappears for Good“, blue News (Swiss, CH), 2024 (also the report a year later, 2025, on closure of the store in Bahnhofplatz in Zürich)

[6] “Interior Design Concept Franz Carl Weber“, Susanne Fritz Architekten (Architecture & Design), concerning design of the store in Bahnhofplatz 9, 2016