Louis Vuitton manager Ledru, Arnault son to lead Tiffany: sources

[PARIS] A top executive at Louis Vuitton and one of Bernard Arnault's sons are set to take over management of Tiffany & Co after the biggest acquisition in the luxury industry by LVMH.

Anthony Ledru will lead the jeweller, with Alexandre Arnault taking on a top position inside the brand, according to people familiar with the appointments who asked not to be identified before an announcement. Mr Ledru leads global commercial activities at Louis Vuitton, and Mr Alexandre Arnault is currently in charge of LVMH-owned suitcase maker Rimowa.

LVMH declined to comment on the appointments. Mr Ledru and Mr Alexandre Arnault didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. The Tiffany purchase is scheduled to conclude Thursday.

With Mr Ledru, the French company would be picking someone with extensive experience in the US luxury market to succeed Alessandro Bogliolo. Prior to his six years at LVMH, Mr Ledru held key roles at jewellery brands including Harry Winston and Richemont's Cartier, according to his LinkedIn profile.

A Tiffany appointment would mark a return for Mr Ledru: He managed the company's US and Canadian businesses between 2013 and 2014.

Mr Bernard Arnault, the billionaire founder of LVMH, has named his children to key executive roles within his business empire. His daughter, Delphine, is executive vice-president of Louis Vuitton, in charge of supervising all of the brand's product-related activities.

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LVMH shares gained 23 per cent last year, and the conglomerate now has a market value of 254 billion euros (S$412.65 billion). That makes it the second-biggest company in Europe, after Nestle.

Mr Bernard Arnault's son Antoine heads Berluti as well as image and communications at LVMH. Another son, Frederic, runs Tag Heuer, the watch brand.

Mr Alexandre Arnault has run German brand Rimowa for the past four years. The 28-year-old, who is active on Instagram, presented a Rimowa case study to Harvard Business School students in February. His exact role at Tiffany wasn't immediately clear.

This year is set to be challenging for luxury companies as many regions struggle with renewed lockdowns to tame the coronavirus pandemic. The industry is relying on demand from China to bolster sales.

LVMH's deal to acquire Tiffany won shareholder approval in December. The French company managed to get a small discount for its acquisition price for the iconic US jeweller after threatening to walk away from the deal. The purchase, worth US$16 billion, is still the biggest in the industry's history.

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