Maëlle Hamma: As head of the Ernster bookshops, which you have expanded considerably, what is your secret?

: I've always believed in learning, especially from others, and at any age. That wasn't always the case, especially in my youth, but I learned to listen. I'm more of a go-getter, like a stuntman [laughs]. I lost two ligaments in my biceps while snowboarding and mountain biking, because I don't usually take the easiest routes. I've always had this desire to develop things, this entrepreneurial streak. As a student, when I was working in the bookshop, I already wanted to change things.

I quickly learnt that people can be very resistant to change and the unknown. But that's where we make progress. The recent American election shows that. It takes us into uncharted territory. We must remain humble in the face of the fact that the Americans have spoken, and adapt to see what opportunities this may represent for the Old Continent. In any case, it's an opportunity to think about how we can maintain our competitiveness.

How do we strike the right balance between a company that needs to keep going and the changes that are essential to 'keep up with the times'?

The primary objective of a family business is not to increase shareholder value, but to ensure that the family heritage is maintained. My aim has always been to grow the business. On the outside, every entrepreneur tries to be the best, but on the inside, there are many challenges, difficult times and moments of uncertainty. We experienced this when many people thought that digitalisation was going to kill the book. Or at the time of covid. I asked myself the question: aren't people going to develop a taste for Netflix and Amazon Prime Video to the point of neglecting reading, which is more tiring, but which gives wings to the imagination? Finally, there has been a certain return to books. Our industry is certainly not the one with the greatest growth potential, but the life of a company is an adventure that never ends.

In your opinion, what are the factors that make a company successful?

First of all, the entrepreneur's enthusiasm for turning their idea into reality. In my view, there are only two pillars to success: desire, because motivation can only come from within, and power. This is a question of resources, not just financial: it includes skills and working tools. To succeed, you need a strong will and dedication. And when you fall down, you have to get back up by looking at what you tripped over. So you don't make the same mistake again.

Can you give us an example from your experience?

In 1985, I did a work placement in a bookshop in Munich, in a shopping centre. I noticed that people who came to a shopping centre were already thinking about spending money and treating themselves. When we had the opportunity to set up in La Belle Étoile, some people didn't understand why my father was investing in this project. In the end, we found that it attracted customers to books and we developed a reputation that we didn't have by working on our brand image. It worked because we believed in the idea and did everything we could to make it a reality.

What are you most proud of?

I don't think about the question too much, because when you ask yourself it, you can tend to rest! I don't want to rest. I want to continue the adventure and support my future successor(s). In 2007, 2008 and 2009, the company wasn't in difficulty, but it was doing a bit less well. Having been able to pull it out of that situation and learn the necessary lessons has helped us to grow. What has always helped us is to have been open to digitalisation very early on.

How did that come about?

It has to do with my particular interest in all things digital. When I was 13, some friends and I used to have fun creating little programmes on calculating machines. I remember the first computer my father agreed to finance. In return, I had to write a programme to help him calculate employees' salaries. It saved him a lot of time. When we opened at La Belle Étoile, we were one of the first bookshops to have computerised stock management.

How can technology and AI be applied to business today?

There's always room for progress when it comes to digitalisation. Like electronic archiving, in our case. But many companies are still working the old-fashioned way. Their difficulty may come from a fear of not being able to master the issues. Artificial intelligence is moving very fast and has a capacity that the human brain cannot match. But that brain will always be needed to make decisions. At the time, the industrial revolution changed the world of work overalls. Today, AI is asking white-collar workers to question themselves. There's no need to be afraid of it. That was the case with the internet, and ultimately connectivity has been a tremendous development.

What are the biggest challenges facing businesses today?

We are subject to regulations that take up too much space in the way we do business, especially for small businesses that have to comply with a regulatory framework. Take opening a bank account. When you see all the data you have to provide, it's very difficult for a company just starting out. I have the impression that we have a European framework in which we are trying to regulate everything, sometimes to the detriment of common sense. This can hold us back in our development and eat into our margins, like the regulations on packaging. Another major challenge is the skills of the workforce, which we need to attract and retain.

Another major challenge is public finances, because we're going to have to make sure that they guarantee us the environment we need to grow. Today, we have an economic model based on growth, but we are all aware that we need to make an ecological transition, which will need to be financed. This is something that concerns me beyond my own company. Businesses alone will not be able to finance it. We need global support and solidarity. We all need to realise that we are not spectators, but players.

In the Under 50 section, Paperjam interviews small businesses, whose owners often talk about the administrative burden. How can they lighten the load?

Perhaps those who impose these procedures on us should spend a day in the business to see the burden they create and the time it takes us to respond. I don't think it's a question of ill will, more a lack of awareness. I also think that there are huge potential savings to be made by simplifying all this. The first question is to ask ourselves whether what we're doing is necessary.

Growth means diversification. How do you do that?

In a country like ours, it's a necessity. We occupy a considerable share of the market, but our intention is not to stifle the others. At the beginning of the year, we bought a toy shop, a new activity that allows us to learn more and to find ways of creating shops that reflect our values. We have also diversified by developing a wholesale business that is less well known to our fellow booksellers.

As a business owner, there is what you can manage, control and correct, and there is the rest, on which you depend. How do you keep control?

The first rule is humility in the face of facts. You have to accept what you can't change rather than remain preoccupied with trying to change things over which you have no power. This was the case during covid. Companies were able to react and develop new models. Even more so in the midst of a crisis, entrepreneurs take action, they don't just sit back and wait for things to happen.

When faced with a choice or a strategic decision, how do you decide?

The question arose when we decided to set up at the Cloche d'Or, which represented an investment of well over a million euros. My wife plays an important role in the business, as do my children. I explained the project to them, along with the risks it represented for the family estate. We discussed it. As an entrepreneur, it's all very well to say that it's the facts that count, but you make the final decision right there [he taps his hand on his chest]. There's also a saying that when in doubt, there is no doubt.

At the Chamber of Commerce, what guides you and what are your priorities?

It's the success that Luxembourg has achieved so far. One of my concerns has always been that the money we receive from companies should go back to them, because they are the ones who create value. Today, the challenge is to find our place in a market that is opening up more and more and demanding greater transparency.

What guides me is the support of the plenary assembly and the respect we have for each other, but also a certain closeness to the government, which is fully aware of the issues at stake. There are many issues to tackle. One of them is sustainability, which is both a major challenge and a great opportunity for our companies. It also has to do with governance, respect for employees and everything that can promote work-life balance. The need for meaning is increasingly important, and this is a major challenge for our companies.

Is flexibility a solution?

It can be a tool that helps us juggle constraints. I'm a bit worried about what the unions are saying these days. When it comes to Sunday working, we need to be aware that shops are subject to 24/7 digital competition. As well as making customers want to come in, we need to give them the opportunity to do so when they can. It's time to ask ourselves what we can do to give physical retailers the opportunity to cope. And not penalise them by imposing a collective agreement. A company is only as good as its employees, and being able to reward them according to their performance is not the primary objective of collective agreements.

You will be 65 in 2025. How do you see the handover?

I've been thinking about it ever since I myself started the handover from my father. I've seen companies around me suffer because their managers didn't want to let go. So I've always kept in mind that this succession will have to happen. My three sons are interested in the future of the business, but a handover cannot be decreed: it has to be planned and takes time. At the last Family Business Network International summit, I saw some companies decide that their CEO should be someone from outside the family, so that the family can challenge him or her. My intention is also to put in place a form of governance that challenges the CEO, whether he or she is a member of the family or not. Today, everything suggests that he will be a family member, but that's no reason not to challenge him! The handover has begun, but nothing has yet been decided. We're looking at it as a family.

Express bio

7th March 1960

Born in Luxembourg.

1984

Fernand Ernster holds a practical university degree in economics and law, and starts work in the family business.

1989

The fourth generation to take over the management of the family business founded by his great-grandfather in 1889.

2014

He is elected chair of the Confédération luxembourgeoise du commerce (CLC), now the Luxembourg Confederation.

2015

He is named chair of the House of Training.

2017 and 2020

He is re-elected president of the Luxembourg Confederation and hands over the mandate in 2022 to Carole Muller.

February 2023

Fernand Ernster takes over Luc Frieden's mandate, when Frieden is appointed head of the CSV list for the parliamentary elections, as chair the Chamber of Commerce.

April 2024

He is officially elected chair of the Chamber of Commerce for a five-year term.

Ernster bookshops

Founded by Fernand Ernster's great-grandfather Pierre in 1889 in Ville-Haute, the Ernster bookshop was located near the Athénée du Luxembourg. In the 1920s, Fernand Ernster's grandfather, Ferdinand, took over the business. When he died in 1939, his grandmother Claire Ernster-Kihn continued the business until her son Pit, Fernand Ernster's father, took it over in 1958. Fernand Ernster joined the company in 1984 at the age of 24. It was thanks to him that the company continued to expand, moving to La Belle Étoile in 1988.

The group employs around 100 people and now has ten outlets that enrich cultural life by offering events such as book signings, meetings, conferences and workshops, as well as an online store. Ernster has also diversified with its publishing business, publishing books, particularly children's books in Lëtzebuergesch. The company has also launched a wholesale distribution business and acts as a distributor for certain publishers.

In January 2024, Ernster acquired the Domino toy shop on rue de Louvigny, which complements the children's range, as well as Erny Ernster, which is located opposite the bookshop and focuses on the very young. Domino's managing partner is Fernand Ernster's son Paul, who joined the company in 2018.

This article was written for the small and medium-sized business supplement published with the magazine on 11 December 2024. .

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