Breguet Names Gregory Kissling New CEO; Lionel a Marca Heads to Blancpain
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PARIS — Executive gears are in motion at the Swatch Group, with a series of management changes at its high-end brands.
From Oct. 1, Breguet’s new chief executive officer will be Gregory Kissling, the current vice president of product at its stablemate Omega.
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He replaces Lionel a Marca, who will become vice-president operations of Blancpain and head of manufacturing for Swatch Group Prestige Brands, which also include Harry Winston, Glashütte Original, Jaquet Droz and Léon Hatot.
Blancpain’s CEO is Marc A. Hayek, grandson of the group’s late founder Nicolas G. Hayek and nephew of current CEO Nick Hayek Jr. He took up the position in 2002.
A member of the Swatch Group’s management board since 2005, the younger Hayek was elected a member of its board of directors at this year’s annual general meeting in May.
He holds a number of positions in the company, including the presidence of the Breguet, Blancpain, Glashütte Original and Jaquet Droz brands, and is also a member of the board of directors of Swiss clean energy start-up Belenos Clean Power.
These executive changes come as the Swiss watch industry faces a challenging year, with exports down 3.3 percent year-on-year in the first six months of 2024. Swatch Group said its net profit tumbled 70 percent in the period, dragged down by China’s consumption slowdown.
Several media outlets have since reported that a number of watchmakers have been furloughing staff due to the slowdown in demand.
Swatch Group also made headlines in July when the Hayek family — which also includes group chairwoman and Harry Winston CEO Nayla Hayek — bought more than 30 million Swiss francs (or $35.4 million) in registered shares in the group, reviving speculation that the company, currently listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange, may go private.
The management shake-up also reads as a further step in a generational changing of the guard for the Swiss watchmaking group.
In June, it announced that Damiano Casafina, CEO of production company ETA, and Tissot CEO Sylvain Dolla were elected to its executive group management board, while another member, Peter Steiger, chief controlling officer and a company veteran of 35 years, would retire.
The group also added three new members to its extended group management board: Roland von Keith, CEO of the German watchmaker Glashütte Original; Stephen De Lucchi, country manager of Swatch Group Hong Kong SAR and Swatch Group Macao SAR; and the Swatch brand’s CEO Alain Villard.