Renault’s saviour has been asked to perform his magic in the fickle world of luxury fashion.
Luca de Meo, credited with reviving the fortunes of the French carmaker, is set to become the next chief executive of Kering SA (EPA:KER), the group behind Gucci, Yves Saint Laurent and Balenciaga.
De Meo’s appointment follows mounting pressure on the buiness to revive its flagging performance.
Gucci, its biggest brand, has struggled to regain momentum in China and failed to match the pace of rivals LVMH and Hermès. Shares in Kering have lost nearly 80% of their value since 2021.
De Meo, who steps down from Renault next month, brought the company back from crisis with new model launches, renewed profitability and loosened ties to longtime partner Nissan.
His five-year run saw Renault’s value double and its strategy sharpened.
He now faces a different challenge: breathing new life into Kering’s underperforming labels while navigating a possible split of the CEO and chairman roles. The latter is still held by Francois-Henri Pinault, whose family controls the group.