Lectra: the buoyant evolution of a global leader

Based in France and employing 1500 people, Lectra raised its prices by 5% per year between 2007 and 2012, while its competitors lowered theirs, and yet still managed to increase its market share. What an adventure! Founded in 1973 by two brilliant engineers with very little management experience as Lectra Systèmes, it almost went out of business in 1990. The company’s finances were in disarray and the shareholders were in disagreement, but one of them, an investor from the beginning – the Compagnie Financière du Scribe, founded by André Harari – had always believed in the company’s potential. André and Daniel Harari therefore decided to recapitalize the company and took over its leadership. The company subsequently bounced back quickly, and then faced the 2001 crisis, the abolition of Chinese textile quotas in 2005 and the 2009 crisis. Steered by a management team who knew what they were doing, and relying on innovation and solid teams, Lectra emerged even stronger from these crises.