From Alpine Heritage to Future Innovation: The Heierling Family at Global Business Week 2026 in Davos

The fourth and fifth generations of one of Switzerland’s most remarkable family businesses shared their story at the Global Business Week's World Business Forum

Davos is internationally recognised as a place where leaders discuss the future. Yet some of the most powerful visions of the future are built upon traditions that have survived for generations.

At the World Business Forum held as part of Global Business Week 2026 in Davos, Hans-Martin Heierling and his son, Fadri Noel Heierling, delivered an inspiring presentation about family entrepreneurship, succession, craftsmanship and innovation.

Their appearance represented a particularly meaningful moment for everyone involved in a family business: a father and son standing together as the fourth and fifth generations of a distinguished Swiss entrepreneurial family.

Family businesses are not created for one financial quarter or even one generation. Their greatest strength lies in their ability to transfer knowledge, professional standards, values and responsibility from parents to children.

During the presentation, Hans-Martin Heierling looked at his son with unmistakable enthusiasm, hope and pride. Fadri represents the next generation and is helping to guide the heritage dimension of the family enterprise.

This was more than a presentation about ski boots. It was a living example of succession in action.

The moment illustrated one of the most important principles of sustainable family entrepreneurship: the next generation should not simply inherit a company. It must understand its history, earn the trust of the family and employees, and discover how to reinterpret the business for a changing world.

A Swiss Name Behind Alpine Skiing

Many people may go skiing every winter without knowing the story behind the specialist footwear they wear on the slopes.

The Heierling family name is associated with more than a century of Swiss alpine craftsmanship. The House of Pioneers describes Heierling as the world’s oldest ski-boot maker, combining traditional expertise with contemporary design, precision engineering and ecological innovation. (h-o-p.ch)

This heritage reflects the qualities for which Swiss manufacturing is respected worldwide: accuracy, reliability, discretion, attention to detail and an uncompromising commitment to quality.

However, preserving tradition does not mean resisting change. The Heierling story demonstrates that a heritage company can honour its identity while continuing to experiment with new technologies, materials and business models.

Hans-Martin Heierling, Owner and CEO of Heierling and Co-Founder of the House of Pioneers, represents the fourth generation of the family business.

As a sports innovator, he has worked to revive the company’s historic expertise through advanced design and engineering. He oversaw the development of the Heierling H1 and has also been involved in pioneering fully recyclable ski boots in cooperation with EMS. His approach brings together sports performance, luxury, sustainability and Swiss manufacturing excellence. (h-o-p.ch)

His leadership offers an important lesson for other family-business owners: heritage has value only when it remains relevant.

Instead of treating history as something that belongs in a museum, Hans-Martin Heierling has transformed it into a foundation for future innovation.

Fadri Noel Heierling, Heritage Leader and one of the initiators of Heierling Remix 1885, represents the fifth generation of the family legacy.

Educated at Lyceum Alpinum Zuoz and pursuing further studies in business and leadership, Fadri is helping to translate more than a century of alpine expertise into a contemporary business language.

His work connects historic craftsmanship with modern design, precision engineering and circular systems. Within the House of Pioneers, he is contributing to the next chapter of the brand through a long-term philosophy based on responsibility, discretion and substance. (h-o-p.ch)

Fadri’s role demonstrates that the younger generation does not have to choose between respecting tradition and creating something new. The strongest successors are often those who understand the original values of the business while possessing the courage to reinterpret them.

Innovation Across Generations

The Heierling presentation became one of the most memorable family-business stories presented during Global Business Week 2026.

The father brings decades of knowledge, technical expertise and responsibility for protecting the family name. The son brings a new generational perspective, new educational experience and a different understanding of design, sustainability and modern markets.

Together, they demonstrate how generational cooperation can become a powerful source of innovation.

The future of a family company does not depend solely on whether the next generation is willing to join. It depends on whether different generations can listen to one another, share authority, preserve mutual respect and create a common vision.

A Powerful Example for the World Business Forum

Global Business Week 2026 was held in Davos as an international platform for entrepreneurs, investors, innovators, corporate leaders and family-business owners. Its programme brought together representatives of more than 40 countries, while the World Business Forum served as the central platform for strategic dialogue, international partnerships and business development. (Davos Klosters)

The wider programme demonstrated the extraordinary diversity of modern entrepreneurship, presenting ideas and innovations from 27 industries—from information technology, artificial intelligence and finance to education, manufacturing, agriculture, retail, healthcare and the creative economy. (100News)

Against this global background, the Heierling family story carried a particularly important message: innovation does not always begin with abandoning the past. Sometimes it begins with understanding the past deeply enough to build the next generation of products, companies and leaders.

Family Business as a Bridge Between Past and Future

The meeting with Hans-Martin and Fadri Noel Heierling in Davos reminded participants that a successful family enterprise is more than an economic organisation.

It is a bridge between generations.

It carries the memory of previous achievements, the responsibility of present leadership and the ambitions of those who will shape the company’s future.

The Heierling family’s presentation at Global Business Week showed how Swiss heritage, alpine culture, technological innovation and responsible entrepreneurship can be united within one extraordinary family story.

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