The holiday region of Engadin’s St. Moritz is located on the southern side of the Swiss Alps and 1,800 metres above sea level. Engadin’s St. Moritz is known as the “Festsaal der Alpen (ballroom of the Alps) thanks to the unique harmony of its lake landscape. The valley has an above-average number of sunny days, as well as mineral springs and a pleasant dry climate. Piz Bernina is the only 4,000m peak in the Eastern Alps (4,049 metres above sea level).

These are the minutes when light gains the upper hand against darkness. Katharina Ueltschi’s shoes are in spikes, and the beam of her headlamp bathes the ice of the glacier in front of her in a yellowish light. It is freezing cold. Walking across the glacier, hearing the crunching of the ice, is something Ueltschi describes as eerily peaceful, unlike anything she has found in Singapore. Together with her brother, she represents the fifth generation of Bernina Sewing Machines and is setting up an Innovation Lab for the company from Singapore, thereby leading Bernina International into the future. Asia is an important and rapidly growing market. But now Ueltschi is standing on ice below the Diavolezza and facing one of her biggest challenges in recent years. She wants to climb Piz Bernina, up to 4,049 metres above sea level. 

Bernina International AG, based in Steckborn, Switzerland, is a sewing machine manufacturer founded in 1893. The company’s origins lie in the invention of the hemstitch sewing machine in 1893 by Karl Friedrich Gegauf. The sewing and embroidery systems developed to this day enable sewing, embroidery, quilting and overlocking. Quality, tradition and innovation are what it’s all about at the company. The business always remains in the hands of the family. As early as 1965, a woman, Odette Gegauf-Ueltschi, took over the management of the company. Nowadays, Katharina Ueltschi runs Bernina International AG together with her brother. Together, they represent the fifth generation of the family. Katharina Ueltschi represents the international side of the company and is setting up an innovation lab from Singapore. She has remained faithful to the family’s connection with the Engadin, which is why she ventured on the Piz Bernina mission.

Ueltschi has taken her preparations for the mountaineering tour seriously. While in Asia, she jogged several times a week and ate a healthy diet. For the Piz Bernina mission, she travelled to the Engadin two weeks ago and completed intensive altitude training. She also booked glacier and climbing training at the Pontresina Mountaineering School. It’s something she’s grateful for now. Despite all of this, she remarks:

It’s Ueltschi’s first attempt at conquering a 4,000m peak. There is a good reason why it had to be the Piz Bernina: Ueltschi’s family has long had a close relationship with the Engadin region. Her great-grandfather was on holiday there in 1931 and was so fascinated by the mountain that he later renamed his company – from “Fritz Gegauf” to Bernina Sewing Machines. Besides the personal connection, it was important to him that the name could be pronounced well internationally. He was already thinking big back then.

His great-granddaughter walks across the Pers Glacier together with her mountain guide. The mighty Bernina massif has a profound impact on her. Under the spell of the north face pillars of Piz Palü, she reaches Gemsfreiheit. At Fortezzagrat she has to prove her climbing skills for the first time before she stands on the glacier plateau of Bellavista. She breathes regularly, maintaining her fast pace. “Up here, everyday problems disappear,” she says. Only the moment counts; only the next step matters. As she fights her way up the mountain, she thinks about her mother and grandmother, both of whom reached the top of Piz Bernina. Both were experienced mountaineers – unlike Katharina Ueltschi. Nevertheless, she wants to continue the women’s family tradition. According to her, she loves and constantly seeks out new challenges. The two women are a great source of inspiration for her.

After a little more than six hours on the mountain, she finds herself battling with a rollercoaster of emotions. On the one hand, there is the beauty of nature, and the power that emanates from the mountains. For Ueltschi, mountains are a symbol of permanence, a symbol of Switzerland. On the other hand, she struggles more and more with the altitude, with fatigue.

You can see the strain and effort written on her face. Then a feeling of a certain relief spreading across it. The Marco e Rosa hut appears before Ueltschi’s eyes. Here, she warms up and refuels with a healthy portion of penne. It’s an important break. Because the final ascent, the last 420 metres, will be very tough.

Behind the Rifugio Marco e Rosa, the route leads across the glacier and up a steep firn slope to the first rock of the Spalla Ridge. Feelings of fear and anxiety come up. “My life is flashing before me by like a film.” On the narrow firn ridge, Ueltschi has to really overcome her fears. Her gaze is fixed on her shoes She doesn’t look left or right. It’s a difficult few minutes. Ueltschi struggles, considers quitting, turning around. The summit seems so close and yet so far.

She has mentally reached her limit. Her mountain guide motivates her to keep going. Ueltschi doesn’t really remember what happens afterwards. But she makes it, and successfully conquers Piz Bernina.

What exactly she felt up there remains her secret. Back in the valley, in her mother’s arms, the tears are flowing. These are tears of joy, but also tears of relief. After having put some distance behind her, Ueltschi speaks of “one of the most beautiful experiences of her life”. Her thoughts had rarely been as clear as “up there”. With inspiration from Piz Bernina, she will lead the family business – which bears the name because her great-grandfather loved the mountain so much – into the future.