Luxury dopers: What is with the LVMH cartel, its takeovers? How and why who hates them?

No_Wikipedia_Cites · April 1, 2011, 10:28pm

Every other day I hear that LVMH takes over another luxury goods company. LVMH seems to be hated because they ‘corporate’-ify traditional companies.

The latest heat is LVMH buying part of Hermes, with feared designs on the rest.

I don’t understand it. Why is this LVMH so big? How is it buying up so many companies? Why is it so successful? Why can’t a very successful Hermes company fight off buy offs?

I dont get it.

XT · April 1, 2011, 10:53pm

In case you don’t know what or who LVMH was (I didn’t), here is a Wiki on it:

LVMH Moët Hennessy • Louis Vuitton S.A. (Euronext: MC), usually shortened to LVMH, is a French holding company and the world’s largest luxury goods conglomerate. It is the parent of around 60 sub-companies that each manage a small number of prestigious brands. These daughter companies are, to a large extent, run autonomously. The group was formed after mergers brought together champagne producer Moët et Chandon and Hennessy, a leading manufacturer of cognac. In 1987, they merged with fashion house Louis Vuitton to form the current group.[2]

Christian Dior, the luxury goods group, is the main holding company of LVMH, owning 42.38% of its shares, and 59.3% of its voting rights.[3] Bernard Arnault, majority shareholder of Dior, is Chairman of both companies and CEO of LVMH.[4] His successful integration of various famous aspirational brands into the group has inspired other luxury companies into doing the same. Thus Gucci (now part of the French conglomerate PPR) and Richemont have also created extended portfolios of luxury brands. The oldest of the LVMH brands is wine producer Château d’Yquem, which dates its origins back to 1593.[5]

As to the question, the only thing I know about Louis Vuitton is those seriously ugly brown handbags with LV painted all over them in gold. Seriously, SERIOUSLY nasty looking.

-XT

Really_Not_All_That_Bright · April 1, 2011, 11:02pm

It can. The Hermès family owns controlling interest (and quite a bit more) in the company.

They don’t want to, because LVMH is offering them lots of money.

I don’t really understand the point of aggregating so many luxury brands, since lots of them are direct competitors… but it seems to be working for LVMH.