At the origin of Bongénie, there is the Brunschwig family. After the creation in 1891 of the first “Bon Génie” store in Geneva, Adolphe BRUNSCHWIG opened his first branch in Lausanne in 1903. The acquisition in 1972 of the Zurich-based Maison Grieder allowed the company to have a national presence in Switzerland. It is to Emile BRUNSCHWIG (son of Adolphe), then to his sons Michel and Jean-Jacques that the Bongénie Grieder stores owe their metamorphosis from household stores a century ago into "specialty stores"; stores where you can find not only ready-to-wear for women, men and children, but also accessories, perfume and decoration products. This reference to American department stores was maintained and developed by the fourth generation.