Whoever says anything about the global economic crisis and the decline in the purchasing power of the population, the fact remains. In 2018, Bernard Arnault, head of luxury goods company Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy, earned a record $ 31 billion. Thus, his general fortune exceeded $ 100 billion, and the French businessman himself became No. 3 among all the rich people on the planet.
The most elite club
People like to create secret societies, closed and elite clubs. They accept only the best of the best, the richest of the rich, stars, politicians, secular lions and lionesses. But among this diversity, there is a one-of-a-kind virtual club of multimillionaires, whose fortune exceeded $ 100 billion.
Until recently, only 2 members were listed in it: one of the founders of Microsoft, Bill Gates, and the richest person in the history of the civilization Jeff Bezos. The latter is the CEO of Amazon.
In the summer of 2019, they were joined by the head of the LVMH group, Bernard Arnault. His condition, according to experts at Bloomberg, has reached the cherished mark. By the way, the richest man in Europe is not so far from the “senior comrades”. B. Gates owns $ 108 billion, and D. Bezos - $ 119 billion. If 2020 is just as successful, then the French multi-billionaire can push both Bill and Jeff from Olympus. By the way, according to the latest data, B. Arno almost caught up with the co-founder of Microsoft and is about to come out in 2nd place.
Curriculum Vitae
Bernard Arnault was born March 5, 1949 in the north of France in the city of Roubaix. Once the region around Lille was a major center for the textile industry. Not surprisingly, the business of the family that owned the Ferret-Savinel construction company flourished.
Arno from a youth showed commercial savvy. In 1971, immediately after graduating from the Palez Polytechnic School, he went to work for a family company. Having estimated what was happening, in 1976 he persuaded his father to sell a construction company and invest the proceeds of 40 million francs in a short-term rental business. Already in 1979, the young genius led the company, renamed Férinel.
From real estate to luxury
Bernard was cramped in the regional real estate market. In 1984, he began to acquire production related to the production of luxury goods. Initially, he became CEO of Financière Agache, and subsequently took control of the Boussac Saint-Frères textile mill, which was experiencing financial difficulties. The latter holds a 40% stake in the now-legendary Christian Dior brand.
After a series of other acquisitions, Bernard finally realized what he needed. He got rid of excess ballast, and invested all funds in the development of the Christian Dior luxury brand and Le Bon Marché department store. In 1985 Arno became the managing director and mastermind of the company. Cases of the fashion house went uphill. In 1988, Christian Dior SA Arnault acquired a 32% stake in the charter capital of Moët-Hennessy / Louis Vuitton, another producer of wealthy goods.
LVMH Group
In 1987, Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessy finally merged into the LVMH group. Bernard put a lot of effort into making this project a reality. Since there were disputes between the leaders and the union was bursting at the seams, Arno decided to buy back a controlling stake in order to protect LVMH from collapse. As a talented businessman, he saw the prospects of an integrated team. In 1989, he was elected chairman of the executive board.
Since then, Bernard Arnaud has set in motion an ambitious development plan for the company. LVMH has grown into one of the world's largest manufacturers of luxury goods, along with Swiss giant Richemont and French Kering. For eleven years, the market value of LVMH has increased by at least 15%, while sales and profits have grown by 500%.
It is curious that Arno promoted the idea of decentralizing the group’s brands so that Christian Dior, Washes Hennessey and Louis Vuitton are recognizable among consumers. For brands to be seen as independent firms with their own history. Moreover, they had a common economic and administrative base.
Bernard Arnault is active in Russia. In 2006, the company bought out a large distributor of cosmetics and perfumes Seldiko. Seldico LLC (LVMH Perfumes & Cosmetics Russia) delivers luxury branded products to the country under the trademarks Parfums Christian Dior, Perfumes Loewe, Givenchy Parfums, Kenzo Parfums, Maison Francis Kurkdjian, Acqua di Parma, Make Up For Ever, Benefit Cosmetics, Guerlain.
Of course, these are not the only assets of the billionaire. Arnaud willingly invests in the IT sector, is an investor in the Netflix online movie theater, owns a stake in France’s largest supermarket retailer and Carrefour, the world's second largest distributor of products.
Bernard Arnault is also a passionate collector. At his disposal are the works of Picasso, Yves Klein, Henry Moore, Andy Warhol.