Can an empire be built on a small plastic quartz watch? Yes, when your name is Nicolas Hayek and you are a visionary, halfway between a talented businessman and a brilliant purveyor of new ideas. By creating the Swatch, he laid the foundations for an immensely prosperous company. And, in doing so, saved the Swiss watch industry. So let’s discover this watch industry magnate.

Nicolas Hayek: when the Entrepreneur Becomes an Artist

Like that of computing or the automotive industry, the history of modern watchmaking is populated by both brilliant inventors and ingenious businessmen. These two characteristics are not contradictory, as it sometimes happens that the creation of an innovative timepiece requires the assistance of the one who best knows how to sell it. The precedent of the complex relationship, in the field of technology, between the two founding Steves of Apple – Wozniak the engineer and Jobs the marketer – proves that history sometimes remembers the visionary more than the technician.

Nicolas Hayek is one of those visionaries history does not forget. He was more of a Jobs than a Wozniak, the epicenter of an earthquake that profoundly disrupted the Swiss watch industry. Born Lebanese – in 1928 – and later naturalized Swiss, Hayek only encountered the “tick-tock” of watches late in life. Anecdotes about major watchmakers who spent their childhood dismantling chronographs were not for him. Hayek was a man of documents rather than dials. After studying mathematics and physics in France, he landed a job at a reinsurance company in Zurich: it was his first contact with a Switzerland he would never leave.


It was there, in 1949, that he made two fundamental encounters: with his wife, and with his destiny. His wife’s family owned a small foundry, specializing in the manufacture of brake shoes for train wagons. When health problems forced the father to step back, Nicolas Hayek was offered to take over the management of the company, which he did boldly, convinced that the right marketing strategy builds success. His results proved him right: the foundry became very popular and developed rapidly. If every human being on this planet has their own unique talent, Hayek now knew his own: he is the one who makes things work.

Subsequently, he would often say that an entrepreneur is also an artist. This is because creating a business is as demanding as creating a work of art: it is a process that requires an enormous amount of work, a lot of technical skill, and a good dose of talent.

The Tactics of a Man who Loved the “Tick-Tock” of Watches

Following his ventures in the foundry, Nicolas Hayek launched his own company: Hayek Engineering Inc., a consulting firm based in Zurich. Soon, 250 consultants were working in numerous fields, from automotive manufacturing to Swiss administration (particularly that of the city of Zurich).

It was through his company that he encountered the world of watches. At the dawn of the 80s, Hayek was commissioned for a rather unusual audit: to delve into the Swiss watchmaking industry. The leading watchmaking nation had been in turmoil since Japan decided to transform the traditional relationship between people and watches by creating quartz timepieces that were cheaper and thus more accessible. The world was changing, and so was its economy. However, the Swiss industry had buried its head in the sand, refusing to acknowledge these developments – this was Hayek’s harsh assessment. But an assessment that reflected reality: the market share of high-end Swiss watches had plummeted from 50% to 15% in just five years.

As a keen observer of the mechanisms underlying the economic world, Hayek took matters into his own hands. In 1983, he presided over the merger of SSIH and ASUAG, two Swiss watchmaking companies on the verge of collapse. He named this new structure Société Suisse de Microélectronique et d’Horlogerie (SMH) and launched his own revolution: the first quartz watch manufactured in the land of Haute Horlogerie. The Swatch was not a storm: it was a hurricane. Hayek changed the world. And he did it with a modest piece of plastic sold for 50 Swiss francs.

One must try to imagine Nicolas Hayek’s thought process: the Japanese were flooding the market with simpler, easier-to-manufacture watches that were cheap to produce, giving an entire population the opportunity to acquire one of these formerly expensive objects. But the Japanese fell short on two points: design and mechanism quality. Hayek’s idea was based on this observation. He wanted to design watches of very good quality, durable, and attractive, but watches that would be like fashion accessories, scarves, or hats: easily changeable. This is the principle of the “second watch,” or “Second Watch.” Contracted, the two terms give “Swatch.”

So Swatch it is!

The Swatch was an immense success; the visionary became the guru of Swiss watchmaking. The industry’s demise was averted. Hayek leveraged his growing power to acquire most of the big names in luxury watchmaking: Blancpain, Breguet, Jaquet Droz, Glashütte Original, Léon Hatot. In parallel, brands like Tiffany’s and Calvin Klein entrusted him with the reins of their watch lines, eager to glean some of his talent.

It would take a few more years for SMH to become Swatch Group, in 1998. What better way for Hayek to pay tribute to the creation that propelled him to the head of the largest consortium of watch brands? Since 1984 and the official launch of the Swatch, the group has sold no less than 400 million units of the small watch.

However, Nicolas Hayek’s ambition did not stop there. The Swatch is a dual object, combining both the present and the future. While democratizing the watch as an object, allowing everyone to wear one on their wrist, he also designed an accessory that serves as a gateway to the high-end market. Hayek’s gamble was this: to love the Swatch today might mean falling in love, tomorrow, with a luxury timepiece… and why not a model belonging to one of the group’s brands?

Hayek did not apply his vision only to watchmaking. Regularly sought for his advice on the economy (he was awarded an honorary doctorate by the universities of Neuchâtel and Bologna), he is also behind the Smart, that small car whose name comes from the contraction of three terms: Swatch, Mercedes, and Art. Here again, Hayek, far ahead of his time, anticipated modern mobility needs by a good decade: his vehicle was electric and designed for urban use. A vision that, at the time, so frightened car manufacturers that they did not dare to see his project through. (Take a look at this page to learn more about the history of the Smart.)

When Nicolas Hayek passed away in 2010, the Swatch Group was worth 5.4 billion Swiss francs, employed 24,000 people, operated 160 factories, and encompassed 19 brands. Engineers design innovative and valuable mechanisms. Visionaries, however, build empires.

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Can we build an empire based on a small plastic quartz watch? Yes, when we are Nicolas Hayek and we are a visionary, halfway between the talented businessman and the great provider of new ideas. By creating Swatch, he laid the foundation for an immensely successful business. And saved, by the way, the Swiss watch industry. So let’s go discover this industrial watchmaker.

Nicolas Hayek: when the Entrepreneur Becomes an Artist

Like the computer or the automobile, the history of modern watchmaking is inhabited by both brilliant inventors and businessmen of genius. Two characters that have nothing contradictory, because it sometimes happens that the manufacture of an innovative timepiece requires the assistance of one who knows best how to sell it. The precedent of the complex relationship, in the field of technology, between the two founding Steve Apple – Wozniak the engineer and Jobs marketer – proves that history sometimes retains the visionary rather than the technician.

Nicolas Hayek is one of those visionaries that history does not forget. It will have been Jobs rather than Wozniak, the epicenter of an earthquake that deeply shake up the Swiss watch industry. Born Lebanese – in 1928 – and later nationalized by the Swiss, Hayek did not meet the “ticking” of watches until late. Anecdotes about these major watchmakers who spent their childhood dismantling chronographs, very little for him. Hayek is a man of documents rather than dials. After studying mathematics and physics in France, he landed a job in a reinsurance company in Zurich: this is his first contact with a Swiss he will not leave.

It was there, in 1949, that he made two fundamental encounters: with his wife, and with his destiny. His wife’s family owns a small smelter, specializing in the manufacture of brake shoes for train wagons. When health problems force the father to distance himself, Nicolas Hayek is proposed to ensure the regency of the company, which he does boldly, convinced that it is the right marketing strategy that builds a success. His results prove him right: the foundry is becoming very popular and is growing rapidly. If every human being on this planet has his own talent, Hayek now knows his own: he is the one who makes things work.

Afterwards, he will often say that the entrepreneur is also an artist. The creation of a business is as demanding as that of a work of art: it is a process that requires a lot of work, a lot of technique, and a good dose of talent.

The Tactics of a Man who Loved the “Ticking” of Watches

Following his adventures in the foundry, Nicolas Hayek launched his own company: Hayek Engineering Inc., a consulting company based in Zurich. There are soon 250 consultants in many fields, from car manufacturing to the Swiss administration (in particular the city of Zurich).

It is through his company that he crosses the road of watches. At the dawn of the 80s, Hayek is asked for a special audit: it is about diving into the Swiss watch industry. The biggest watchmaking country has been in turmoil ever since Japan set out to transform the traditional relationship between men and watches, creating quartz timepieces that are cheaper and therefore more accessible. The world is then changing and its economy with. Except that the Swiss industry has veiled the face, refusing to take into account these developments – this is the record, harsh, that Hayek. But a balance sheet that reflects the reality: by 50%, the market share of the high-end Swiss watch dropped to 15% in just five years.

Well acquainted with the mechanisms that underlie the economic world, Hayek takes matters into his own hands. In 1983, he chaired the merger of SSIH and ASUAG, two Swiss watchmaking companies close to the collapse. It names this new structure Swiss Society of Microelectronics and Watchmaking (SMH) and launches its own revolution: the first quartz watch manufactured in the country of Haute Horlogerie. The Swatch is not a storm: it’s a hurricane. Hayek changes the world. And he does it with a modest piece of plastic sold for 50 Swiss francs.

We must try to imagine the process of thinking of Nicolas Hayek: the Japanese flood the market with simpler watches, easier to manufacture, which are cheap to produce, and give the opportunity to a whole population to buy the one of those objects formerly too expensive. But the Japanese fish on two points: the design and the quality of the mechanism. Hayek’s idea is based on this observation. He wants to design watches of very good quality, perennial, pretty, but watches that are like fashion accessories, scarves or hats: that can be changed easily. This is the principle of the “second watch”, or “second watch”. Contracted, both terms give “Swatch”.

So Swatch it!

The Swatch is a huge success; the visionary has become guru of the Swiss watch. The sinking of the industry is avoided. Hayek takes advantage of his growing power to get his hands on most of the big names in luxury watchmaking: Blancpain, Breguet, Jaquet Droz, Glasshute Originals, Leon Hatot. In parallel, the brands Tiffany’s and Calvin Klein entrusted him with the reins of their watch lines, eager to glean a little of the talent of the character.

It will take a few more years for the SMH to become Swatch Group in 1998. What better way for Hayek to pay tribute to the creation that propelled him to lead the largest consortium of watch brands? Since 1984 and the official launch of the Swatch, the group has sold no less than 400 million copies of the small watch.

However, Nicolas Hayek’s ambition did not stop there. The Swatch is a double object, conjugated both in the present and in the future. While having democratized the object-watch, allowing everyone to wear one on the wrist, he also designed an accessory that serves as a gateway to the high end. Hayek’s bet was: to love Swatch today is perhaps to fall in love, tomorrow, with a luxury timepiece … and why not a model belonging to one of the brands of the group?

His vision of things, Hayek did not apply it to watchmaking. Regularly solicited for his advice on the economy (he was elevated to the rank of doctor honoris causa by the universities of Neuchâtel and Bologna), he is also at the origin of the Smart, this little car whose name comes from the contraction of three terms: Swatch, Mercedes and Art. Here again, Hayek, well ahead of his time, was a decade ahead of modern mobility needs: his vehicle was electric and designed for urban use. A vision that, at the time, so frightened the car manufacturers that they did not dare go to the end of his project. (Take a look at this page to learn more about the history of the Smart.)