Bernard Arnault is the founder, chairman and CEO of LVMH, the world’s largest luxury goods company. He is also the richest person in the world, with a net worth of $207.6 billion as of January 28, 2024, according to Forbes. But who is the man behind the empire of fashion, beauty, jewelry, wine and art? Here are some facts about his life, family, business and achievements.
Bernard Arnault Early Life and Education
Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault was born on March 5, 1949, in Roubaix, France. His father, Jean Léon Arnault, was a manufacturer and civil engineer who owned a construction company called Ferret-Savinel. His mother, Marie-Josèphe Savinel, was a pianist who had a fascination for Dior. Arnault was raised in a strict Catholic-Auvergne style by his devout grandmother and took classical piano lessons as a child. He attended elite Catholic schools and graduated from the École Polytechnique, France’s leading engineering school, in 1971.
Career and Business
Arnault began his career in 1971, working for his father’s company. He convinced his father to shift the focus of the company to real estate and renamed it Ferinel. In 1984, he heard that the French government was looking for someone to take over the Boussac Saint-Frères empire, a bankrupt textile and retail conglomerate that owned Christian Dior. With the help of Antoine Bernheim, a senior partner of Lazard Frères, Arnault acquired the Financière Agache, a luxury goods company, and won the bidding war for Boussac Saint-Frères, buying the group for a symbolic one franc. He became the CEO of Financière Agache and revived Christian Dior as the cornerstone of his new organization.
In 1987, Arnault was invited to invest in LVMH, a merger of two leading luxury brands, Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessy. He formed a joint venture with Guinness PLC and ousted the chairman of LVMH, Henri Racamier, in 1990. He became the chairman and CEO of LVMH and started to expand his portfolio of luxury brands. He acquired Christian Lacroix, Givenchy, Kenzo, Loewe, Céline, Berluti, Fred Joailler, DFS, Sephora, Marc Jacobs, Fendi, Emilio Pucci, Donna Karan, TAG Heuer, Hublot, Bulgari, Loro Piana, Rimowa, Tiffany & Co. and many more. He also created new brands, such as Benefit Cosmetics, Make Up For Ever, Fresh and Kat Von D. He diversified his business into media, hospitality, art and technology, owning stakes in Le Parisien, Les Échos, Radio Classique, Clos19, Belmond, Cheval Blanc, Royal Van Lent, X (formerly Twitter) and Spotify. He also founded his own venture capital firm, Aglaé Ventures, which has invested in companies such as Netflix, Airbnb, Slack and ByteDance.
Bernard Arnault Family and Personal Life
Bernard Arnault has been married twice and has five children. His first wife was Anne Dewavrin, whom he married in 1973 and divorced in 1990. They have two children: Delphine, who is the executive vice president of Louis Vuitton and a director of LVMH, and Antoine, who is the CEO of Berluti and the chairman of Loro Piana. His second wife is Hélène Mercier, a Canadian concert pianist whom he married in 1991. They have three children: Frédéric, who is the CEO of TAG Heuer, Jean, who is the CEO of Rimowa, and Alexandre, who is the CEO of Tiffany & Co. All of his children work at LVMH and have equal stakes in his holding company, Agache. His daughter-in-law is Natalia Vodianova, a Russian supermodel and philanthropist, who is married to Antoine.
Arnault is known for his passion for art and culture. He is an avid art collector, owning works by Picasso, Warhol, Basquiat, Rothko, Monet and many others. He is also a patron of the arts, supporting various museums, exhibitions, foundations and institutions. He created the Louis Vuitton Foundation, a cultural center and museum designed by Frank Gehry, in 2014. He also donated €200 million to the reconstruction of Notre-Dame Cathedral after the fire in 2019. He is a lover of music and plays the piano himself. He reportedly wooed his wife Hélène by playing Chopin and other classical composers. He is also interested in chess, golf, sailing and tennis.
Achievements and Honors
Arnault is widely regarded as one of the most influential and visionary business leaders in the world. He has been praised for his entrepreneurial spirit, his strategic acumen, his creative flair and his sense of excellence. He has transformed LVMH into the world’s largest and most profitable luxury goods company, with a market capitalization of $388.8 billion and a revenue of $64.7 billion as of 2023. He has also created thousands of jobs, fostered innovation, promoted sustainability and championed diversity and inclusion.
Facts About Bernard Arnault
- Bernard Arnault was born on March 5, 1949, in Roubaix, France, to a wealthy industrial family. His father, Jean Leon Arnault, owned a civil engineering company that specialized in public works and construction.
- Bernard Arnault graduated from the prestigious École Polytechnique in 1971, with a degree in engineering. He then joined his father’s company and persuaded him to diversify into real estate and hospitality.
- Bernard Arnault moved to the United States in 1981, after the socialist government of François Mitterrand nationalized some of his family’s assets. He lived in New York for three years, where he developed luxury condominiums and invested in various businesses.
- Bernard Arnault returned to France in 1984, when he learned that the textile group Boussac, which owned the fashion house Dior, was bankrupt. He acquired the company for a symbolic franc, with the help of Antoine Bernheim, a partner at the investment bank Lazard.
- Bernard Arnault transformed Dior into a profitable and prestigious brand, by hiring talented designers such as Gianfranco Ferré and John Galliano, and expanding its product range to include cosmetics, jewelry, and accessories.
- Bernard Arnault launched a hostile takeover bid for LVMH, the world’s largest luxury group, in 1988, after buying a stake in its subsidiary Financière Agache. He became the chairman and CEO of LVMH in 1989, after a fierce legal battle with its former boss, Henri Racamier.
- Bernard Arnault grew LVMH into a global empire, by acquiring more than 70 iconic brands in various sectors, such as fashion, leather goods, perfumes, watches, jewelry, wines, and spirits. He also created new brands, such as Sephora, Celine, and Loewe, and supported emerging talents, such as Marc Jacobs, Alexander McQueen, and Nicolas Ghesquière.
- Bernard Arnault is known for his visionary and innovative leadership style, which combines artistic creativity and business acumen. He gives his creative directors complete freedom to express their vision, while ensuring financial discipline and operational efficiency. He also embraces digital transformation and sustainability as key drivers of growth and value.
- Bernard Arnault is one of the most influential and respected figures in the world of art and culture. He is the president of the Fondation Louis Vuitton, a museum and cultural center that showcases contemporary art and architecture in Paris. He is also a patron of the arts, supporting various institutions and initiatives, such as the Louvre, the Versailles Palace, the Centre Pompidou, and the Jardin d’Acclimatation.
- Bernard Arnault is a generous philanthropist, who has donated hundreds of millions of euros to various causes and charities. He has contributed to the restoration of Notre-Dame Cathedral, the fight against COVID-19, the education of underprivileged children, and the protection of the environment. He has also signed the Giving Pledge, a commitment to donate more than half of his wealth to philanthropy.
