Nadia Swarovski exits family company

All is not shiny and sparkly at Swarovski, the world’s leading purveyor of crystals. Now managed by the 5th generation of founder Daniel Swarovski’s family, Nadia Swarovski is the latest scion to exit as the Austrian company fights back from its covid crisis.

Stepping down from the executive board and operations of the Swarovski Foundation, the company division Nadia Swarovski once headed is becoming less reliant on family and opening its doors to new strategies.

Last year Swarovski announced it would close a quarter of its stores, 750 from a portfolio of 3,000. It was also cutting 6,000 jobs as part of a company-wide restructure.

When sales plummeted in its consumer jewellery business, it was clear the company needed to refine its vision and hone in its many brands divisions, which were confusing to both consumer and corporates. “Swarovski crystals on a 10-euro T-shirt don’t add to our profitability and hurt our brand image,” the company’s ceo Robert Buchbauer, the great-great grandson of the founder, said last year.

With plans to be a more attainable luxury product and tidy up its confusing divisions, not everyone is in agreement: “There are still lots of opportunities to sell billions of high-quality crystal components around the world, and Robert Buchbauer has to come up with ideas on how to gain these customers rather than shutting things down and laying off expert workers,” said Paul Swarovski, another family descendent.

‘We are forced to reimagine and rescale our entire Swarovski business,’ Buchbauer told the AFP last year. While he has the support of shareholders, the family remains resistant. Revenue in 2020 fell from 2.5 billion pounds last year to 1.7billion pounds.

Will the strategy to affordable luxury pay off? The wealthy may not be so interested in crystals, when they can afford diamonds.

Nadia, along with other family members, still own 20 percent of the company, but their power to veto seems to be waning.