Inside the rise of Bernard Arnault, world’s richest man: the LVMH billionaire owns luxury brands Louis Vuitton and Dior, was a friend to Steve Jobs and Karl Lagerfeld, and is a rival to François Pinault
When it comes to the world of luxury goods, perhaps no one is more successful than Bernard Arnault.
Arnault, the 74-year-old chairman of LVMH, has built his fortune over the span of almost four decades, amassing a luxury-goods empire that includes some of the best-known names in fashion, jewellery and alcohol, including Louis Vuitton, Tag Heuer and Dom Pérignon.
The French businessman owns a 97.5 per cent stake in Christian Dior, which controls 41.4 per cent of LVMH. Along the way, Arnault has brought his five adult children into the fold, building a family-run business that has resulted in the world’s largest fortune.
Here’s how Arnault got his start and became the richest person in the world.
Bernard Arnault studied engineering
Arnault comes from the northern French town of Roubaix. He studied engineering at one of France’s most prestigious schools, the École Polytechnique. After graduating, Arnault went to work for his father’s construction company, Ferret-Savinel.
He acquired an ailing company in 1984
In 1984, Arnault acquired an ailing company called Agache-Willot-Boussac, which owned brands like French department store Bon Marché and the fashion house Christian Dior. He renamed the firm Financière Agache and initiated a turnaround, cutting costs and selling some of its businesses. Soon after, he bought fashion house Celine and funded the French designer Christian Lacroix.
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He defined his goal to run the world’s largest luxury company in the late 1980s
He then set his sights on LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, spending US$2.6 billion buying up shares to become the company’s largest shareholder, and eventually its chairman and CEO, by 1989.
His first marriage and family
Arnault married Anne Dewavrin in 1973, and they had two children together before separating in 1990. Arnault remarried in 1991, to Hélène Mercier, a Canadian concert pianist. He reportedly wooed her by playing Chopin and other classical composers.
He lives a lavish life
He travels by private jet, owns a sprawling holiday villa in glitzy Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera and reportedly has also spent at least US$96.4 million on residential properties in the Los Angeles area: in Beverly Hills, the Trousdale Estates and Hollywood Hills neighbourhoods.
He’s an avid art collector
In their home, Arnault keeps a collection of modern and contemporary art from artists that include Jean-Michel Basquiat, Damien Hirst, Maurizio Cattelan, Andy Warhol and Pablo Picasso.
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He has five children …
Antoine and Delphine Arnault are his two children from his first marriage.
His youngest three – Alexandre, Frédéric and Jean – are from his second marriage to Mercier. Delphine, Arnault’s oldest daughter, is the apparent heiress to the LVMH empire.
Delphine Arnault
Delphine started her career at American consultancy firm McKinsey & Co. in Paris and was the executive vice-president at Louis Vuitton. In January 2019, Delphine became the youngest member of LVMH’s executive committee at age 43. She became CEO and chair of Christian Dior Couture in February this year.
Antoine Arnault
Delphine’s younger brother Antoine is CEO of Christian Dior SE, the holding company of LVMH.
He’s also the CEO of menswear label Berluti, and the non-executive chair of cashmere label Loro Piana, both owned by LVMH. In addition to those roles, Antoine was named head of communications and image for LVMH in June 2018.
Alexandre Arnault
Alexandre, the son of Bernard Arnault and Mercier, became an executive VP at Tiffany & Co. after LVMH bought the jewellery brand.
LVMH acquired Tiffany & Co. in 2021, after which Alexandre became the company’s executive vice-president of product and communications. Before moving over to Tiffany, Alexandre was the CEO of Rimowa, a German luggage brand owned by LVMH.
Frédéric Arnault
Alexandre’s younger brother Frédéric is the CEO of Tag Heuer. Frédéric joined LVMH as the temporary head of connected technologies at Tag Heuer in 2017. A year later, he became strategy and digital director at the Swiss watch company, LVMH’s largest watch brand. In 2020, Frédéric was named Tag Heuer’s CEO.
Frédéric graduated from his father’s alma mater, École Polytechnique in Paris, and interned at Facebook and consulting firm McKinsey before joining LVMH.
Jean Arnault
Arnault’s youngest son, Jean, joined the family business in August 2021 and became marketing and product director in Louis Vuitton’s watch division.
Jean, who was 23 at the time, has a master’s degree in financial mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, as well as a master’s in mechanical engineering from Imperial College London, WWD reported.
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According to his LinkedIn profile, he interned at Morgan Stanley and McLaren Racing and worked in a Louis Vuitton retail store before joining the company full-time.
Arnault has rubbed shoulders with some of the planet’s most influential figures
In 2017, Arnault met then-president-elect Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York City, right before Trump’s inauguration, to discuss expanding LVMH factories in the US. The company opened a new 100,000 sq ft Louis Vuitton factory in Texas in 2019, the company’s third factory in the US.
He was reportedly friends with Apple founder Steve Jobs. Jobs once said to Arnault: “You know, Bernard, I don’t know if in 50 years my iPhone will still be a success, but I can tell you, I’m sure everybody will still drink your Dom Pérignon.”
Former Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein once called Arnault “a complete visionary”, adding that he “saw the increase of wealth in the world”.
Arnault is also reportedly long-time friends with former French president Nicolas Sarkozy and was a witness at Sarkozy’s wedding to singer and model Carla Bruni.
Arnault once shook hands with Vladimir Putin during the Russian president’s 2003 visit to the Château Cheval Blanc vineyard in France, which LVMH owns.
Arnault considered the legendary designer and Chanel creative director Karl Lagerfeld a good friend. “The death of this dear friend deeply saddens me, my wife and my children,” Arnault said in a statement upon Lagerfeld’s death in 2019. “We loved and admired him deeply. Fashion and culture has lost a great inspiration.”
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His long-standing public rivalry with François Pinault, the founder of luxury group Kering
Worth about US$37 billion, François Pinault’s company Kering owns brands like Gucci and Yves St Laurent as well as Christie’s auction house. LVMH originally tried to acquire a majority stake in Gucci in 1999 but Pinault ultimately snatched up the brand.
He has built LVMH into the biggest luxury conglomerate in the world
Arnault has earned himself an imposing nickname: “the wolf in the cashmere coat”. He’s behind the creation of Foundation Louis Vuitton, a Frank Gehry-designed contemporary art museum and performance space in Paris that opened in 2014.
In April 2019, LVMH released a statement on behalf of the Arnault family, pledging €200 million, or about US$218.8 million, to help rebuild the Notre-Dame Cathedral, which was heavily damaged in a 2019 fire.
In October 2020, Arnault’s company bought Tiffany & Co. for US$15.8 billion in the luxury sector’s biggest-ever deal. The contentious sale involved multiple lawsuits and a US$400 million price drop.
Not always smooth sailing
When it comes to finances, the past few years have been a roller-coaster ride for Arnault and LVMH. In January 2019, Arnault made US$4.3 billion in a single day after LVMH shares surged 6.9 per cent. And just six months later, on June 19, 2019, Arnault again made news when he became the third person in the world to reach a US$100 billion net worth.
Then the coronavirus pandemic hit, and pandemic-related shutdowns sank LVMH’s stock, sending Arnault’s personal net worth down more than US$30 billion by May 2020.
But as the world opened up again, LVMH’s stock recovered, thanks to strong sales in fashion and leather goods and an uptick in alcohol sales, particularly champagne. It’s been a good year so far for the company: it recorded €36.7 billion in revenue in the first half of 2022, up 28 per cent from the same period in 2021.
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He’s the world’s richest person with a net worth of US$212 billion
His wealth has grown by US$33.7 billion so far this year. Arnault’s net worth surpassed the US$200 billion mark earlier this month, making him the third-person ever, behind Elon Musk and Jeff Bezos, to do so.
Arnault reportedly meets with his five children for a monthly lunch in the private dining room at LVMH to instruct them on the company’s strategy and manager performance, The Wall Street Journal reported.
But Sidney Toledano, CEO of LVMH’s fashion arm, told The Journal that it’s not guaranteed that one of Arnault’s children will succeed him as CEO of LVMH.
This article originally appeared on Insider.
Bernard Arnault, the chairman of LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton), is a towering figure in the luxury goods industry. His rise to becoming the world's wealthiest individual is a testament to his strategic acumen and vision. Let's break down the article by touching upon the various concepts it encompasses:
Bernard Arnault's Background and Career Journey:
- Education and Early Career: Arnault studied engineering at the prestigious École Polytechnique in France and initially worked at his father's construction company, Ferret-Savinel.
- Turnaround of Agache-Willot-Boussac: In 1984, he acquired Agache-Willot-Boussac, an ailing company that owned brands like Christian Dior and initiated a successful turnaround strategy.
- LVMH Acquisition and Leadership: Arnault became the largest shareholder and eventually chairman and CEO of LVMH, focusing on creating the world's largest luxury company.
Personal Life and Lifestyle:
- Marriages and Family: Arnault married twice, has five children from both marriages, and has built a family-run business, with his daughter Delphine positioned to inherit the LVMH empire.
- Lavish Lifestyle: He lives a luxurious life, traveling by private jet, owning multiple lavish properties, and indulging in art collection, including works by renowned artists.
Arnault's Children and their Roles in LVMH:
- Delphine Arnault: A key executive in LVMH and CEO of Christian Dior Couture.
- Antoine Arnault: CEO of Christian Dior SE, and involved in other LVMH-owned brands like Berluti and Loro Piana.
- Alexandre Arnault: Previously involved with Tiffany & Co. and Rimowa, now an executive VP at Tiffany & Co.
- Frédéric Arnault: CEO of Tag Heuer, holding key positions within LVMH after his education and internships.
- Jean Arnault: The youngest son involved in marketing and product direction at Louis Vuitton, with a strong educational background.
Arnault's Network and Relationships:
- Associations: Arnault has interacted with influential figures, from politicians like Donald Trump and Nicolas Sarkozy to prominent personalities like Steve Jobs, Karl Lagerfeld, and Vladimir Putin.
- Rivalry with François Pinault: A long-standing rivalry exists between Arnault's LVMH and François Pinault's Kering, involving brand acquisitions and industry competition.
Business Milestones and Financial Journey:
- Foundation Louis Vuitton and Philanthropy: Arnault's involvement in creating the Foundation Louis Vuitton and philanthropic endeavors, like pledging a substantial amount for the Notre-Dame Cathedral's restoration.
- Business Acquisitions and Challenges: Notable acquisitions include Tiffany & Co., yet challenges like pandemic-related market fluctuations impacted Arnault's net worth, which has shown significant fluctuations over the years.
Current Status and Achievements:
- World's Richest Person: Arnault's current net worth, surpassing $200 billion, and his ongoing involvement in guiding his children within the company.
Bernard Arnault's journey showcases his keen business strategies, foresight in brand acquisitions, and the establishment of a vast luxury empire, making him a central figure in the global luxury goods industry.
