Alexander Lagrèze wins Ernst-Blickle Graduate Award for his SCM research on the Swiss luxury watch industry

Supply chain strategies in the luxury industry work differently, says Alexander Lagrèze. “The literature on SCM for luxury goods is limited and finds that many conventional strategic approaches may fail.” In his Master’s thesis, undertaken at the Chair of Logistics Management he analysed the case of a Swiss luxury watch manufacturer in order to gain a better understanding of luxury supply chains.

After completing multiple courses in the fields of operations, manufacturing and strategic SCM at D-MTEC, Lagrèze was hooked. “While some industries, such as the automotive sector, have received much attention in SCM research, luxury goods have not. The luxury goods industry has strong roots in Switzerland and has grown significantly in the last decades; its particular market and supply chain dynamics make it a truly fascinating case from an SCM perspective.”

Lagrèze engaged with industry-specific demand patterns, high production costs and issues associated with product obsolescence. “The aim was to match differing product characteristics with corresponding manufacturing and supply chain strategies.” To this end he employed problem-solving principles of exploratory design science, action research and explanatory SCM strategy research.

Selecting the appropriate theories was not an easy task, as Lagrèze explains. “Given the broad range of existing approaches, it was challenging to uncover the underlying principles, and ultimately to synthesise all inputs into actionable results and recommendations”. What helped most was working on a real business case. “Focusing on aspects for which SCM strategy frameworks add most value to the business helped me to prioritise instead of attempting to address all issues at once.”

The practical aspects of his work involving quantitative analyses of demand patterns along with process mapping and exploratory interviews turned out to be a highlight for Lagrèze. “The most thrilling aspect of the project was the possibility of conducting my diagnostic work directly within the setting of a luxury company, allowing me to bridge SCM theory and real-life managerial practice."

After graduating in 2018, Alexander Lagrèze stayed on at the Swiss watch manufacturer where he works today as an operations project manager. His Master’s thesis still influences his work. “I still benefit from the knowledge I acquired about SCM strategies and problem-solving methods in a business context,” he says.

The D-MTEC team congratulates Alexander Lagrèze and his supervisor Professor Stephan Wagner as well as his associate supervisor Sarbani Bublu Thakur-Weigold at the Chair of Logistics Management on their achievements!