Capital Economy, Business and Finance
Bernard Arnault, billionaire founder of the luxury goods giant LVMH, has prompted takeover speculation after buying a stake in the Swiss luxury company Richemont, which owns Cartier and Chloé. Arnault assembled and globalised the world’s largest luxury conglomerate after snapping up family-owned European companies. The world’s first, second or third richest man, depending on the day’s share price, he has form in stealth takeover bids – building up a large secretive stake in Hermès in 2010 using intermediaries before being rebuffed by the board. Arnault has firmly backed President Macron and benefitted from access to the Élysée, leading to a 2020 FT headline “What’s good for LVMH is now good for France”, after the EU agreed to his takeover of Tiffany. Combining LVMH and Richemont might try the bloc’s patience. Neil Saunders, managing director and retail analyst at Globaldata, suggests LVMH might cherry pick Cartier, but Arnault’s freedom to operate could be limited by the forthcoming election.
