Bernard Arnott net worth
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What is Bernard Arnault’s net worth?
Bernard Arnault is a French billionaire, he is the chairman and chief executive officer of LVMH, the world’s largest luxury goods company. At the time of writing, Bernard Arnault has a net worth of US$168 billion. His net worth makes him one of the richest people in the world after Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates.
early life
Bernard Jean Étienne Arnault was born on March 5, 1949 in Roubaix, France. His father, Jean Léon Arnault, was a manufacturer and graduated from the Central University of Paris. His mother, Marie-Josèphe Savinel, is the daughter of Étienne Savinel, owner of the civil engineering company Ferret-Savinel. In 1950, Savinel passed the management of Ferret-Savinel to his son-in-law Jean Léon Arnault (Bernard’s father), who later gave him the ownership of the company. Bernard graduated from France’s top engineering school École Polytechnique in 1971.
Profession
After graduating in 1971, Arnault started working in his father’s company Ferret-Savinel (formerly owned by his maternal grandfather). He became president of the company in 1978 and held that position until 1984. During the cooperation with Ferret-Savinel, he helped the company get rid of the construction industry and focus more and more on real estate, which turned out to be a successful business initiative. Then, in 1984, he acquired the luxury goods company Financiere Agache with the help of Antoine Bernheim. He became the CEO of Financiere Agache and then also took over the textile company Boussac Saint-Freres. Boussac owns many brands and stores, including luxury brands Christian Dior and Le Bon Marche department store. Arnault sold all Boussac assets except for these two.
In 1987, a series of luxury goods company LVMH including Christian Dior was established. Arnault found himself more successful than ever, thanks to his smart business acumen. The group was originally formed when the luxury fashion company Louis Vuitton merged with Moët Hennessy in 1987. In July 1988, he invested 1.5 billion U.S. dollars to establish a holding company with Guinness, and obtained 24% of LVMH shares. Rumors began to circulate that the Louis Vuitton Group was trying to acquire LVMH shares to form a “blocking minority.” Therefore, in order to preemptively counterattack, Arnault also spent $600 million to purchase a 13.5% stake in LVMH. This move made him the largest shareholder of LVMH. However, he did not finish. In January 1989, he spent more money, this time $500 million, to buy more stocks. By then, he controlled a total of 43.5% of LVMH shares and 35% of the voting rights. He used his control to prevent the dissolution of the LVMH group, and since then led the group to complete its transformation, positioning it as one of the world’s largest leading luxury goods groups.
Under Arnault’s leadership, LVMH has experienced tremendous growth. In eleven years, not only sales and profits have increased by 5 times, the company’s market value has also doubled by 15 times. Although the group has a large number of brands (75 in total as of June 2020), Arnault continues to promote a decentralized approach to brands, which helps to treat them as independent brands and companies with their own history and story. Some other brands under LVMH include Céline (acquired in 1988); Berluti (1993); Kenzo (1993); Guerlain (1994); Loewe (1996); Marc Jacobs (1997); Sephora (1997); Thomas Pink (1999); Emilio Pucci (2000); and Fendi (2001).
(Photo by Nicholas Cam/AFP via Getty Images)
Other investment
In addition to LVMH, Arnault is also involved in many other fields. Between 1998 and 2001, through his holding company Europatweb, he invested in a number of Internet companies, including Boo.com, Libertysurg and Zebank. In 1999, he invested in Netflix through the investment company Groupe Arnault. In 2007, Arnault and California real estate company Colony Capital announced that they owned 10.69% of Carrefour. Carrefour is the largest supermarket retailer in France and the second largest food distributor in the world. In addition, he is also involved in the yacht business. In 2008, he spent 253 million euros to purchase Princess Yacht. He then gained control of Royal van Lent for almost the same amount.
Art collection
However, Arnault is more than just doing business—for example, he is known for his strong interest in art collection. Through LVMH, Arnault sponsored art exhibitions in France, exhibiting works by world-renowned artists such as abstract painter Pablo Picasso and pop art pioneer Andy Warhol.
personal life
Arnault married Anne Dewavrin in 1973; they separated in 1990. They have two children together. In 1990, he married Hélène Mercier, a Canadian concert pianist. They have three children together. In 2019, after a devastating fire broke out in the historic Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, Arnault and his family pledged 200 million euros to help with restoration and restoration work.
Bernard Arnault Wealth Details
Most of Arnault’s wealth comes from Christian Dior, whose family holds 73% of the company’s shares. Christian Dior holds 41% of the world’s largest luxury goods company LVMH, and the Arnault family directly holds 5.7% of the company. It also owns 8.4% of Hermes and Carrefour. In 2009, he sold his stake in the White Horse Chateau to LVMH for 238 million euros. LVMH’s revenue in 2016 was 41.6 billion U.S. dollars. In June 2019, Bernard Arnault’s net assets exceeded US$100 billion for the first time. At that time, he was the third richest person on the planet. In July 2019, his net worth exceeded US$108 billion, making him the world’s second richest man, leading Bill Gates by approximately US$400 million. From January to December 2019, Bernard Arnault’s net assets increased by $36 billion.
