Name Bernard Arnault |
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Born March 5, 1949 (age 75) |
Source LVMH |
Industry Consumer |
Arnault apparently wooed his wife, Helene Mercier, a concert pianist, by playing Chopin and other classical composers on the piano. Arnault and LVMH own a 40% stake in private equity firm L Catterton, which has $30 billion in assets, including investments in Birkenstock and Equinox.
Bernard Arnault oversees the LVMH empire of 75 fashion and cosmetics brands, including Louis Vuitton and Sephora. LVMH acquired American jeweler Tiffany & Co in 2021 for $15.8 billion, believed to be the biggest luxury brand acquisition ever. Arnault's holding company Agache backs venture capital firm Ventures, which has investments in businesses such as Netflix and TikTok parent company ByteDance. His father made a small fortune in construction; Arnault got his start by putting up $15 million from that business to buy Christian Dior in 1984. Arnault's five children all work at LVMH; in July 2022, he proposed a reorganization of his holding company Agache to give them equal stakes.