Elsa Felicya Gasser-Pfau (6 June 1896 – 25 August 1967) was a Polish-born Swiss economist. After earning a PhD in Zürich in 1921, she settled in the city working as a journalist for the Neue Zürcher Zeitung. From the early 1930s, she became an advisor to Gottlieb Duttweiler, the founder of the Migros retail business. In 1948, she convinced him that the firm should introduce a self-service approach, paving the way for Switzerland's most successful supermarket chain. Today Gasser is considered to be responsible for the introduction of supermarkets in Switzerland.[1][2][3]

Biography

Born in Kraków, Poland, on 6 June 1896, Elsa Felicya Pfau was the daughter of Hersch Ber Pfau. After completing her schooling in Kraków, she moved to Zürich where, after passing the Matura examination in 1915, she studied law and economics at the University of Zurich, earning a doctorate in political science in 1920. In 1924, she married the judge Joseph Beat Gasser.[3]

On graduating, Gasser worked at the Zürich Statistics Office and as a business reporter for the Neue Zürchner Zeitung. From 1932, she worked for Migros where she became Gottlied Duttweiler's chief advisor and later a member of the company's board.[3] It is reported that Duttweiler never made an important decision without first consulting Gasser. When in the mid-1940s she first suggested Migros should open a self-service store, he was nevertheless skeptical but finally agreed. Self-service was introduced in 1946, soon representing two-thirds of the company's sales. Thanks to Gasser, Migros soon became Europe's leading retail company. The company also benefited from Gasser's initiative to integrate the Ex Libris approach to record sales, later contributing to the company's online services.[2]

Elsa Gasser died in Zürich on 25 August 1967.[3]

References

  1. ↑ "Elsa F. Gasser" (in German). City of Zürich. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  2. 1 2 Hugi, Anita (26 February 2004). "Die Migros und die Frauen: F-Budget" (in German). Die Wochenzeitung. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
  3. 1 2 3 4 Degen, Bernard (17 May 2005). "Elsa FelicyaGasser" (in German). Historisches Lexikon der Schweiz. Retrieved 6 July 2021.
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