Swarovski to select next CEO from outside of founding family

The Swarovski family, founder and owner of the eponymous Austrian crystal manufacturer, has decided to withdraw from the group’s management. On Thursday last week, Swarovski announced that “external” executives will be selected to lead the group from the start of 2022.

“By recruiting profiles with different skills, the owner families hope to generate new momentum in order to continue the group's long-term realignment,” said Swarovski.

Robert Buchbauer, the Austrian group's CEO, and Mathias Margreiter, its CFO, both members of the Swarovski family, have announced their resignation.

The Covid-19 crisis has severely impacted the Tyrolean group, founded more than 120 years ago, a producer of jewellery and crystalware for the fashion and interior design sectors.

Swarovski has closed down 3,000 of its 9,000 stores worldwide, and has cut more than 1,000 jobs at its headquarters in Wattens. Lately, there have been rumours of alleged disagreements among the group's owners, who seem unable to identify an effective business strategy.