Lech Liftco's Merge

A common vision for optimized collaboration between the various companies in the ski area in Lech – that was the idea of ​​the “Mountain Railways Lech Cooperation Project”, which was started in January 2022 under the project management of grischconsulta. The result of this work is the merger of the two largest ski lift companies in July 2023. This merger marks a significant milestone in the further development of the ski and mountain experience in the “cradle of snow sports”.

STRATEGIC CONSIDERATIONS AS A COMMON STARTING POINT

In January 2022, grischconsulta was commissioned to manage the “BB Lech cooperation project”. The project brought together six ski lift companies, some of which were linked to one another through shareholdings. Under the leadership of Roland Zegg, Senior Advisor grischconsulta, the companies began a carefully moderated process that was intended to combine operational and strategic aspects.

Work was carried out on two levels. In the operational management committee, the content for the strategic steering committee was developed together with authorized representatives and the managing directors of the companies. This approach enables efficient teamwork by bringing together and combining operational competencies with a strategic perspective.

The result of the work of the two working groups is a joint strategy paper, which includes a vision for the future, a mission statement and a business plan with an investment plan and forms the basis for the new company. The strategic measures took into account the modernization and expansion of the offering in summer and winter, as well as central topics such as marketing and communication, digitalization, sustainability and the redesign of the corporate structure and leadership.

STRUCTURE OPTIMIZATION THROUGH FUSION

The representatives of the companies involved largely agreed that further development of the mountain experience in summer and winter could be better achieved with an optimized corporate structure. This insight laid the foundation for the second phase of the project and was the beginning of merger considerations.

Concrete considerations for merging the companies began in January 2023. In this phase, the two largest companies took part, Skilifte Lech Ing. Bildstein GmbH and Rüfikopf Seilbahn AG, as well as three other affiliated companies (a smaller company decided against participating in the process).

The merger was pushed forward under the leadership of the strategic committee and project management from grischconsulta as well as other experts. For the merger of the companies, the tax aspects were clarified, statutes for the new company were drawn up, exchange ratios were calculated and the new strategic and operational management was defined. To determine the exchange ratio, a careful consideration of the two largest companies and their assets (shareholdings, real estate, etc.) was required. In collaboration with the managing directors, grischconsulta created so-called stand-alone budget calculations for the two companies and their affiliated companies, which served as the basis for the valuation of the companies by an independent, specialized company.

A NEW LEADERSHIP STRUCTURE FOR THE NEW COMPANY

The structure of the management and the interaction with the new supervisory board of the company were defined in the STA. Shareholders and associates had to be informed early on about the general meetings of the two companies to be merged.

grischconsulta was also commissioned to search for a new CEO/board member for the merged company. In a multi-stage and objective process, Klaus Nussbaumer, an experienced “mountain railway operator”, was recruited for the demanding management role at the new Lech Bergbahnen AG.

With the merger, a significant milestone was reached in Lech. Lech Bergbahnen AG is the destination's most important service provider on the mountain. As a merged company, the focus on further developing the skiing and mountain experience in the “cradle of snow sports” can now be pushed forward even more specifically.