LVMH RESHUFFLES LEADERSHIP
Delphine Arnault moves from Louis Vuitton to head Christian Dior Couture
FRENCH luxury group LVMH announced a leadership shuffle yesterday, naming a new chief executive office (CEO) at flagship brand Louis Vuitton and appointing the daughter of billionaire boss Bernard Arnault atop Christian Dior Couture.
Bernard said the appointment of his daughter Delphine, a top executive at Louis Vuitton, as head of Dior perfume and fashion house was the “continuation of a career of excellence in fashion and leather goods”.
Under her direction, the brand was able to “fly from record to record” and her “sharp eye and incomparable experience will be decisive assets in the continued development of Christian Dior”, he said in a statement.
She will succeed Pietro Beccari, who will replace Michael Burke as head of Louis Vuitton, the world’s leading luxury brand famous for its handbags bedecked with the initials “LV”.
Bernard praised Beccari for his “exceptional work” as head of Dior over the past five years.
“Nobody doubts that he will lead Louis Vuitton towards even greater desirability and success,” Arnault said.
Bernard praised Burke for his “great job” during 10 years at the helm of Louis Vuitton which helped to “widen the gap with our competition.”
Burke will take up a new position alongside Bernard.
Bernard and his family overtook Tesla and Twitter boss Elon Musk on the Forbes and Bloomberg lists of the world’s top billionaires late last year. Forbes put the clan’s net worth at US$200 billion.
Bernard’s five children have top jobs at LVMH.
His eldest son, Antoin, was named CEO of holding company Christian Dior SE, which controls LVMH, last month. He holds other positions within the group.
Alexandre is an executive vicepresident at jewellery brand Tiffany while his brother Frederic is CEO of watchmaker Tag Heuer.
Another son, Jeant, is watch development and marketing director at Louis Vuitton.
LVMH boasts more than 75 brands, including fashion firm Kenzo and champagne maker Moet & Chandon.
The group reported a net profit of €6.5 billion in the first half of last year, a 23 per cent jump from record earnings in the same period the previous year.