Successfully managing the succession of a company over 100 years or more is exceptional in itself. All the more so in view of the fact that only around two percent of Swiss companies founded 100 years ago succeed in doing so. The Swiss umbrella organization for corporate succession - CHDU - honors such outstanding entrepreneurial achievements with the "Phoenix Award for long-term Swiss entrepreneurship". On December 9, 2025, two Swiss SMEs received this succession award: A. Baggenstos & Co. AG in Wallisellen in the "SME 100 years" category and Heberlein Technology AG in Wattwil in the "SME 100 plus years" category. Both companies won over the Phoenix Award jury and jury advisory board with their unique history and succession capability, which combines innovative strength, team performance and entrepreneurial action.

The "Phoenix Award for Long-Term Swiss Entrepreneurship" has been presented annually since 2020. The award recognizes Swiss SMEs that have mastered their succession planning for at least a century, some of which have had to reinvent themselves and some of which have had to rise anew like a "phoenix from the ashes". Until now, the focus has been on Swiss SMEs that are exactly 100 years old in a given year or have been entered in the Swiss commercial register for 100 years. Since this year, companies celebrating a "round" anniversary between 100 and 200 years have been included in order to actively spread the inspiration of exceptional company and succession histories even further. An expert jury and a jury advisory board with representatives from science, entrepreneurship and the media select the winners from these companies in a multi-stage process.

From typewriter service to leading provider of cloud and managed IT services

The Phoenix Award certificate in the "SME 100 years" category for A. Baggenstos & Co. AG was accepted by Thomas Baggenstos, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Renato Petrillo, CEO, on behalf of the entire team. It was presented by Hans Jürg Domenig, President of the CHDU, and laudator Andreas Camenzind, member of the Phoenix Award jury and Investment Director at the Renaissance Investment Foundation. In his laudatory speech, he referred to the pursuit of freedom as a source of visionary and innovative strength - the pioneers who have turned Baggenstos from a typewriter repair workshop into one of the leading IT service providers for Swiss SMEs. Thomas Baggenstos firmly anchored these in the company and its culture and they have been a key success factor ever since.

"Baggenstos was always ahead of his time and yet built on sustainable values. (...) A. Baggenstos & Co. AG has shown for 100 years that long-term entrepreneurship is not old-fashioned, but more relevant than ever. I would like to congratulate the company on receiving the well-deserved Phoenix Award 2025," concluded Camenzind in his laudatory speech.
Anita Martinecz Fehér, Project Manager Entrepreneurship & ICT at the Office for Economy of the Canton of Zurich, the Mayor of Wallisellen, Peter Spörri, and Simone Haberli, Head of SME Policy at SECO, also offered their personal congratulations.
"We are thrilled and feel very honored by this award, which we see as recognition for the entire team. Above all, it is the people who make us, A. Baggenstos & Co. AG, are what make us who we are. In this sense, the 'Phoenix Award' is a wonderful motivation for our next joint deeds," said Thomas Baggenstos.

A "technology pearl" of the textile industry and its way back to Switzerland

Heberlein Technology AG impressed the Phoenix Award jury and jury advisory board with its eventful 190-year company and succession history, which has seen its rise, fall and new beginning. In his laudatory speech, Thomas Berner, member of the Phoenix Award jury advisory board and editor-in-chief of the SME trade magazine "Organisator", summarized the decision of the jury and jury advisory board with these words: "We see Heberlein Technology AG as a prime example of a company that has developed from a family business into a global corporation, has 'crashed' in the meantime and now presents itself as a solid SME. Thanks to a clever succession plan, it has succeeded in retaining an 'industrial pearl' in the Swiss workplace. Added to this is the entrepreneurial 'drive' of Daniel Lippuner, Martin Zürcher and the entire management team, who transfer the professional pride they have acquired through many years of industry expertise to their employees. This is an impressive demonstration of what it means to be able to rise anew as a company like a 'phoenix from the ashes'. (...)."

Thomas Berner, together with CHDU Vice President Carla Kaufmann, presented the award certificate in the "SMEs 100 plus years" category to Daniel Lippuner, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Martin Zürcher, CEO of Heberlein Technology AG. Daniel Müller, Head of Location Promotion of the Canton of St. Gallen, and Alois Gunzenweiler, Mayor of Wattwil, also congratulated the award winners.

"The Phoenix Award is the perfect way to round off our anniversary year and is also a great accolade for our team. It confirms that we will continue to give top priority to research and development, which are crucial to our leading role in the international textile industry. So that we can continue to successfully write our story," says Daniel Lippuner, summing up his delight at receiving the follow-up award.