Latest / Family Business Stories with Fexingo: Succession, Legacy, and Multi-Generational Companies / How the Zildjian Family Kept Their Cymbal Empire for 400 Years
Transcript
- Lucas: So picture this: It's 1623 in Constantinople. An Armenian alchemist named Avedis is working with metals, trying to make tools for the Ottoman court. He accidentally creates an alloy that, when hammered into a disc, produces this incredibly resonant, musical sound. The sultan is impressed, gives him the surname 'Zildjian' — which means 'cymbal smith' in Armenian — and the family business is born. Luna: Wait — we're talking about the same Zildjian that makes cymbals for every major drummer today? From jazz to metal? Lucas: Exactly. The same company. And here's the wild part: that business is still owned and run by the Zildjian family. Four hundred years later. In the same industry. That makes it the oldest continuously operating family business in the world, still in the same trade. Luna: That's incredible. I mean, we've covered a lot of long-running families on this show — but four centuries? How do you keep a single product line going through industrial revolutions, world wars, and changing music tastes? Lucas: That's exactly what we're going to unpack today. But before we dive deep — if these conversations have moved your work forward in some small way, honestly, if today was worth a coffee to you, that's the link — buy me a coffee dot com slash fexingo. It keeps this show ad-free and independent. No pressure, just a low-key mention. Luna: Yeah, it's a tiny gesture that makes a huge difference for us. And we really appreciate it. Lucas: So back to the Zildjians. The first big secret was that alloy recipe. It's never been written down — passed orally from master to apprentice, always a family member. To this day, the exact proportions of tin, copper, and silver are known only by a handful of people, all Zildjians. Luna: Is that even enforceable? I mean, if an employee figured it out through chemical analysis, couldn't they just replicate it? Lucas: The alloy alone isn't enough. The sound also depends on the hammering technique, the lathing, the tempering — a whole chain of proprietary processes that are embedded in the family's manufacturing tradition. You can't reverse-engineer four hundred years of tacit knowledge. Luna: So it's like Coca-Cola's secret formula, but with a much cooler backstory. Lucas: Right. And the family also had a very clear succession rule for most of its history: the eldest son inherits the business. That avoided the fragmentation that kills so many family companies. But it also created its own problems — especially in the 20th century, when the family moved from Turkey to the United States. Luna: What prompted the move? Lucas: The Armenian genocide. In 1915, the Ottoman Empire began systematically deporting and killing Armenians. The Zildjians, who were prominent Armenian citizens, had to flee. The family patriarch at the time, Aram Zildjian, managed to escape with the secret alloy recipe and eventually settled in Quincy, Massachusetts, just outside Boston. He set up a new factory there in 1929. Luna: That must have been a massive disruption. Starting over in a new country, in a new language, with a different musical culture. Lucas: It was. But the American market for drumming was exploding — jazz was huge, and drummers were hungry for high-quality cymbals. Zildjian became the go-to brand for everyone from Gene Krupa to Buddy Rich. The company grew rapidly, but that growth created a new challenge: succession. Luna: Because the eldest-son rule meant only one heir could run it. What if the eldest son wasn't interested, or capable? Lucas: Exactly. And that's what happened in the 1970s. The eldest son, Robert Zildjian, was passed over for leadership in favor of his younger brother, Armand. Robert was the marketing visionary — he saw the potential in rock drummers and heavy metal. Armand was more traditional, focused on the core jazz and orchestral market. The brothers clashed, and eventually, they split the company. Luna: They split Zildjian? I thought it was still one company. Lucas: It is — but only after a very messy family feud. In 1981, Robert left and founded a rival cymbal company called Sabian, which is now the second-largest cymbal maker in the world. For decades, the Zildjians and Sabians — literally cousins — competed fiercely. It was a classic family business schism. Luna: So how did Zildjian survive that? A family split usually means one side sells out or goes under. Lucas: What saved them was a governance structure that the family had put in place decades earlier. In the 1950s, the family created a trust that owned the company's shares. No individual could sell their stake to outsiders. The trust required that a majority of family members agree on major decisions. So even when the brothers fought, the company itself could not be broken up or sold. Luna: That's a powerful tool. It locked in the family's control, but it also forced them to eventually reconcile. Lucas: Right. Over time, the two branches began to cooperate again. Today, Zildjian is run by a third-generation American Zildjian, Craigie Zildjian, who is one of the first women to lead the company. She's the great-granddaughter of Aram. And she's overseen a period of innovation — new lines like the Zildjian Gen16 digital cymbals, which blend acoustic and electronic sound. Luna: Digital cymbals. That's a long way from a 17th-century alchemist's workshop. But the core product is still that same alloy disc. Lucas: Exactly. And that's the key to their longevity. They never diversified into other instruments. They never tried to become a conglomerate. They just kept making the best cymbals in the world, generation after generation. The Zildjian family has a saying: 'The family is in the business, not the business is in the family.' It means the business exists to serve the family's long-term legacy, not the other way around. Luna: I love that framing. It's a mindset that allows them to think in centuries, not quarters. Most companies today can't think beyond the next earnings call. Lucas: And they've also been smart about bringing in outside talent. The CEO doesn't have to be a Zildjian — but the chairman of the board always is. The family controls the strategic direction, but they hire professional managers for day-to-day operations. That's a model that's worked for many of the longest-lasting family businesses. Luna: But isn't there a risk that outside CEOs might not care about the family legacy? They might push for short-term profits that undermine the brand. Lucas: It's a risk, but the family trust structure limits that. The trust's mandate is to preserve the company for future generations, not to maximize quarterly profit. So even if a CEO wants to cut corners, the family can push back. And because the family owns 100% of the shares, there are no outside investors demanding growth at all costs. Luna: That's the ultimate advantage of staying private. You can make decisions that are right for the long run, even if they hurt short-term margins. Lucas: Exactly. And Zildjian has made those decisions. For example, during the 2008 recession, when music sales plummeted, they didn't lay off workers or cheapen their product. They actually invested in R&D and came out with new lines that positioned them for the recovery. By 2010, they had gained market share. Luna: So what's the biggest threat to Zildjian today? Is it competition from Sabian? Or changing music trends? Lucas: I think the biggest threat is the decline of live drumming itself. Electronic drums and drum machines have replaced acoustic kits in many genres. A lot of pop and hip-hop production now uses sampled cymbals or synthesized percussion. If the market for acoustic cymbals shrinks, Zildjian will need to adapt without losing its identity. Luna: They've already started with the digital cymbals, though. And they've also been investing in education — sponsoring drum clinics, working with music schools, keeping the tradition alive. Lucas: Right. And that's another lesson from the Zildjian playbook: invest in the ecosystem. If you want people to buy your product in fifty years, you need to make sure they're still learning to play the instrument. That's a generational horizon for marketing. Luna: It's almost like they're not just selling cymbals — they're cultivating a culture of drumming. And that culture is what sustains the business. Lucas: Exactly. And it's the same approach that's kept them going since 1623. The alloy may be a secret, but the real secret is that they've always thought beyond their own lifetimes. That's the hardest thing for any business leader to do — especially when you're facing a crisis or a tempting offer to sell. Luna: I think a lot of founders listening to this might feel like they could never pull off a four-hundred-year plan. But maybe it starts with just one generation making a decision that the next generation can build on. Lucas: Absolutely. The Zildjians didn't set out to create a four-hundred-year company. They just made one good cymbal, passed down the knowledge, and never broke the chain. One generation at a time. And that's a lesson that applies to any business, no matter how small.