![]() ![]() ![]() Instead of developing a plan to sell the companies, Hayek arranged for them to be merged under one roof and called the new enterprise Société Suisse de Microélectronique et d’Horlogerie, or SMH, which later became The Swatch Group in 1998. After carefully examining the state of the two companies, Hayek came to believe they could, in fact, be successful again with some major adjustments to their operations and management. They, alongside a host of others, had lost significant market share to Asian companies like Seiko, which were offering the latest quartz technology in what later became known as the Quartz Crisis, a period that saw a broad decline of the Swiss watch industry. It was in this capacity he was approached by a couple of Swiss banks to explore how two failing Swiss watch companies, ASAUG and SSIH, could best be positioned for sale. Hayek started working as an actuary in Switzerland before starting his own management consulting firm in 1963. In fact, given his background, it might be safe to assume the thought never even crossed his mind. Nicholas Hayek did not grow up dreaming about creating an internationally recognized Swiss watch brand. Perhaps nowhere was this more evident than in the case of Swatch Group Founder Nicholas Hayek. Family-owned empires can begin in the most unlikely places under the most unlikely circumstances. A brilliant visionary with a passion for one particular product, service, or innovation toils away in relative anonymity until his or her hard work pays off in a breakthrough in the market, eventually becoming a household name.Īnd while there are many who fit this description, it’s not the case for everyone. You’ve probably heard it told many times over. There is a similar origin story to a lot of successful family owned business. ![]()
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