LVMH
LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE is a French multinational holding company and conglomerate that specializes in luxury goods and has its headquarters in Paris. The company was formed in 1987 through the merger of fashion house Louis Vuitton with Moët Hennessy, which had been established by the 1971 merger between the champagne producer Moët & Chandon and the cognac producer Hennessy. In April 2023, LVMH became the first European company to surpass a valuation of $500 billion. In 2023, the company was ranked 47th in the Forbes Global 2000.
LVMH controls around 60 subsidiaries that manage 75 luxury brands. In addition to Louis Vuitton and Moët Hennessy, LVMH's portfolio includes Christian Dior SE, Givenchy, Fendi, Celine, Kenzo, Tiffany & Co., Bulgari, Loewe, TAG Heuer, Marc Jacobs, Sephora and Loro Piana. The subsidiaries are often managed independently, under the umbrellas of six branches: Fashion Group, Wines and Spirits, Perfumes and Cosmetics, Watches and Jewelry, Selective Distribution, and Other Activities. LVMH owns Les Echos-Le Parisien Group, its media subsidiary. The wine estate of Château d'Yquem, whose origins date back to 1593, is under LVMH ownership. Bernard Arnault is the chairman, CEO and largest shareholder of LVMH, making him one of the richest people in the world as of 2026.
History
In 1987, Moët Hennessy and Louis Vuitton merged to create LVMH. As a result of different visions for the future of the merged entity, Alain Chevalier and Henry Racamier, the respective leaders of the predecessor firms, started to fight. Racamier invited Bernard Arnault to invest in LVMH. Rapidly, Arnault succeeded in taking control of LVMH at the expense of the initial family owners. Contrary to what is often indicated, Arnault did not establish LVMH.LVMH is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.
Make Up For Ever was established in 1984, and it was acquired by LVMH in 1999.
On 7 March 2011, LVMH announced the acquisition of the 50.4% family-owned shares of the Italian jeweller Bulgari and the intention to make a tender offer for the rest, which was publicly owned. The transaction was about $5.2 billion.
By 2012, LVMH established LCapitalAsia, a continuation of its private-equity arm, focused on Asia. In early 2013, LVMH announced its co-investment of its private equity arm LCapitalAsia and the Chinese apparel company Xin Hee Co., Ltd.
In February 2014, LVMH entered into a joint venture with the Italian fashion brand Marco De Vincenzo, taking a minority 45% stake in the firm.
In 2016, L Catterton Asia and Crescent Point, two private equity firms backed by LVMH, bought a majority stake in GXG.
In April 2017, LVMH announced it would gain ownership of Christian Dior haute couture, leather, men's and women's ready-to-wear, and footwear lines to integrate the entire Dior brand within its luxury group.
In January 2018, LVMH announced record sales of 42.6 billion euros in 2017, up 13% over the previous year, as all divisions turned in strong performances. In the same year, the net profit increased by 29%. On 1 November 2018, co-founder Alain Chevalier died at age 87.
File:1995-1999 LVMH Tower, New York,.jpg|thumb|upright=0.9|The LVMH Tower in Midtown Manhattan, with its bluish, gem-shaped, angulated glass facade|alt=a tall blue glass building with angles
On 12 May 2019, the fashion house Fenty, created by Barbadian singer Rihanna, was launched by LVMH in Paris. It is the first new fashion house by LVMH in 32 years, and she is the first woman of colour to head a brand under LVMH. On 15 July 2019, LVMH announced a new partnership to further develop the Stella McCartney House. On 29 November 2019, LVMH announced its 55% stake in Château d'Esclans, the producer best known for the brand Whispering Angel. The acquisition was part of LVMH's move to offer a beloved high-end rosé portfolio, in addition to reaching customers worldwide. In November 2019, LVMH expressed plans to acquire Tiffany & Co. for approximately US $16.2 billion. The deal was expected to close by June 2020. LVMH issued a statement in September 2020 indicating that the takeover would not proceed and that the deal was "invalid," citing Tiffany's mismanagement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequently, Tiffany filed suit against LVMH, asking the court to compel the purchase or to assess damages against the defendant; LVMH planned to countersuit, alleging that mismanagement had invalidated the purchase agreement.
In mid-September 2020, a reliable source told Forbes that the reason for Arnault's decision to cancel the Tiffany purchase was purely financial: because Tiffany was paying millions in dividends to shareholders despite a financial loss of US$32 million during the pandemic. Some US$70 million had already been paid out by Tiffany, with an additional US$70 million scheduled to be paid in November 2020. LVMH filed a counterclaim against the court action commenced by Tiffany; a statement issued by LVMH blamed Tiffany's mismanagement during the pandemic and claimed that it was 'burning cash and reporting losses'". In late October 2020, Tiffany and LVMH agreed to go back to the original takeover plan, though at a slightly reduced price of nearly $16 billion, a minor reduction of 2.6% from the aforementioned deal. The new deal reduced the amount paid per share by LVMH from the original price of $135 to $131.50. As of late 2020, LVMH has the largest market capitalization of any company in France, and also in the Eurozone with a record of 261 billion euros. As of December 2020, Arnault's own fortune was nearly half that, with a personal net worth of $151.7 billion.
LVMH completed the purchase of Tiffany in January 2021. In 2021, with a valuation of $329 billion, LVMH became the most valuable company in Europe.
In January 2022, LVMH acquired a minority stake in the New York-based label Aimé Leon Dore for an undisclosed sum. The investment was made through the conglomerate's LVMH Luxury Ventures arm. In March 2022, LVMH announced the closure of its 120+ stores in Russia, pointing to "the current circumstances in the region", subsequent to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. An LVMH spokesperson stated the company would continue to pay salary and benefits to its 3,500 employees in Russia. In November 2022, it was announced LVMH had acquired the Piedmont-based jewelry maker Pedemonte Group.
On 24 April 2023, LVMH became the first European company to reach a $500 billion valuation.
In November 2023, LVMH agreed to acquire the Los Angeles-based eyewear brand Barton Perreira for $80 million.
In June 2024, LVMH acquired Swiza, the owner of L'Epée 1839, a Swiss manufacturer known for high-end clocks and 'horological creations'. L'Epée 1839 produces intricate clocks, including those with perpetual calendars and tourbillons.
In 2024 LVMH's revenue reached 84.68 billion euros, or 1% organic growth for the year.
In September 2025, following the death of Giorgio Armani, it was disclosed that LVMH had been named in Armani’s will as a preferred buyer of a minority stake in the company. The plan provides for an initial 15% purchase within 18 months, with the option to increase this to as much as 54.9% over the following three to five years.
In November 2025, LVMH's watchmaking unit purchased a minority stake in Swiss manufacturer La Joux-Perret—a subsidiary of Citizen Watch Group.
In the first half of 2025, LVMH reported a 4% fall in revenue and a 22% plunge in profits. This is due to unexpected turbulence in the luxury market.
Corporate structure
LVMH is headquartered in the 8th arrondissement of Paris, France. The company uses blockchain technology to authenticate luxury goods, reducing counterfeiting in high-end markets.The company is listed on the Euronext Paris exchange and is a constituent of the CAC 40 index.
As of 2009, the group employed more than 83,000 people, 30 percent of LVMH's staff worked in France, and LVMH operated over 2,400 stores worldwide.
As of 2010, the group had revenues of €20.3 billion with a net income of just over €3 billion.
In 2013, with a revenue of $21.7 billion, LVMH was ranked first luxury goods company in Deloitte's "Global Powers of Luxury Goods" report. By 29 February 2016, the company had a share value of 78,126 million euros, distributed in 506,980,299 shares.
Shareholders
As of 2009, LVMH held 66% of the drinks division, Moët Hennessy, with the remaining 34% held by Diageo.As of 2013, Christian Dior SE was the leading holding company of LVMH, owning 40.9% of its shares and 59.01% of its voting rights. Bernard Arnault is Chairman and CEO of LVMH and Chairman of Christian Dior SE. In 2017, Arnault purchased all the remaining Christian Dior shares in a reported $13.1 billion buyout.
At the end of 2017, the only declared major shareholder in LVMH was the Arnault Family Group, the holding company of Bernard Arnault. The group's control amounted to 46.84% of LVMH's stock and 63.13% of its voting rights.
Senior leadership
has been LVMH's chairman and CEO since January 1989. Alain Chevalier was chairman from 1987 until Arnault took over the role.In 2024, Stéphane Bianchi was appointed LVMH Group Managing Director, responsible for strategic and operational management of the Group Maisons. He also oversees the Regions Presidents, and the Digital and Data Transformation of the Group. In addition, he is also the Chairman of the LVMH Executive Committee.
On Dec. 2, 2025, Louis Vuitton CEO Pietro Beccari was appointed as the chief executive of LVMH's fashion division.
Total revenue for Q1 2025: €20,311 million, compared to €20,694 million in Q1 2024, a reported decrease of 2% and an organic decrease of 3% on a constant consolidation scope and currency basis
Media group
In 2007, Arnault bought France's leading financial newspaper, Les Echos, from the British company Pearson for 240 million euros after a negotiating period of four months.In 2015, LVMH bought the newspapers Le Parisien and Aujourd’hui en France from the Amaury Group. Marie-Odile Amaury, the group's owner, initially hoped for 200 million euros which were later revised to 150 million during a previous sale attempt, but a bid of 50 million euros was made. The financial transaction was completed at the end of October 2015.
In 2018, the Lagardère Group sold the stock market information website Boursier.com to Les Echos-Le Parisien Group. In March 2018, Pierre Louette, former CEO of Agence France-Presse from 2005 to 2010, was named CEO of Les Echos-Le Parisien Group, succeeding Francis Morel, who had held this position for seven years.
In 2022, Les Echos-Le Parisien Group acquired 75% of the share capital of the French polling and research institute OpinionWay, which has 140 employees.
Les Echos-Le Parisien Group also acquired Radio Classique, Connaissance des Arts, and Investir and bought 50% of Medici.tv as well as Mezzo TV and EuroArts. Les Echos-Le Parisien Group is also present in business services represented by its subsidiaries, such as Netexplo, Les Echos Etudes, and Les Echos Publishing, as well as communication services for companies such as Les Echos-Le Parisien Partenaires and Pelham Media. ChangeNow, Investir Day, and VivaTech are subsidiaries whose objective is to offer trade shows and corporate events.
On August 6, 2024, the Competition Authority grants authorization to LVMH for the acquisition of Paris Match. The group purchased the French weekly publication Paris Match in October 2024.