According to Financial Times on January 23 (KST), Bernard Arnault, the chairman of luxury conglomerate LVMH, plans to designate Frédéric, along with his brother Alexandre, as additional board members.
If both sons join the five-member board, the Arnault family’s dominance, which already holds over 48% of LVMH shares and more than 64% of voting rights, will become even stronger, as predicted by FT.
LVMH will make the final decision on board member registration through shareholder voting at the group’s annual meeting in April.
Meanwhile, Bloomberg stated that with Frédéric and Alexandre nominated for the LVMH board, the succession competition among the 5 children of Bernard Arnault is expected to intensify. It is known that Chairman Arnault adjusted the age limit for LVMH CEO to 80 in 2022, extending the period during which he can lead.
Earlier this month, Frédéric was promoted to oversee the watch division, which includes brands such as TAG Heuer, Hublot, and Zenith, among others. Alexandre oversaw the communication division at the jewelry brand Tiffany for the past 3 years.
The eldest daughter, Delphine, was appointed as the CEO of Christian Dior, the second-largest brand in the group, following Louis Vuitton last year. She is currently the only one among Arnault’s children serving as a member of the LVMH executive committee.
The eldest son, Antoine Arnault, is responsible for the image and communication of LVMH at the family holding company Christian Dior SE. He is also the group’s head of image and sustainability.
Finally, the youngest, Jean, is in charge of watchmaking at Louis Vuitton.
In an interview with FT, Frédéric mentioned that succession is not a subject the Arnault children are thinking about, adding that the appropriate time will come for it.
On the other hand, Frédéric Arnault has been entangled in dating rumors with BLACKPINK’s Lisa for a while, and was allegedly spotted going on the date with her at a Thai restaurant recently.
