Walchwil,08.05.2009
Fiat boss Sergio Marchionne has apartment in Walchwil
Sebastian Vettel and Sergio Marchionne are near-neighbours, with Formula 1 driver Vettel living at Zugerstrasse 94 in Walchwil and Fiat boss Marchionne just a stone’s throw away in an apartment at Zugerstrasse 88 (photo).
Currently, Marchionne is jetting back and forth between Europe and the United States as he negotiates a Fiat take-over of Chrysler and Opel, which would make the Italian automobile manufacturer the second largest in the world.
According to Walchwil locals, there is a big difference between the two prominent residents. The German Formula 1 driver is at least occasionally seen in town and even plays football with the local team and shops at the local bakery for bread. The Fiat boss however is rarely in town. “I’ve never met him,” says Walchwil mayor Tobias Hürlimann, pointing out that Marchionne has been registered in the community since January 2006 but that his children do not go to the local school.
It is hardly surprising that the Fiat boss is not often seen in Walchwil. He has his office in Turin, Italy and spends his weekends at his main residence, where his wife and children live, in Blonay in the canton of Vaud. Walchwil is a classic second residence for the Italian lawyer and finance expert who grew up in Canada, enabling him to pay taxes in the canton of Zug.