IGDS is the largest Association for Department Stores worldwide, providing support to more than 30 leading Department Stores in the world. The Group was founded in 1946 in Switzerland by eight European Department Stores, willing to develop common synergies. IGDS is a non-profit organization and the co-operation between members is based on voluntary partnership, mutual interest and mutual trust. This co-operation works at international level and Simon Susman, Non-Executive Chairman of Woolworths, South Africa, and IGDS President found the right words to describe it: "IGDS gives a real opportunity to the leaders of many different kinds of retailers around the world to share learnings and to take lessons back to their own businesses: Mumbai learns from Sweden, which learns from Thailand, which learns from South Africa and so on, around our circle of associates"