Swatch shareholders reject bid by US investor to join board

ZURICH (Reuters) -Swatch Group shareholders on Wednesday rejected a bid by an American investor to secure a place on the company's board, as the family that has long dominated the watchmaker closed ranks to keep him out.

Steven Wood, founder of U.S. firm GreenWood Investors, is pressing Swatch to focus more on its luxury brands such as Breguet and Blancpain in an attempt to turn around the fortunes of the Swiss company.

To be elected to the board he had to win over the Hayek family, which controls about 44% of Swatch voting rights.

The board had recommended Wood's bid be rejected before the firm's annual general meeting on Wednesday, and the company said 79.2% of shareholders voted against his election.

GreenWood holds about 0.5% of Swatch shares and Wood was seeking to represent so-called bearer shareholders, which have a majority of the share capital, but not of the voting rights.

After the vote, Wood said his bid had received strong support from investors, industry experts and Swatch employees, reinforcing his view that fresh perspectives on the board are essential to boost performance.

In a statement, Wood criticised how the vote was handled, and said he would consider requesting an extraordinary general meeting to ensure the election of a representative of the bearer shareholders is conducted in line with Swiss law.

Swatch did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Proxy advisers Institutional Shareholder Services and Glass Lewis had recommended shareholders vote against the re-election of Swatch's supervisory board, questioning their independence.

Swatch is led by Chief Executive Nick Hayek, while his sister Nayla chairs the company that their father Nicolas helped create in the 1980s and built up into a global success story.

In late 2013, a year in which Swatch made net profits of over 1.6 billion Swiss francs ($1.9 billion), its shares were worth about 600 francs. Last year, profit dropped by 75% to 219 million francs. The stock now trades at less than 150 francs.

Swatch sales also slipped by nearly 15% last year, hit by sagging demand in China, which has also hurt luxury rivals like LVMH and Kering. Still, its Swiss peer and Cartier owner Richemont has retained its market appeal.

Richemont's watch sales ticked up slightly in 2024 and it has seen its shares rise almost a fifth so far this year. Swatch's stock is down by around 10% in 2025 and it is the most shorted on the Euro STOXX 600 index, according to LSEG data.

(Reporting by Dave Graham and Oliver Hirt. Additional reporting by Paul Arnold and Danilo Masoni. Editing by Mark Potter)