Bernard Arnault is traversing what’s arguably LVMH’s worst downturn in his 36 years at its helm.
Photographer: Nathan Laine/BloombergBillionaire Arnault Grapples With Biggest Slump in LVMH History
The luxury goods maker is reeling from a sharp downturn in the €364 billion industry — and questions about succession are growing louder.
In a conference hall deep under the glass pyramid of Paris’ Louvre Museum, Bernard Arnault was visibly annoyed.
The billionaire chief executive officer of the world’s biggest luxury group is contending with an unprecedented demand slump in China and the threat of steeper US tariffs that have hammered his company’s shares and knocked him from first to ninth among the world’s wealthiest people. But on this April morning, Arnault’s displeasure was directed at the elevator music playing as investors trooped into LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE’s annual general meeting.