01.02.22 | 2 min

Switzerland is the No. 1 location for family businesses

Switzerland apparently offers the best economic conditions for private owned family businesses. This is shown by PwC's new study, the «EMEA Private Business Heatmap» (EPB Heatmap): the first location ranking for family businesses conducted by PwC Global.

34 countries were evaluated. In five of the seven categories evaluated, Switzerland is among the top 5 locations, and in two categories it is the leading location. The ranking is based on criteria that can be assigned to the following categories:

• Macroeconomics (such as gross national income per capita, GDP or inflation rate).  
• Private business landscape (such as FDI inflow, number of international companies & investors or bank interest rates)  
• Tax and regulatory environment (such as corporate tax rates, income tax rates or VAT)  
• ESG metrics (environmental, social, corporate governance, such as corruption index, fossil fuel dependence, gender pay gap or CO2 emissions) 
• Public health (such as life expectancy, healthcare spending)  
• Education, skills, talent (such as educational attainment, unemployment rate, or employment rate of working-age population)  
• Technology infrastructure (such as Internet usage, cell phone access, or broadband access)

For the categories «Private business landscape» and «Technology infrastructure», Switzerland ranks as the leader. In the categories «ESG metrics», «Public health» and «Education, skills, talent» – Switzerland is among the top five countries. 

How can Swiss companies benefit from these framework conditions? 
The competitive advantages of Switzerland as a business location are diverse and broad-based, creating a strong, robust business environment that promotes the ease of doing business for all companies in Switzerland. 
This attractiveness has been particularly evident during the COVID pandemic. By the Fall of 2021, the Swiss economy was back to pre-pandemic levels. Unemployment rates were low and purchase order books were well-filled for most industries. 
The public sector also weathered the pandemic well, even while shouldering significant financial support to the economy. In Switzerland, no tax increases have been necessary to cope with the additional costs brought on by the pandemic, unlike other countries in the EU or the USA. The Swiss system is apparently more robust and less crisis-prone than the economic systems of other industrialized countries.

Broad support among the population
As is well known, economic framework conditions are created by politics. Economic policy in Switzerland is pragmatic, business-friendly and solution-oriented. In addition, entrepreneurship enjoys broad support among the population. Swiss voters take care of these unique framework conditions. This is demonstrated time and again in the referendums of direct democracy in which voters prudently and responsibly speak out in favor of a strong Swiss workplace.

What is the situation in the canton of Lucerne?
Within Switzerland, the canton of Lucerne is in a very good position – just like Switzerland is in the international context. As the seventh largest canton in Switzerland (out of 26), Lucerne offers very attractive and balanced economic conditions, just like Switzerland. «A good location for private companies is not a question of size, but of orientation» says Norbert Kühnis of PwC. This is true not only for Switzerland, but also for the canton of Lucerne. Lucerne internalizes the values and virtues of Switzerland and offers some of the best framework conditions for family businesses. As we like to say, Switzerland offers a great location package, and the canton of Lucerne really knows how to deliver it.

EMEA Private Business Heatmap