Bernard Arnault, the wealthiest man in the world and chairman and CEO of luxury goods giant LMVH, has appointed his daughter the new head of Christian Dior, according to Reuters. Delphine Arnaut, 47, replaces Pietro Beccari, who is slated to take over as CEO of Louis Vuitton.
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton is the world’s largest luxury goods company. Arnault, 73, founded the company in 1987. It is the parent company of numerous prestigious brands, including Bulgari, Celine, Fendi, Givenchy, Veuve Clicquot, and Dom Perignon. LVMH operates in more than 70 countries worldwide.
Delphine Arnault was Dior’s Deputy Managing Director for 12 years before becoming an executive vice president at Louis Vuitton in 2013.
Bernard Arnault’s children wield considerable power throughout the LVMH empire. Antoine is Christian Dior SE’s CEO, Alexandre is the executive VP at Tiffany & Co, Frédéric helms Tag Heuer and Jean handles marketing and watch development for Louis Vuitton. Antoine and Delphine Arnault also sit on LVMH’s board.
According to Bloomberg, Arnault’s current net worth is $178 billion. He’s now the wealthiest man on Earth by $50 billion, passing up Tesla CEO Elon Musk, who became the first person ever to lose $200 billion in the last year.
Business Insider quoted Arnault’s statement about his daughter’s new position. Delphine Arnault’s appointment “is another milestone in a career journey in fashion and leather goods defined by excellence,” he said, “first during 12 years at Christian Dior and then at Louis Vuitton for the past decade where she was number two with responsibility for all of the Maison’s product activities.”
Arnault concluded the statement by saying Delphine’s “keen insights and incomparable experience will be decisive assets in driving the ongoing development of Christian Dior.”
BI noted an apparent positive effect on the company’s stock, as shares were up by 1.6% on Wednesday, giving LVMH a massive $414 billion valuation.
