Biography of Bernard Arnault. Biography Bernard Arnault

owner Moёt Hennessy Louis Vuitton

Y. Petrova

E. Spiridonova

Bernard Arnault is the owner and CEO of the world leader in the luxury industry Moёt Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) and the richest man in France, according to Forbes magazine in 2007, has a personal fortune of $ 26 billion.

His eight-story office is located in one of the most respectable quarters of Paris.

Unlike many famous entrepreneurs who started their business from scratch, Bernard was destined for a comfortable life from birth. His father Jean Arnault had his own construction company, and Bernard, after graduating from the Ecole Polytechnic, at the age of 21 became a full partner of his parent, and at the age of 26, Bernard Arnault himself personally headed the family business.

However, the construction company did not correspond well to the interests and ambitions of the young man, and soon Bernard, with the support of his father, finds a buyer who wants to acquire a family business, and directs the proceeds to the acquisition of the largest textile company Boussac.

“My son did not understand anything in textiles,” Jean Arno recalled years later, “and asked me to buy books for him on this topic, I found only three. We could go broke, but Bernard convinced me that he was not mistaken, and I always believed him.

Having sold the family company, Arno went to America for four years, which at that moment was experiencing a real boom in mergers and acquisitions. Returning to France, the future oligarch began to put into practice typically American methods and techniques for capturing companies.

From the first days in business, Bernard Arnault decided not to reckon with anyone or anything, his dream was to create a company that would become the world leader in the production and sale of luxury goods. Realizing that it is impossible to realize his ambitious ideas from scratch, Arnault in 1988 begins to buy shares in the newly created LVMH company.

LVMH was a union of two alcohol brands Moёt and Hennessy and fashion house Louis Vuitton. Bernard managed to collect the necessary stake in order to obtain the right to a decisive vote in the board of the company, of which he immediately appointed his father as chairman. This was Arno's first successful deal, which marked the beginning of a whole collection of star brands that brought untold wealth to their owner.

Now Bernard Arnault owns the fashion houses Dior, Givenchy, Selin, Lacroix, Kenzo, Frank et Fils and le Bon Marche stores, the most famous Chateau dYquem vineyard with four centuries of history. He owns Guerlain and Sefora, a chain of well-known perfume boutiques. Arno is the owner of famous alcoholic brands such as Hennessy cognac, Moёt & Chandon, Dom Perignon, Veuve Clicquot champagnes.

Bernard Arnault owns the auction company Philips, which sold Malevich's Black Square painting for $15 million. From the media, the oligarch owns two financial publications Tribune and Investir, the Connaissances des arts magazine dedicated to art, as well as the Classique radio station and a 10% stake in the Bouigue corporation, which owns the largest French television channel TF1.

Today, LVMH President Bernard Arnault is stepping up investment in his Europatweb holding of about 60 Internet companies. At the same time, he is not afraid of temporary failures in the field of the latest technologies: not so long ago, Arno Voosom, a company specializing in the sale of sports goods via the Internet, went bankrupt.

The secret of Arno's entrepreneurial success lies in buying defunct famous firms, which the businessman then brings to the level of superprofits. Over the past few years, Bernard Arnault has doubled his fortune, which is now estimated at $26 billion. Such a dizzying success is due to the increased demand for luxury products, the share of indisputable luck, as well as the amazing business sense of Mr. Arnault. Bernard Arnault is famous not only for his financial achievements, but for his numerous charity events.

He sponsors art galleries, supports disabled students at the Academy of Fine Arts, and his company spends large sums of money to find new talent in business and the arts.

Curriculum vitae

Bernard Arnault was born in France in 1949 as the eldest son of a successful businessman. In 1970 he became his father's partner.

In 1976, Arno sells the family business and acquires the Boussac textile company. By 1989, he becomes the owner of LVMH. Bernard Arnault owns a collection of Renaissance paintings, loves classical music and plays the piano well himself.

In any case, this is the opinion of his wife, the famous Canadian pianist Helene Mercier-Arnaud, whom the oligarch met in 1990 at a dinner hosted by fellow musicians. Helen recalls: “I knew he was an entrepreneur, but I had no idea what he was doing. I was told that he plays the piano."

In 1991 they got married, and in 1992 and 1998 their two sons were born.

Favorite Culinary Dishes: Lobster, steak with blood and chocolate cake.

He hates public speaking and rarely gives interviews. His younger sister, Dominique Vatin-Arnaud, who runs the family's jewelry store Fred, says that "Bernard says little because he thinks a lot."

Arno does not like familiarity, it is known that he does not allow anyone even from his inner circle to address him as “you”, and they also say that he practically does not smile, and only memories of the weaknesses of his competitors can cause laughter .

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Biography, life story of Bernard Arnault

Bernard Arnault
Bernard Arnault
France

51-year-old Bernard Arnault is one of the richest people in France. Forbes magazine estimates his fortune at $ 12.6 billion. Since 1989, Arno has been the head of Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH), the world leader in the production and sale of luxury goods. In recent years, he has also tried himself in the field of European Internet business. He has already invested more than half a billion dollars in one of the new companies.

At 21, he received an engineering degree, but worked little in his specialty. Arno became his father's partner and four years later headed the family construction company. A small company, however, did not correspond well to Bernard's ambitions, and at the first opportunity Arno parted with her. At the age of 27, he negotiated the sale of the family business, but saw fit to "please" his father only when the deal was already completed.

Arnault spent the next four years in the US, where the mergers and acquisitions boom was in full swing. He returned from the States armed with an arsenal of typical American hostile takeover tactics. The opportunity to apply them in French conditions presented itself rather quickly. After all, it was necessary to invest somewhere the proceeds from the sale of the family company.

In 1984, Arno's attention was drawn to the recently bankrupt textile conglomerate Boussac, which, among other things, owned the Christian Dior fashion house. At that moment, the company was managed by the French government, which was looking for a new owner. Several companies became interested in the tidbit, including Louis Vuitton, but Arno was ahead of everyone. With $15 million of his own money, he, along with Antoine Bernheim, a partner at the French investment bank Lazard Freres and Co., raised the necessary $80 million and went into action. Arno's first wife was a cousin of the former owners of the company, and, taking advantage of this circumstance, he began to "like a relative" buy up the shares that remained from those. Then he convinced the French government to sell him the remaining stake, swearing at the same time that he would seek the revival of Boussac.

CONTINUED BELOW

Methodically turning all the more or less valuable assets of Boussac into money, Arnault nevertheless decided to retain Christian Dior. Pretty soon, he himself fell under the fascination of the fashion world and set about creating a company that would become the world leader in the production and sale of luxury goods. Realizing that it was unrealistic to implement such an ambitious project from scratch, Arnault began buying shares in the newly formed company Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) in 1988.

Arnault still claims that he started the takeover of LVMH to save the company from the fragmentation that he said was inevitable. He began to build his empire on the idea of a concentration of different brands, united by belonging to the luxury class. In an increasingly globalized economy, it takes a lot of money to promote and maintain one single brand; the presence of a whole portfolio of brands in the hands of one company helps to significantly reduce costs. Fisted Arno, even trading in luxury goods, wanted to save money.

His tactics are bearing fruit. LVMH now controls such brands as Givenchy, Christian Lacroix, Loewe, Kenzo, Guerlain, Berluti, Celine. Arno's empire includes the jewelry firm Fred and the Swiss watchmaker Tag Heuer.

The list of alcohol brands in the Arno collection is no less impressive: Hennessy cognac, Moet et Chandon champagne, Dom Perignon, Pommery, Krug, Veuve Clicquot. Moreover, the empire continues to grow - Arno remains one of the most active buyers of companies in the world.

One of the most crushing defeats of his career, Bernard Arnault suffered last year when he tried to add the Italian company Gucci to his collection.

The irony is that only six years ago he could have bought it much cheaper and without any problems: the then owner of Gucci, the Investcorp bank, asked for $ 350 million. The company, founded in 1923 in Florence, was the world's leading manufacturer of luxury goods, but in the 70s and 80s it fell into decay - mainly due to conflicts within the family of owners.

Before putting Gucci up for sale, Invertcorp hired new management - Italian-American Domenico De Sole as president and Tom Ford as chief designer. However, the company's affairs were so neglected that Arno chose not to contact her and refused to buy.

Then De Sole suggested that Arnault buy Gucci entirely. However, the price he quoted was too high: $85 per share, $30 more than its real value. Arno didn't want to pay that kind of money. At first, he tried to put pressure on the interlocutor, and when this failed, he promised to significantly increase his salary if he ceased to be stubborn. De Sole proudly refused. (All this is known from the words of De Sole himself. Arno claims that these are slanders of enemies. They say that an ordinary business conversation took place - and nothing more.)

Frustrated, Arno filed a lawsuit against De Sole in a Dutch court (Gucci is registered as a legal entity in Amsterdam), accusing him of mismanaging the company. During the process, De Sole assembled a team of lawyers and Wall Street bankers. A capital dilution scheme was devised: 20 million shares were issued as part of a new program to provide each employee with a small package of Gucci securities. As a result, Arno's share in the company almost halved. De Sole signed an agreement to sell about 40% of Gucci's shares, and not to anyone, but to another French businessman, Francois Pinault, Arnault's eternal competitor.

Arno and Pino's rivalry continues in other industries, with both businessmen now heavily investing in Internet ventures. As for Arno, these investments have not yet brought him much benefit. Nevertheless, he is convinced that the Internet economy has a great future. Although ... Luxury - it is somehow more reliable.

“I can guarantee you that in a hundred years people will be drinking Dom Perignon champagne,” Bernard Arnault once said. “I don’t know what kind of Internet they will use…”

One of the richest people in France - Bernard Arnault, whose fortune, according to Forbes magazine, is estimated at thirty-seven billion euros - purposefully went to such success. Since 1989, he has been the head of LVMH (Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton), a leader in the production and sale of luxury goods.

Start

Arno's father had a small construction company, and although it was not at all according to his son's ambitions, he handed it over to a twenty-five-year-old young man. Bernard Arnault parted with the construction at the first opportunity, literally two years later, but he confronted his father with the fact of the sale after the completion of the transaction. For the next four years, the young man studied business in the United States and perfectly studied the procedures of mergers and acquisitions, adopting American methods of hostile takeover of companies.

In France, this knowledge quickly turned into skills. The money from the sale of the family business was more than successfully invested. It so happened that Boussac, a textile conglomerate that owned, among other things, the famous Christian Dior fashion house, went bankrupt. was looking for a buyer among the hunters for this tidbit. Bernard Arnault was ahead of everyone, even Louis Vuitton. He took money from the bank, because he needed 80 million dollars, and he had 15, and bought shares in this company, first from relatives who were the owners, then from the government.

Luxury

The revival of the bankrupt company Boussac, in principle, was not planned. Arno sold off assets as much as possible. However, unexpectedly fell under the influence of the fashion world, Christian Dior decided to keep and create the production and sale of luxury goods at the level of the world leader. Naturally, it was impossible to do this from scratch, and in 1988 Bernard Arnault began to buy shares in the newly formed company LVMH. It was a real explosive mixture: Hennessy cognac and the world-famous Louis Vuitton company.

However, there was still a unifying idea: different brands belonged to the luxury class. The economy around the world is experiencing the conditions of globalization, it is expensive to promote and maintain each individual brand, and a single portfolio is not so heavy. It turned out that even trading in luxury goods, there is an opportunity to save money, which is what Bernard Arnault did. A photo of this period shows a person how serious, just as self-confident.

Empire

This tactic paid off almost immediately. Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) now controls such high-profile fashion brands as Christian Lacroix, Givenchy, Kenzo, Loewe, Berluti, Guerlain, Celine, Fred jewelers and Tag Heuer Swiss watchmakers.

Alcoholic brands have also increased - these are Dom Perignon, Veuve Clicquot, Krug, Pommery. The empire is growing, and Bernard Arnault, whose biography is the biography of one of the born businessmen, is still one of the most active buyers in the world.

Not without defeat

One of them happened when trying to add all the others to the existing own share of Gucci in order to become the sole owner. The ruling family of this old and luxurious firm had a strong quarrel - apparently, they were tired of each other since 1923. By the 1980s, the company was in complete decline. True, after thinking carefully, Bernard Arnault refused to buy because of the terrifying neglect of all affairs. Then he regretted this decision, but they asked for the company too expensive. I tried to persuade the manager, offering him a salary worthy of this step. He hesitated.

Then Arno, as they say, bit the bit and filed a lawsuit in the court of Holland ("Gucci" is registered in Amsterdam as a legal entity) regarding the unfair management of the company. The manager (De Sole) was also no stranger: with a team of American business lawyers, he implemented a capital dilution scheme by issuing twenty million shares. Arno's share was eventually halved. Then De Sole sold forty percent of the shares to Arno's competitor, François Pinault, whom they had encountered a long time ago on the business paths.

But not without luck

In addition to the above, Bernard Arnault owns the Philips auction company, the same one. that she sold Malevich's "Black Square" for fifteen million dollars. He also has his own media: the financial publications Investir and Tribune, the art magazine Connaissances Des Arts, the radio station Classique, as well as ten percent of the shares of the owner of the TF1 television channel, Bouigue Corporation. In addition, investments in a holding of sixty Internet companies - Europatweb - are constantly increasing.

The secret (and not a secret already!) of the success of entrepreneur Bernard Arnault is the purchase of dying famous firms, which are then brought to the level of super profits. The fortune is growing dizzyingly. The business sense of a businessman is at the level, besides, he is lucky, and luxury products are invariably in high demand. It should be noted that he is also famous for his charity work. Arno is a sponsor of art galleries, supports all the invalids of the Academy of Fine Arts who study there, spends a lot on finding talent in art and business.

Personality

Bernard Arnault and family own an excellent collection of Renaissance paintings and love classical music. The father of the family plays the piano well himself, and he married the famous Canadian pianist Helen Mercier, who bore him children. Like almost all Frenchmen, Bernard Arnault is a gourmet. Likes steak with blood and chocolate cake. But he does not recognize familiarity: even the closest ones turn to him as you and very often - in a whisper. He does not like to speak in public, refuses interviews. He almost never smiles, and even his relatives have never seen him laughing. He speaks little. Thinks a lot. Such is the whole Bernard Arnault.

Children

He has many children (the information is different), but two are fighting for the inheritance - LVMH: the daughter of Delphine and the son of Antoine. The key asset of the group's portfolio is Louis Vuitton, and recently Delphine Arnaud-Gancia was appointed its vice president. A responsible position, since this brand generates much more than half of the entire profit of the empire. Antoine is the head of another company, the men's - Berluti.

Delfina has a very good education, which allowed her to quickly make a career: a French business school and an English school of economics. Already in 2003, she was on the board of directors of LVMH. For five years she worked as Deputy Director of Christian Dior Couture, during which time the sales growth rate became twice the industry average. It is quite possible that she will inherit the entire empire created by her father. Although many continue to bet on Antoine. No one knows what dad himself thinks about all this, who has three more children and many nephews.

Son of Bernard Arnault

Delfina is an introvert, all like her father. As the witty French say about her, "Napoleon of the luxury industry" or "she-wolf in a cashmere coat." Strict, harsh and laconic. Many believe that, of course, she will occupy a large and important position in the empire, something related to shares or chairmanship of the board of directors. But Antoine is an extrovert, an excellent manager and may well become the face of the entire huge group. Colleagues praise him for his excellent communication skills. It was he who was able to persuade M. Gorbachev to appear in an advertisement for Louis Vuitton, which received an award

A regular hero of the gossip column, Antoine takes his every step, looking back at his work. An affair with model Natalya Vodianova only fueled interest in the brand. Bernard Arnault and Vodianova are connected by the fact that she is the wife of his son and the mother of his grandson Maxim. Antoine, for all his cheerfulness, is always internally collected - it is not without reason that he is considered the most experienced poker player (with a total winnings of six hundred thousand dollars), for this a head is needed much more than luck. And he does not exclude that someday he will replace his father in office. But not soon.

Spivakov and Louis Vuitton

As a true lover of classical music and a famous philanthropist, Bernard Arnault knows and is friends with many excellent musicians. and Bernard Arnault met on the same soil. The latter even made a very necessary one on his birthday - a case for Stradivarius. Such that it would be convenient not only for the violin, but also for the musician himself on endless tours. The case was made by Patrick-Louis Vuitton himself.

Not only cash and a passport fit there, but also letters dear to the heart, contracts, strings, several bows, cufflinks, photographs of children, wife, some medicines, notebooks and much, much more. There are no pockets for all this in a hard case. In this, gift, there were not even pockets, but drawers with partitions, as if for jewelry. A unique luxury item for a musician, which, in principle, is alien to any luxury. However, in this case, it turned out not only unique, but also convenient.

Miraculous ship

Parisians call this house a crystal ship and consider it one of the sights of the French capital, an architectural marvel of our time. The initiative to create the Center for Contemporary Art belongs entirely to Bernard Arnault. It was he who decided to give Paris such a special place where culture and art would reign. The building of the architect F. Gehry turned out to be in a futuristic style, very similar to a ship with sails full of wind.

It was in this beautiful house of the Louis Vuitton Foundation that the Moscow Virtuosi performed, a chamber ensemble conducted by Vladimir Spivakov, a world-famous musician whose violin with a fantastically famous name, brilliantly playing Bach and Tchaikovsky, rests in a case crafted by no less skillful and not less famous hands. Things next to which life itself becomes a work of art.

France of the 21st century preserves the main traditions of its people. The country of elegant taste is still the largest concentration of fashion houses and world brands. Where, if not in this country, could a person be born whose craving for beauty is expressed in such an extraordinary way. A collector of branded companies, a billionaire and just a good family man - Bernard Arnault. Photo: Ecole polytechnique Universite Paris-Saclay

Childhood years of the future billionaire

Bernard was born on March 5, 1949. The Arno family lived in Roubaix and stood firmly on its feet. Bernard's father owned the construction company Ferret-Savinel, which he inherited from his father. Arno's mother was an excellent pianist, she was recognized for her talent, as well as considerable achievements.

Bernard from childhood began to prepare for succession in the family firm. The general education school was given to the boy perfectly. Upon graduation, he enters the Polytechnic School. 1971 - end of studies and receiving an engineering degree.

Bernard Arnault did not achieve everything from scratch, he almost immediately begins his career in a family company. The father took his son to a leadership position and only a few years later took him as an equal business partner.

Becoming a businessman

The business acumen of a businessman showed up pretty quickly. He skillfully made decisions and was not afraid to make drastic changes. Sparing in words, but gushing with business ideas, Bernard has achieved a lot.

Already in 1976, the Ferret-Savinel company passes under the sole control of a young entrepreneur. The next five years were marked by the incredible growth of both the company itself and its prestige in the market. Competitors were left far behind, and Ferret-Savinel was only gaining momentum.

At this time, Bernard earns his first million, but does not stop, but strives further. Big politics intervened in the ambitious plans of the businessman. The next elections have changed the political course of the country. France became unsuitable for further business development. Arno makes a risky decision and sells the family's company.

There are quite a lot of conflicting rumors around all the decisions made by the billionaire. In the case of the sale of a family business, there are also many ambiguities and disputes. It is not clear whether the family was aware or whether this decision was made by him alone. Today, however, business analysts insist that the decision made was the only right one in the current situation.

The availability of start-up capital allowed Arno to move from France to Florida in the USA in 1981.

American business model

Having a rather purposeful innate character, Bernard Arnault takes everything that is possible from the American business model. Subsequently, he repeatedly stated that it was America that taught him to do, and not to think.

In Florida, a businessman takes the beaten path and opens a construction firm. The construction of huge housing complexes in the 80s of America was in high demand. This fact allowed Bernard to make about 20 million in income for 4 years of living in the United States.

The French soul of a businessman yearns for his homeland. At the first opportunity, when there was another change of power, Arno sells his business in Florida and goes back to France.

Career breakthrough

Returning not only with a considerable fortune, but also with an excellent grip, Arno decides to play big. Having considerable experience and practical skills in his arsenal, the businessman decides to get the Boussac textile conglomerate. This concentration of enterprises is interesting to him only because it includes the famous fashion house Cristian Dior. By the time of purchase, the eminent brand had fallen into decay and it simply needed not only financial, but also ideological injections.

This acquisition forced Arnault to take on Antoine Bernheim as a partner. Antoine is today the closest friend of both Bernard himself and his family.

The American business model of fierce competition and quick takeover helped the future billionaire acquire the conglomerate.

The purchase of the conglomerate cost the businessman 95 million and a promise to preserve the traditions of the business sold to him by the government. This fact did not force the entrepreneur to give up the profit and reconstruct the dying enterprise. He sells all uninteresting businesses, leaving himself only the fashion house Cristian Dior.

With the proceeds of 400 million, other brands were quickly acquired that carried the idea of chic and luxury.

The Beginning of a New Era of Louis Vuitton

Louis Vuitton bag, photo: pixabay

Louis Vuitton was a very successful company until it was taken over by Arnault. But he was crippled by internal strife. The members of the board of directors waged an endless internecine war, which allowed Bernard Arnault to destroy the company from the inside and become its sole owner.

The aspirations of a businessman are centered around the endless build-up of branded companies. It seems that he intends to absorb and combine all the best trading houses related to the fashion world.

Arnaud Bernard ruthlessly crossed out eminent names from the lists of employees of the transatlantic conglomerate. His vision of the business is timely personnel changes. The reign of Bernard caused a lot of rumors and rumors. But time has shown the correctness of the chosen position. Each non-renewable contract turned into a valuable acquisition in the form of a new employee.

Arno has a great eye for both business ideas and people. He confidently recognizes those who will later play a significant role in the development of the brand.

Since 1989, the businessman has been creating his empire of fashion, luxury and style. Today, his name is known throughout the world as the owner of LVMH Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessy. More than 60 fashion brands are united under this name.

This includes:

Companies of elite alcoholic drinks - Moët & Chandon, Dom Pérignon, Veuve Clicquot Ponsardin, Krug and about 20 other wineries.
Fashion houses - Loewe, Céline, Berluti, Marc Jacobs International LLC, Donna Karan and others.
Perfume and cosmetic brands - Christian Dior, Guerlain, Givenchy, Kenzo, NUDE, Fendi and others.
Jewelry trading houses - HUBLOT S.A., Dior Watches, Fred Joaillier, Chaumet, Bvlgari.
Retail stores.
A yacht manufacturing company, hotel complexes, auction houses, and even a radio station and a park.

The development of the Internet era forced the businessman to study new and largely incomprehensible technologies for him. According to some estimates, Arno is actively investing in developing Internet projects.

Forbes magazine as an indicator of success

The annual publications of the most influential and successful people have long been a measure of wealth earned. Bernard Arnault has long been on the list of the richest people on the planet. For several years in a row, the title of the richest European is given to him.

In 2017, Arno is ranked 11th by Forbes with a net worth of $41 billion.

Other areas of the life of a billionaire

Despite the iron grip of the billionaire, he took place not only in business. The family of a businessman is considered very strong and stable. For many years, family members were not involved in scandals.

Bernard Arnault is the largest patron of the arts. Every year he takes part in many charity events. He pays special attention to assistance to the disabled and their rehabilitation. The desire for art is expressed in the regular support of students of the Academy of Fine Arts. Many art galleries receive sponsorship from Bernard Arnault.

What is the secret of Bernard Arnault's success?

The biography, and especially the career of Bernard Arnault, has acquired incredible details. Most of them don't have any background. The billionaire's manner of doing business is so, on the one hand, aggressive, and on the other, unpredictable, that observers either admire him or laugh at him.

It can be reasonably stated that Bernard Arnault has several incredible qualities:

His nature is absolutely integral - he sees the goal and achieves it in possible ways.
Doesn't mix business and personal life.
His manner of speaking is always respectful towards everyone.
He never raises his voice, which allows him to come to agreed decisions faster.
His end in itself is not money, but their constant investment.

Arno has another wonderful quality - he never stops learning new things every day.

Useful video

Bernard Arnault, his wife - Canadian pianist Helene Mercier and their son Frederic Arnault will perform Mozart's concerto for three pianos with the National Philharmonic Orchestra of Russia under the direction of Vladimir Spivakov. Interview after the concert.

In 1984, Arno's attention was drawn to the recently bankrupt textile conglomerate Boussac, which owned, among other things, the fashion house Christian Dior. At that moment, the company was managed by the French government, which was looking for a new owner. Several companies became interested in the tidbit, including Louis Vuitton, but Arno was ahead of everyone. With $15 million of his own money, he, along with Antoine Bernheim, a partner at the French investment bank Lazard Freres and Co., raised the necessary $80 million and went into action. Arno's first wife was a cousin of the former owners of the company, and, taking advantage of this circumstance, he began to "like a relative" buy up the shares that remained from those. Then he convinced the French government to sell him the remaining stake, swearing at the same time that he would seek the revival of Boussac.

Methodically turning all the more or less valuable assets of Boussac into money, Arno nevertheless decided to keep the Christian Dior company. Pretty soon, he himself fell under the fascination of the fashion world and set about creating a company that would become the world leader in the production and sale of luxury goods. Realizing that it was unrealistic to implement such an ambitious project from scratch, Arnault began buying shares in the newly formed company Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton (LVMH) in 1988.

One of the most crushing defeats of his career, Bernard Arnault suffered last year when he tried to add the Italian company Gucci to his collection.

Frustrated, Arno filed a lawsuit against De Sole in a Dutch court (Gucci is registered as a legal entity in Amsterdam), accusing him of mismanaging the company. During the process, De Sole assembled a team of lawyers and Wall Street bankers. A capital dilution scheme was devised: 20 million shares were issued as part of a new program to provide each employee with a small package of Gucci securities. As a result, Arno's share in the company almost halved. De Sole signed an agreement to sell about 40% of Gucci shares, and not to anyone, but to another French businessman - Francois Pinault, Arno's eternal competitor.

“I can guarantee you that in a hundred years people will be drinking Dom Perignon champagne,” Bernard Arnault once said. “I don’t know what kind of Internet they will use…”