The reason they are loved is the major social impact Philips had on the Eindhoven region, mostly positive. You could walk up to Mr Frits during carnival, ask for a job for your husband and he could start the next week, ask any older Eindhovenaar about it. They were considered to be a great company to work for: they took care of houses (one of the Eindhoven suburbs is called Philips town as it was literally built by them for their employees), and the bylaws made maximum employment a top priority (heck, it’s still mentioned in the latest CAO). The local football club was founded by Philips for their employees, the first player in the field was a 4-year-old Mr. Frits.

From the perspective of Eindhoven, they sure were a net gain. For the rest of the world, they sure are in a lot of cartels. But the tens of thousands of people working for Philips-related companies won’t care (ASML, NXP, Signify, Etos, FEI, TP Vision, are just some examples of the Philips legacy that is still felt all across the Eindhoven region)l