Greater Zurich Area welcomes new foundation members

The “Greater Zurich Area Standortmarketing” foundation promotes the Zurich economic area abroad. The location marketing organization is a public-private partnership comprising ten public members – including eight cantons and the city of Zurich and Winterthur region – and 27 partners from the private economy.  

Now, the foundation has expanded with the addition of LafargeHolcim and the University of Zurich. LafargeHolcim is a global construction materials group headquartered in Switzerland, where together with its subsidiary Holcim (Schweiz) AG it employs a total of 1,800 people.

“As the biggest domestic cement producer and provider of innovative systems and solutions, LafargeHolcim and Holcim Schweiz are always working to build Switzerland’s future – a goal that connects us with GZA,” commented Kaspar E.A. Wenger, president of the board of Holcim (Schweiz) AG, who will represent LafargeHolcim on the Greater Zurich Area Standortmarketing board.

Also joining the foundation is the University of Zurich. With more than 26,000 students and seven faculties, the biggest university in Switzerland will primarily help attract innovative, knowledgeable companies to settle in Zurich. In turn, the University of Zurich will benefit from cooperation with foreign companies and Greater Zurich Area AG’s large international network  

Last year, members from the private economy and science contributed around a quarter of the foundation’s budget to support GZA’s work. Compared to other European location marketing agencies, this represents a very high proportion and gives GZA a high level of credibility with companies.