Louis Vuitton owner Bernard Arnault dethrones Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest man
Louis Vuitton owner Bernard Arnault dethrones Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest man
New Delhi: World’s leading fashion luxury goods company Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey (LMVH) owner Bernard Arnault dethroned Amazon founder Jeff Bezos as the world’s richest man. As per Forbes, Arnault claimed the number one spot with a net worth of $186.4 billion beating Bezos whose net worth stands at $186 billion. Arnault has added over $47 billion to his net worth so far in 2021.
Last week, the French billionaire ended the day $800 million richer—with a net worth of $186 billion—after the company’s shares closed nearly half a percent higher in Europe, tying with Bezos for the number one spot. On the other hand, Amazon stock dropped by a little more than 1% on Friday, shaving $2.3 billion from Bezos’ net worth placing both men at the $186 billion-mark.
Arnault oversees an empire of 70 brands including Louis Vuitton and Sephora. He owns a 96.5 per cent stake in Christian Dior, which controls 41 per cent of LVMH. Earlier this year in January, LVMH completed a deal for American jeweler Tiffany & Co for $15.8 billion, believed to be the biggest luxury brand acquisition ever. LVMH spent $3.2 billion in 2019 for luxury hospitality group, Belmond, which owns or manages 46 hotels, trains and river cruises.
Arnault was born on March 5, 1949, in Roubaix, the third-largest city in France. He studied engineering at the Ecole Polytechnique, a prestigious school. For the unversed, Arnault’s father made a small fortune in construction. Arnault got his start by putting up $15 million from that business to buy Christian Dior in 1985.
In 1989, Arnault became the majority shareholder of LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton, thereby creating the world’s leading luxury products group. Note that four of Arnault’s five children work in corners of the LVMH empire: Frédéric, Delphine, Antoine and Alexandre.
It is worth adding that LVMH posted a record $16.7 billion revenues in the first quarter of 2021. LVMH’s strong recovery from the pandemic’s impact on the fashion industry helped Arnault grow more than $100 billion richer since the depths of the market rout in early March last year. Arnault was worth $76 billion on Forbes’ 2020 billionaires list, which was calculated using stock prices from mid-March 2020.
Owner of Louis Vuitton Bernard Arnault over takes Jeff Bezos to become world’s richest
Taking over Jeff Bezos’s position, Bernard Arnault and family have now become the world’s richest.
Taking over Jeff Bezos’s position, Bernard Arnault and family have now become the world’s richest. Owners of the world’s leading fashion luxury brand Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH), Arnault and family’s net worth now stands at $186.2 billion, reported Business Insider.
Arnault spent $538 million dollars in recent months acquiring shares of his own French label brand controlled by him and his family. He overtook Elon Musk- Space X and Tesla owner, when the company reported a first quarter revenue of €14 billion in 2021, which surged by 32% as compared to first quarter of 2020.
In January 2021, LVMH acquired America’s largest jewellery maker Tiffany & Co. for $15.8 million, making the largest luxury fashion business deal.
LVHM oversees an empire of 70 brands including Louis Vuitton, Sephora, Tiffany & Co, Stella McCartney, Gucci, Christian Dior, Givenchy which are independently managed and operated under the LVMH umbrella.
Amazon’s Jeff Bezos Dethroned: Louis Vuitton Owner Bernard Arnault Now World’s Richest
Bernard Arnault and family, owners of Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy (LVMH), have dethroned Amazon founder Jeff Bezos to become the world’s richest. Arnault’s net worth has been estimated at $186.2 billion, according to Forbes. The 72-year-old chairman and chief executive of LVMH’s fortune rose by $110 billion in the last one-and-half year, taking his overall net worth to $161.2 billion. Earlier this month, he had overtaken Tesla’s celebrity chief executive Elon Musk to become the world’s second richest person, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index
Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, one of the world’s leading fashion luxury goods company, reported a 32% yearly surge in the revenue to 14 billion euros in the first quarter of 2021. In January, LVMH acquired America’s largest jewellery maker Tiffany & Co. for $15.8 million, largest deal in the luxury fashion business so far. The deal was designed to boost LVMH’s smallest business, the jewellery and watch division that is already home to Bulgari and Tag Heuer, and help it expand in one of the fastest-growing industry segments while also strengthening its US presence.
Bernard Arnault’s LVMH oversees an empire of 70 brands including Givenchy, Guerlain, Marc Jacobs, Sephora, Tiffany & Co., Emilio Pucci, Fendi, Loro Piana, Nicholas Kirkwood, Thomas Pink, R.M Williams, EDUN, Moynat and Donna Karen, along with a host of jewellery brands, including TAG Heuer, De Beers and Bulgari. Arnault owns a 96.5 per cent stake in Christian Dior, which controls 41 per cent of LVMH. He has spent about $538 million in recent months acquiring shares of the world’s largest luxury-goods maker, Bloomberg reported. The CEO bought the stock through companies that he and his family control.
The business tycoon entered the luxury goods market in 1984, when he took over the bankrupt textile group that owned Christian Dior. He sold all of the company’s other businesses and used the proceeds to buy a controlling stake in LVMH. In 1989, he became the majority shareholder of LVMH Moët Hennessy – Louis Vuitton, creating the world’s leading luxury products group. He has been chairman and chief executive of the company since that date.
Forbes’ Real-Time Billionaires rankings tracks the daily ups and downs of the world’s richest people. The wealth-tracking platform provides ongoing updates on the net worth and ranking of each individual confirmed by Forbes to be a billionaire.
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