Table of Contents
Bernard Arnault Net Worth
Career
Art Collection
Personal Life
Relationship
Other Investments
Bernard Arnault, a French business mogul and investor, is today the richest person in France and a member of the elite investing community worldwide.
Arnault, the son of a prosperous businessman, began early in life by displaying the sharp sense of business that he had acquired from his father. After graduating from college, the young man started working as an engineer for the civil engineering company his father owned.
He also began working with his father to plan the future expansion of the family business. As time went on, he started making purchases, and today he is in charge of not just the legendary Christian Dior name but also Le Bon Marché.
After working his way up through the company’s ranks, he eventually became chairman of the senior management board. In this role, he supervised the company’s meteoric rise to become a worldwide powerhouse in the luxury goods industry.
Bernard Arnault Net Worth
According to the most recent information in this article, Bernard Arnault has a net worth of $135 billion. Behind only Bill Gates and Jeff Bezos in terms of wealth, he is among the world’s wealthiest people.
In December of this year, Arnault briefly became wealthier than Jeff Bezos. Once in January 2020 and again in August 2021, he topped the Forbes billionaire list. Forbes estimates his wealth to be $181 billion.
When the COVID-19 pandemic hit, Bernard saw a $30 billion drop in sales of his high-end goods. With a net worth of $198.4 billion, he once again became the wealthiest man in the world on August 5, 2021. His 70-meter (230-foot) research vessel Amadeus was also sold in 2015. The shipyard Feadship built his current boat, Symphony, in the Netherlands. Bernard is a successful businessman, art investor, and art collector.
Bernard Arnault Career
- In 1976, he successfully persuaded his father to divest the construction division of the family business and reinvest the proceeds in a more promising field of work. This enabled him to begin preparations for the growth and expansion of the family business in the years to come.
- Renault made investments in the rapidly expanding real estate market of the period using the forty million French francs they received due to the construction division’s inability to pay its debts. The company, formerly known as Ferinel but since changed its name, has achieved great success in providing holiday rentals.
- In 1977, he was elevated to chief executive officer three years later. In 1979, he succeeded his father as the company’s president after taking up the previous role.
- Arnault and his family were forced to uproot their lives and move to the United States when the Socialist Party of France was victorious in the elections that took place in 1981. Because he was such a clever businessman, he was also successful in Palm Beach, Florida, where he developed condominiums.
- The political climate of his native France underwent significant change in 1983. When the socialist government in that country shifted to a more conservative economic strategy, Arnault decided to return to France.
- When the textile manufacturer Boussac Saint-Frères announced that it would be filing for bankruptcy, the forward-thinking businessman saw an excellent opportunity. The haute couture house of Christian Dior was a part of the conglomerate that controlled the textile industry. Arnault collaborated with Antoine Bernheim, the managing partner of Lazard Fréres, to get financial backing for the acquisition of Boussac.
- Arnault’s investment of $15 million and Bernheim’s aid in obtaining the remaining $50 million were both contributions toward the acquisition of Boussac Saint-Frères, which had an estimated price tag of $80 million.
- Arnault had accumulated a majority of the voting power (35.5%) and a plurality of the shares (43.5%) at LVMH by the time January 1989 rolled around. The executive management board unanimously decided he should serve as the board’s chairman.
- When he took over as CEO of LVMH, one of the first things he did was replace some of the company’s top executives with new hires. He did this to breathe new life into the company’s operations. It was common knowledge that he was a cruel employer who did not think twice about dismissing employees who did not live up to his expectations.
- During the 1990s, he bought many other businesses as part of an ambitious plan for growth and expansion.
Bernard Arnault Art collection
Worldwide competition for students enrolled in fashion design programmes, the LVMH Young Fashion Designer was established in 2003. Between 1999 and 2003, he was the sole owner of Phillips de Pury & Company, a prestigious art auction firm from which he ousted the pioneering French auctioneer Tajan.
Arnault began construction on the Louis Vuitton Foundation in 2006. The structure, conceived by architect Frank Gehry, is devoted to innovation and modern art. On October 20, 2014, the Foundation conducted its official opening ceremony in the Jardin d’Acclimatation in Paris.
Bernard Arnault Personal Life
In 1973, Arnault wed Anne Dewavrin, but by 1990, the pair had divorced. They are parents of two children as a couple. In 1990, he married the Canadian concert pianist Hélène Mercier. They are raising three children as a married pair. Arnault and his family have pledged 200 million euros for the reconstruction of the renowned Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris, France, after the 2019 fire.
Bernard Arnault Relationship
That rumour about Bernard Arnault being single is false. With Helene Mercier, he tied the knot in 1991. Mr Mercier is a Canadian pianist. Jean Arnault, his brothers Alexandre and Frederic, and Mercier now make their homes in the French capital, Paris. Delphine and Antoine are Bernard and Anne Dewavrin’s children.
They broke up in 1990. His four children—Delphine, Antoine, Alexandre, and Frederic—and his niece, Stephanie Watine Arnault, all work for companies the family owns. Xavier Niel, a French multimillionaire in the electronics and telecommunications sectors, is married to Delphine Arnault. Bernard doesn’t have any gay tendencies.
Bernard Arnault Other Investments
- In 1998, he made a personal investment in Château Cheval Blanc by purchasing it with businessman Albert Frère. In 2009, LVMH bought Arnault out of his stake in the winery so it could add Château d’Yquem to its portfolio of wineries.
- While managing Europatweb, Arnault made investments in startups, including Boo.com, Libertysurf, and Zebank, between 1998 and 2001.
- Combined ownership of 10.69% of Carrefour between Arnault and the California real estate company Colony Capital was revealed by Blue Capital in 2007.
- His first foray into the yachting industry began in 2008 when he paid 253 million euros for Princess Yachts. After that, he paid almost the same amount to acquire the Royal van, Lent.
