Antoine Arnault is stepping down as chief executive of Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessey’s shoemaking division Berluti amid a reshuffle within the Arnault family’s luxury brand dynasty.
The eldest of LVMH founder Bernard Arnault’s four sons, he is expected to be replaced by Jean-Marc Mansvelt from LVMH’s jewellery brand Chaument while staying on as Berluti’s chairman.
Charles Leung, the current chief executive officer of LVMH’s jewellery label Fred, will replace Mansvelt when the reshuffle takes place on the first day of 2024.
Antoine’s departure comes after more than a decade in the role.
“I am very happy and quite emotional to welcome Jean-Marc as the new CEO of the exceptional maison Berluti, building on values of elegance, audacity and unique savoir faire,” Antoine said in a public statement.
He added: “Jean-Marc’s wealth of experience that he has demonstrated throughout these years will be decisive assets in driving the ongoing development of Berluti.”
According to a Vogue report, Antoine wrote in an internal memo that he will “always keep a watchful and passionate eye on Berluti”.
“New adventures await me, to be announced shortly,” he reportedly said.
Bernard’s succession plans
The matter of his 74-year-old father’s succession plans for LVMH remains a close-guarded secret befitting of a close-knit fashion dynasty.
LVMH’s management class is a famously family affair, with founder Bernard Arnaut’s five children all holding prominent spots in the global luxury brand’s empire.
Antoine’s older sister Delphine Arnault heads up the LVMH-owned label Dior, while his younger brother Frédéric is the chief executive of TAG Heur.
Antoine’s two other younger brothers Alexandre and Jean respectively run the luxury luggage brand Rimowa and Louis Vuitton’s watch division.
LVMH shares were boosted by today’s news, jumping 0.8% to 709.9 euro cents at the time of writing.