Two awards for long-term Swiss entrepreneurship

Successfully managing the succession of a company for over 100 years is extraordinary in itself. This is all the more remarkable given that only around two percent of Swiss companies founded 100 years ago achieve this. Such outstanding entrepreneurial achievements are honored by the Swiss umbrella organization for business succession - CHDU with the «Phoenix Award for long-term Swiss entrepreneurship.» On December 9, 2025, two Swiss SMEs received this follow-up award: The A. Baggenstos & Co. Inc. in Wallisellen in the category «SMEs 100 years» and the Heberlein Technology Inc. in Wattwil in the category «SME 100+ years.» With their unique histories and sustainability, combining innovative strength, team performance, and entrepreneurial spirit, both companies impressed the Phoenix Award jury and jury advisory board.

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 Renaissance Investment Foundation. In his laudatory speech, he referred to the pursuit of freedom as a source of visionary and innovative power – the pioneers who transformed Baggenstos from a typewriter repair shop into one of the leading IT service providers for Swiss SMEs. These values were firmly anchored in the company and its culture by Thomas Baggenstos and have been a key factor in its success ever since. «Baggenstos was always ahead of its time, yet built on sustainable values. (...) For 100 years, A. Baggenstos & Co. AG has shown that long-term entrepreneurship is not old-fashioned, but more relevant than ever. I would like to congratulate you on your well-deserved Phoenix Award 2025,» Camenzind concluded his laudatory speech. Personal congratulations were also conveyed by Anita Martinecz Fehér, Project Manager for Entrepreneurship & ICT at the Office for Economic Affairs of the Canton of Zurich, the Mayor of Wallisellen, Peter Spörri, and Simone Haberli, Head of SME Policy at SECO. «We are thrilled and feel very honored by this award, which we see as recognition for the entire team. Above all else, it is the people who make up A. Baggenstos & Co. AG. In this sense, the Phoenix Award is a wonderful motivation for our next joint endeavors,‘ said Thomas Baggenstos in his acceptance speech.

A «technological gem» of the textile industry and its return to Switzerland

With its eventful 190-year history of business and succession, which has seen rise, fall, and new beginnings, Heberlein Technology AG impressed the Phoenix Award jury and jury advisory board. In his laudatory speech, Thomas Berner, member of the Phoenix Award jury advisory board and editor-in-chief of the SME trade magazine «Organisator,» summed up 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 since ‘crashed’ and is now presenting itself as a solid SME. Thanks to a clever succession plan, it has been possible to keep an industrial gem in Switzerland as a place of work. Added to this is the entrepreneurial drive of Daniel Lippuner, Martin Zürcher, and the entire management team, who have transferred their professional pride, acquired through many years of industry expertise, to their employees. This is an impressive example of what it means for a company to rise like a phoenix from the ashes. (...).»

Thomas Berner presented the award certificate in the «SME 100+ years» category together with CHDU Vice President Carla Kaufmann to Daniel Lippuner, Chairman of the Board of Directors, and Martin Zürcher, CEO of Heberlein Technology AG. Daniel Müller, Head of Location Promotion for the Canton of St. Gallen, and Alois Gunzenweiler, Mayor of Wattwil, also offered their congratulations on this award. «The Phoenix Award is the perfect way to round off our anniversary year and, at the same time, a great honor for our team. It confirms our commitment to continuing 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 write our history successfully,» says Daniel Lippuner, summing up his delight at receiving the award.

Recognizing long-term entrepreneurship

The Phoenix Award for Long-Term Swiss Entrepreneurship has been presented annually since 2020. It honors Swiss SMEs that have mastered succession planning for at least a century, reinvented themselves in some cases, and sometimes had to rise like a phoenix from the ashes. Until now, the focus has been on Swiss SMEs that are exactly 100 years old in the respective year or have been entered in the Swiss commercial register for 100 years. Starting this year, companies celebrating a «round» anniversary between 100 and 200 years are included in order to actively spread the inspiration of extraordinary corporate and succession histories even more widely. A jury of experts and an advisory board with representatives from academia, entrepreneurship, and the media select the winners from these companies in a multi-stage process.

Source: SSwiss Umbrella Organization for Business Succession – CHDU