Nicolas Hayek
19 February 1928 – 28 June 2010
Nicolas Hayek (1928–2010) was a Lebanese-born Swiss businessman who co-founded the Swatch Group and is credited with reviving the Swiss watch industry in the 1980s. After his consultancy drew up the plan that merged the ailing ASUAG and SSIH groups, he led the combined company as chief executive and later chairman until his death.
Lived at the same time
Well-documented people whose lives overlapped with Nicolas Hayek.
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- Ennio Morricone (1928–2020) Overlapped 82 years →
Life events
Born Nicolas George Hayek to a Lebanese-American family of Greek Orthodox background.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgMoved to Switzerland, where he married Marianne Mezger and later took Swiss citizenship.
Established a management consultancy that advised industrial companies across Europe.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgCommissioned by Swiss banks, his consultancy proposed combining the two loss-making watch groups into one company, later renamed the Swatch Group.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgThe inexpensive plastic quartz watch developed under his strategy became a mass-market success and the basis of the group's recovery.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgLed an investor group that took control of the merged company and became its CEO and chairman.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgFormed a joint venture with Daimler-Benz to build a small city car; Hayek later withdrew from the project.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgNick Hayek Jr. became CEO while Nicolas Hayek remained chairman of the board.
Source: en.wikipedia.orgDied of heart failure at the Swatch Group headquarters at the age of 82.
Source: en.wikipedia.org