The Influential and Discreet Role of Marianne Hayek in the Swatch Group Succession

She was particularly discreet. Few of the senior executives of the Swatch group can claim to have known it well. Marianne Hayek, widow of Nicolas Hayek, founder of the group, died last April at the age of 93. “Her appearances in public were very rare, she had no operational role,” underlines a former senior executive. But it nonetheless played a fundamental role. A tutelary figure in the family, she was a link between the three heirs with such different profiles: Nick Hayek, her son and CEO of the group (69 years old), Nayla Hayek, her daughter (71 years old) and chairman of the board of directors. administration and Marc Alexander Hayek (52 years old), son of Nayla and boss of the luxury branch (Breguet, Blancpain).

Today, it is this trio that holds the keys to the watchmaking and industrial giant with 17 brands and nearly 8 billion euros in turnover. The succession was largely anticipated by the family, who had already settled the rights. Nick Hayek, residing in the canton of Zug, and his sister Nayla, in Dubai, were in reality only lightly taxed, unlike Marc Hayek, living in the canton of Vaud. Marianne Hayek’s shares were “divided into three equal parts and a very binding shareholders’ agreement binds the beneficiaries”, reveals Oliver R. Müller, founder of the consultancy firm LuxeConsult and an expert on this group. “We do not comment on the succession process,” Swatch management simply responded.

The scarcity of transactions is also paid for. The Hayek family nevertheless did everything to build a fortress around their empire. If it only holds 25% of the capital through an inheritance, which, in Swiss business law, allows the creation of a community of heirs, in other words a pool of shareholders, it has, thanks to a system of alliances complex, 40% of voting rights. Very early on, the Hayeks were able to surround themselves with particularly influential “allied” families, such as the Schneider Ammanns (which is the name of the former president of the Swiss Confederation), so that it would be complicated for another group of initiate a hostile takeover bid, even if the valuation at 12.5 billion Swiss francs remains relatively low.

“The group is not in debt, has a cash position of around 2 billion Swiss francs which would help it in the event of an external raid and would have no difficulty in committing Swiss capitalism to the aid of such an emblematic group “, argues Oliver R. Müller. Historically, the vast majority of small shareholders vote as one on the resolutions put forward by the board… and Swatch takes care of its shareholders by remunerating them properly. Above all, the shareholding is very fragmented: the largest holders of shares, like BlackRock or UBS, do not exceed 5%, and for the latter act in an almost patriotic manner.

The Hayek family has never hidden its disenchantment with the market. The heirs act as if the group was not listed: no presentation to investors and only one analyst meeting per year. To the point that “a delisting from the Zurich Stock Exchange is an idea that is close to Nick Hayek’s heart,” writes Business Montres, the leading watchmaking daily. Today, the leadership of Swatch’s CEO appears undisputed. His sister, who runs the Harry Winston jewelry brand, does not intend to take charge, nor does Marc Hayek in charge of the luxury branch.

For the moment, the status quo is the most likely path, and Nick Hayek does not seem in a hurry to initiate a partition of the group, and thus have to pay substantial compensation for the shares of his sister and his nephew. An operation which would force it to sell brands and fuel competition. For now, he is preparing for the future. His son, in his twenties, has only just completed an internship at Tissot (see box above), one of the most profitable in the group. For the Hayeks, taking your time is precious.