Zo leeft Bernard Arnault, de rijkste Europeaan en baas van LMVH

Bernard Arnault is de rijkste Europeaan ter wereld.
De 72-jarige Fransman staat aan het hoofd van luxeconglomeraat LVMH.
Vier van Arnaults kinderen werken bij LVMH-merken, zoals Louis Vuitton, Berluti en TAG Heuer.

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Als het op de wereld van luxeartikelen aankomt, is er niemand zo succesvol als Bernard Arnault.

De 72-jarige CEO van het Franse luxeconglomeraat LVMH heeft in de vier decennia de grootste namen op het gebied van mode, sieraden en champagne toegevoegd aan zijn imperium. Denk aan merken als Louis Vuitton, TAG Heuer en Dom Perignon.

Vier van Arnaults vijf volwassen kinderen zijn inmiddels werkzaam voor het bedrijf, wat LVMH het op twee na rijkste familiebedrijf ter wereld maakt.

Dit is hoe Arnault zijn carrière begon en een simpel Frans modebedrijfje wist uit te bouwen tot een van de grootste familiebedrijven ter wereld.

Zo leeft en werkt luxekeizer Bernard Arnault, de op twee na rijkste mens ter wereld

The 73-year-old French businessman is the chairman and CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, known as LVMH. Arnault owns a 97.5% stake in Christian Dior, which controls 41.2% of LVMH.

Source: Bloomberg

Getty Images
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.

Source: Bloomberg, Business Insider

Thibault Camus/AP
In 1984, Arnault acquired an ailing company called Agache-Willot-Boussac, which owned brands like French department store Bon Marche and the fashion house Christian Dior. He renamed the firm Financiere Agache and initiated a turnaround, cutting costs and selling off some of its businesses.

Source: Bloomberg

Getty Images
Soon after, he bought fashion house Celine and funded the French designer Christian Lacroix.

Source: The New York Times

Claudio Lavenia/Getty Images
In the late 1980s, Arnault said his goal was to run the world's largest luxury company within the following decade. He then set his sights on LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, spending $2.6 billion buying up shares in order to become the company's largest shareholder, and its chairman and CEO by 1989.

Source: The New York Times

Michel SETBOUN/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
Arnault married Anne Dewavrin in 1973 and they had two children together before separating in 1990. Arnault remarried to Helene Mercier, a Canadian concert pianist, in 1991.

Source: Financial Times, Forbes

Reuters
He reportedly wooed her by playing Chopin and other classical composers.

Source: Forbes

Laurent VAN DER STOCKT/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
The French billionaire and his wife live on Paris's Left Bank, south of the Seine River, a historic area that includes neighborhoods such as the Latin Quarter and St. Germain-des-Prés.

Source: Bloomberg, The New York Times

Alexander Spatari/Getty Images
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.

Source: Bloomberg

Ben Pruchnie / Staff / Getty Images
Arnault has five children: two with his first wife and three with his current wife.

Source: The New York Times

Getty Images
Antoine Arnault and Delphine Arnault are his two children from his first marriage.

Source: The New York Times, LVMH

Getty Images
Delphine, Arnault's oldest daughter, is the apparent heiress to the LVMH empire.

Source: The New York Times

Getty Images
She started her career at American consultancy firm McKinsey & Co. in Paris and is now the executive vice president at Louis Vuitton.

Source: Business of Fashion, The New York Times

Reuters
In January 2019, Delphine became the youngest member of LVMH's executive committee at age 43.

Source: MDS

Pascal Le Segretain/Getty Images
Delphine married Italian wine heir Alessandro Vallarino Gancia in 2005 in what Forbes called "France's wedding of the year." The couple divorced in 2010.

Source: Forbes, Business Insider

DERRICK CEYRAC/AFP/Getty Images
She now reportedly lives with tech billionaire Xavier Niel and has one daughter. But Delphine is notoriously private about her personal life. "I'm quite discreet," she told the Financial Times in a rare 2014 interview. "I think I’d rather focus on my work."

Source: Financial Times

Vincent Isore/IP3/Getty Images
Delphine's younger brother, Antoine, is chief executive of menswear label Berluti and chairman of the cashmere label Loro Piana, both LVMH brands.

Source: The New York Times, LVMH

Getty Images
In addition to those roles, Antoine was named head of communications and image for LVMH in June 2018, and in late 2022, took on a new position: CEO of the family holding company, Christian Dior SE.

Source: Business of Fashion, Reuters

Corbis via Getty Images
He's married to supermodel Natalia Vodianova, whom he reportedly met on a shoot for a 2008 Louis Vuitton campaign when he was the brand's head of communications.

Source: W Magazine

Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images
The couple lives in Paris with their two children and Vodianova's three children from a previous marriage.

Source: W Magazine

Jacopo Raule/Getty Images
Alexandre, the son of Bernard Arnault and Helene Mercier, was the CEO of Rimowa, a German luggage brand owned by LVMH.

Source: The New York Times, LVMH, Getty Images

Getty Images
Following LVMH's acquisition of Tiffany & Co. last year, Alexandre was named Tiffany's executive vice president of product and communications.

Source: Business Insider

Donato Sardella/Getty Images for Louis Vuitton
He appears to be friends with Evan Spiegel, the chief executive of Snap, Snapchat's parent company. Spiegel told The New York Times that Alexandre is "a really creative guy" and that "he's constantly thinking about the brand and how to express that."

Source: The New York Times

Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images
Alexandre's younger brother, Frederic, also has a role at LVMH. He joined the conglomerate as the strategy and digital director at Swiss luxury watch brand TAG Heuer, LVMH's largest watch brand, in 2018. Last June, Frederic became TAG Heuer's CEO.

Source: The New York Times, Robb Report

Reuters
Frederic graduated from his father's alma mater, École Polytechnique in Paris, and interned at Facebook and consulting firm McKinsey before joining LVMH as the temporary head of connected technologies at TAG Heuer in 2017.

Source: The New York Times

Getty Images
Arnault's youngest son, Jean, age 23, got involved at LVMH in 2021, quietly joining Louis Vuitton as director of marketing and product development, watches.

Source: WWD

Rindoff Petroff/Hekimian/Getty Images
Like many billionaires, Arnault travels by private jet.

Source: Getty Images

Marc DEVILLE/Gamma-Rapho via Getty Images
He owns a sprawling vacation villa in glitzy Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera ...

Source: Telegraph

Getty Images
... where he has been seen enjoying some tennis matches.

Source: Getty Images

Getty Images
Arnault has also reportedly spent at least $96.4 million on residential properties in Los Angeles in the Beverly Hills, Trousdale Estates, and Hollywood Hills neighborhoods.

Source: The Real Deal

Shutterstock/Zhukova Valentyna
Arnault has rubbed shoulders with some of the world's influential figures, in the fashion world and otherwise. In 2017, he met President Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York City right before Trump's inauguration to discuss expanding LVMH factories in the US.

Source: WWD

Getty Images
He was photographed at parties with Lady Diana, Princess of Wales.

Source: Getty Images

Getty Images
Arnault was reportedly friends with Apple founder Steve Jobs, who 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."

Source: CNBC

Seth Wenig / Reuters
Former Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein once called Arnault "a complete visionary," adding that he "saw the increase of wealth in the world."

Source: CNBC

Bryan Bedder/Getty Images for The New York Times
Arnault is reportedly longtime friends with former French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Arnault was a witness at the former president's wedding to Carla Bruni.

Source: The New York Times

Getty Images
Here, Arnault can be seen shaking hands with Vladimir Putin during the Russian president's 2003 visit to the Chateau Cheval Blanc vineyard in France, which is owned by LVMH.

Source: LVMH

Getty Images
Arnault considered legendary late 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. "We loved and admired him deeply. Fashion and culture has lost a great inspiration."

Source: LVMH

Bertrand Rindoff Petroff/Getty Images
Arnault has a longstanding public rivalry with Francois Pinault, the founder of luxury group Kering, who's worth about $50 billion.

Source: Bloomberg

Axelle/Bauer-Griffin/FilmMagic
Kering owns brands including Gucci and Yves St. Laurent. The billionaire also owns Christie's auction house.

Source: Bloomberg

ERIC PIERMONT/AFP/Getty Images
LVMH originally tried to acquire a majority stake in Gucci in 1999, but Pinault ultimately snatched up the brand.

Source: Forbes

Bobby Yip/Reuters
Over the years, Arnault has built LVMH into the largest luxury conglomerate in the world and earned himself an imposing nickname: "the wolf in the cashmere coat."

Source: The New York Times

Chesnot/Getty Images
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.

Source: The New York Times

Michael Jacobs/Art in All of Us/Corbis via Getty Images
Arnault is getting richer at an astonishing rate. In January 2019, he made $4.3 billion in a single day after LVMH shares surged 6.9%. And just 16 months later, on June 19, Arnault again made news when he became the third person in the world to reach a $100 billion net worth.

Source: Bloomberg

Christophe Morin/IP3/Getty Images
In April 2019, LVMH released a statement on behalf on the Arnault family, pledging 200 million euros, or about $218.8 million, to help rebuild the Notre-Dame Cathedral, which was damaged in a 2019 fire.

Source: Le Figaro

REUTERS/Benoit Tessier
The coronavirus pandemic knocked Arnault down the Billionaires List. By May 2020, pandemic-related shut-downs sank LVMH's stock more than 17% from where it was at the start of 2020, sending Arnault's personal net worth down more than $30 billion.

Source: Bloomberg

Ruth Hytry Sinclair/Education Images/Universal Images Group via Getty Images
In November 2020, LVMH completed its nearly $16 billion acquisition of jeweler Tiffany & Co., a history-making deal in the luxury sector. The contentious deal came after multiple lawsuits, a public war of words, and a $400 million discount.

Source: Business Insider

Reuters
LVMH recorded 44.7 billion euros in revenue 2020 (roughly $54 billion), a 17% decrease from the year prior.

Source: LVMH, Business Insider

Reuters
However, LVMH appears to be bouncing back in 2021: Revenue was up 32% in the first quarter compared to the same time last year. The company said it saw strong sales in fashion and leather goods in the beginning of the year, as well as an uptick in alcohol sales in the first quarter, particularly Champagne.

Source: Business Insider

Photo by Getty Images For Moet & Chandon
In early December 2022, Arnault briefly unseated Elon Musk as the world's richest person, then later officially claimed the top spot, with a fortune worth $178 billion.

Source: Insider, Bloomberg

Reuters
LVMH announced in January a shake-up to its executive ranks that includes elevating Delphine Arnault to CEO of Christian Dior, the first time she'll take the helm of one of LVMH's brands.

Source: The Wall Street Journal

Marissa Perino contributed reporting. Taylor Nicole Rogers contributed to an earlier version of this story.

Vianney Le Caer/Invision/AP

Zo leeft en werkt luxekeizer Bernard Arnault, de op twee na rijkste mens ter wereld

Zo leeft en werkt luxekeizer Bernard Arnault, de op twee na rijkste mens ter wereld

The 73-year-old French businessman is the chairman and CEO of LVMH Moët Hennessy - Louis Vuitton, known as LVMH. Arnault owns a 97.5% stake in Christian Dior, which controls 41.2% of LVMH.

Arnault comes from the northern French town of Roubaix &mdash; he studied engineering at one of France&#39;s most prestigious schools, the École Polytechnique. After graduating, Arnault went to work for his father&#39;s construction company, Ferret-Savinel.

In 1984, Arnault acquired an ailing company called Agache-Willot-Boussac, which owned brands like French department store Bon Marche and the fashion house Christian Dior. He renamed the firm Financiere Agache and initiated a turnaround, cutting costs and selling off some of its businesses.

Soon after, he bought fashion house Celine and funded the French designer Christian Lacroix.

Arnault married Anne Dewavrin in 1973 and they had two children together before separating in 1990. Arnault remarried to Helene Mercier, a Canadian concert pianist, in 1991.

He reportedly wooed her by playing Chopin and other classical composers.

The French billionaire and his wife live on Paris&#39;s Left Bank, south of the Seine River, a historic area that includes neighborhoods such as the Latin Quarter and St. Germain-des-Prés.

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.

Arnault has five children: two with his first wife and three with his current wife.

Antoine Arnault and Delphine Arnault are his two children from his first marriage.

Delphine, Arnault&#39;s oldest daughter, is the apparent heiress to the LVMH empire.

She started her career at American consultancy firm McKinsey &amp; Co. in Paris and is now the executive vice president at Louis Vuitton.

In January 2019, Delphine became the youngest member of LVMH&#39;s executive committee at age 43.

Delphine married Italian wine heir Alessandro Vallarino Gancia in 2005 in what Forbes called &#34;France&#39;s wedding of the year.&#34; The couple divorced in 2010.

She now reportedly lives with tech billionaire Xavier Niel and has one daughter. But Delphine is notoriously private about her personal life. &#34;I&#39;m quite discreet,&#34; she told the Financial Times in a rare 2014 interview. &#34;I think I’d rather focus on my work.&#34;

Delphine&#39;s younger brother, Antoine, is chief executive of menswear label Berluti and chairman of the cashmere label Loro Piana, both LVMH brands.

In addition to those roles, Antoine was named head of communications and image for LVMH in June 2018, and in late 2022, took on a new position: CEO of the family holding company, Christian Dior SE.

He&#39;s married to supermodel Natalia Vodianova, whom he reportedly met on a shoot for a 2008 Louis ­Vuitton campaign when he was the brand&#39;s head of communications.

The couple lives in Paris with their two children and Vodianova&#39;s three children from a previous marriage.

Alexandre, the son of Bernard Arnault and Helene Mercier, was the CEO of Rimowa, a German luggage brand owned by LVMH.

Following LVMH&#39;s acquisition of Tiffany &amp; Co. last year, Alexandre was named Tiffany&#39;s executive vice president of product and communications.

He appears to be friends with Evan Spiegel, the chief executive of Snap, Snapchat&#39;s parent company. Spiegel told The New York Times that Alexandre is &#34;a really creative guy&#34; and that &#34;he&#39;s constantly thinking about the brand and how to express that.&#34;

Alexandre&#39;s younger brother, Frederic, also has a role at LVMH. He joined the conglomerate as the strategy and digital director at Swiss luxury watch brand TAG Heuer, LVMH&#39;s largest watch brand, in 2018. Last June, Frederic became TAG Heuer&#39;s CEO.

Frederic graduated from his father&#39;s alma mater, École Polytechnique in Paris, and interned at Facebook and consulting firm McKinsey before joining LVMH as the temporary head of connected technologies at TAG Heuer in 2017.

Arnault&#39;s youngest son, Jean, age 23, got involved at LVMH in 2021, quietly joining Louis Vuitton as director of marketing and product development, watches.

Like many billionaires, Arnault travels by private jet.

He owns a sprawling vacation villa in glitzy Saint-Tropez on the French Riviera ...

... where he has been seen enjoying some tennis matches.

Arnault has also reportedly spent at least $96.4 million on residential properties in Los Angeles in the Beverly Hills, Trousdale Estates, and Hollywood Hills neighborhoods.

Arnault has rubbed shoulders with some of the world&#39;s influential figures, in the fashion world and otherwise. In 2017, he met President Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York City right before Trump&#39;s inauguration to discuss expanding LVMH factories in the US.

He was photographed at parties with Lady Diana, Princess of Wales.

Arnault was reportedly friends with Apple founder Steve Jobs, who once said to Arnault: &#34;You know Bernard, I don’t know if in 50 years my iPhone will still be a success but I can tell you, I&#39;m sure everybody will still drink your Dom Pérignon.&#34;

Former Goldman Sachs chief executive Lloyd Blankfein once called Arnault &#34;a complete visionary,&#34; adding that he &#34;saw the increase of wealth in the world.&#34;

Arnault is reportedly longtime friends with former French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Arnault was a witness at the former president&#39;s wedding to Carla Bruni.

Here, Arnault can be seen shaking hands with Vladimir Putin during the Russian president&#39;s 2003 visit to the Chateau Cheval Blanc vineyard in France, which is owned by LVMH.

Arnault has a longstanding public rivalry with Francois Pinault, the founder of luxury group Kering, who&#39;s worth about $50 billion.

Kering owns brands including Gucci and Yves St. Laurent. The billionaire also owns Christie&#39;s auction house.

LVMH originally tried to acquire a majority stake in Gucci in 1999, but Pinault ultimately snatched up the brand.

Over the years, Arnault has built LVMH into the largest luxury conglomerate in the world and earned himself an imposing nickname: &#34;the wolf in the cashmere coat.&#34;

He&#39;s behind the creation of Foundation Louis Vuitton, a Frank Gehry-designed contemporary art museum and performance space in Paris that opened in 2014.

Arnault is getting richer at an astonishing rate. In January 2019, he made $4.3 billion in a single day after LVMH shares surged 6.9%. And just 16 months later, on June 19, Arnault again made news when he became the third person in the world to reach a $100 billion net worth.

In April 2019, LVMH released a statement on behalf on the Arnault family, pledging 200 million euros, or about $218.8 million, to help rebuild the Notre-Dame Cathedral, which was damaged in a 2019 fire.

The coronavirus pandemic knocked Arnault down the Billionaires List. By May 2020, pandemic-related shut-downs sank LVMH&#39;s stock more than 17% from where it was at the start of 2020, sending Arnault&#39;s personal net worth down more than $30 billion.

In November 2020, LVMH completed its nearly $16 billion acquisition of jeweler Tiffany &amp; Co., a history-making deal in the luxury sector. The contentious deal came after multiple lawsuits, a public war of words, and a $400 million discount.

LVMH recorded 44.7 billion euros in revenue 2020 (roughly $54 billion), a 17% decrease from the year prior.

In early December 2022, Arnault briefly unseated Elon Musk as the world&#39;s richest person, then later officially claimed the top spot, with a fortune worth $178 billion.

LVMH announced in January a shake-up to its executive ranks that includes elevating Delphine Arnault to CEO of Christian Dior, the first time she&#39;ll take the helm of one of LVMH&#39;s brands.

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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.

The French billionaire and his wife live on Paris's Left Bank, south of the Seine River, a historic area that includes neighborhoods such as the Latin Quarter and St. Germain-des-Prés.

Delphine, Arnault's oldest daughter, is the apparent heiress to the LVMH empire.

She started her career at American consultancy firm McKinsey & Co. in Paris and is now the executive vice president at Louis Vuitton.

In January 2019, Delphine became the youngest member of LVMH's executive committee at age 43.

Delphine married Italian wine heir Alessandro Vallarino Gancia in 2005 in what Forbes called "France's wedding of the year." The couple divorced in 2010.

She now reportedly lives with tech billionaire Xavier Niel and has one daughter. But Delphine is notoriously private about her personal life. "I'm quite discreet," she told the Financial Times in a rare 2014 interview. "I think I’d rather focus on my work."

Delphine's younger brother, Antoine, is chief executive of menswear label Berluti and chairman of the cashmere label Loro Piana, both LVMH brands.

He's married to supermodel Natalia Vodianova, whom he reportedly met on a shoot for a 2008 Louis Vuitton campaign when he was the brand's head of communications.

The couple lives in Paris with their two children and Vodianova's three children from a previous marriage.

Following LVMH's acquisition of Tiffany & Co. last year, Alexandre was named Tiffany's executive vice president of product and communications.

He appears to be friends with Evan Spiegel, the chief executive of Snap, Snapchat's parent company. Spiegel told The New York Times that Alexandre is "a really creative guy" and that "he's constantly thinking about the brand and how to express that."

Alexandre's younger brother, Frederic, also has a role at LVMH. He joined the conglomerate as the strategy and digital director at Swiss luxury watch brand TAG Heuer, LVMH's largest watch brand, in 2018. Last June, Frederic became TAG Heuer's CEO.

Frederic graduated from his father's alma mater, École Polytechnique in Paris, and interned at Facebook and consulting firm McKinsey before joining LVMH as the temporary head of connected technologies at TAG Heuer in 2017.

Arnault's youngest son, Jean, age 23, got involved at LVMH in 2021, quietly joining Louis Vuitton as director of marketing and product development, watches.

Arnault has rubbed shoulders with some of the world's influential figures, in the fashion world and otherwise. In 2017, he met President Donald Trump at Trump Tower in New York City right before Trump's inauguration to discuss expanding LVMH factories in the US.

Arnault was reportedly friends with Apple founder Steve Jobs, who 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 reportedly longtime friends with former French president Nicolas Sarkozy. Arnault was a witness at the former president's wedding to Carla Bruni.

Here, Arnault can be seen shaking hands with Vladimir Putin during the Russian president's 2003 visit to the Chateau Cheval Blanc vineyard in France, which is owned by LVMH.

Arnault has a longstanding public rivalry with Francois Pinault, the founder of luxury group Kering, who's worth about $50 billion.

Kering owns brands including Gucci and Yves St. Laurent. The billionaire also owns Christie's auction house.

Over the years, Arnault has built LVMH into the largest luxury conglomerate in the world and 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.

The coronavirus pandemic knocked Arnault down the Billionaires List. By May 2020, pandemic-related shut-downs sank LVMH's stock more than 17% from where it was at the start of 2020, sending Arnault's personal net worth down more than $30 billion.

In November 2020, LVMH completed its nearly $16 billion acquisition of jeweler Tiffany & Co., a history-making deal in the luxury sector. The contentious deal came after multiple lawsuits, a public war of words, and a $400 million discount.

In early December 2022, Arnault briefly unseated Elon Musk as the world's richest person, then later officially claimed the top spot, with a fortune worth $178 billion.

LVMH announced in January a shake-up to its executive ranks that includes elevating Delphine Arnault to CEO of Christian Dior, the first time she'll take the helm of one of LVMH's brands.