The story
Founded by Alain Chevalier and Henry Racamier on Jun 3, 1987, in Paris.1
In 1987, Moët Hennessy and Louis Vuitton merged to create LVMH. As a result of different visions for the future of the merged entity, Alain Chevalier and Henry Racamier, the respective leaders of the predecessor firms, started to fight. Racamier invited Bernard Arnault to invest in LVMH. Rapidly, Arnault succeeded in taking control of LVMH at the expense of the initial family owners. Contrary to what is often indicated, Arnault did not establish LVMH.
LVMH is a component of the Euro Stoxx 50 stock market index.
Make Up For Ever was established in 1984, and it was acquired by LVMH in 1999.
On 7 March 2011, LVMH announced the acquisition of the 50.4% family-owned shares of the Italian jeweller Bulgari and the intention to make a tender offer for the rest, which was publicly owned. The transaction was about $5.2 billion.
By 2012, LVMH established LCapitalAsia, a continuation of its private-equity arm, focused on Asia. In early 2013, LVMH announced its co-investment of its private equity arm LCapitalAsia and the Chinese apparel company Xin Hee Co., Ltd.
In February 2014, LVMH entered into a joint venture with the Italian fashion brand Marco De Vincenzo, taking a minority 45% stake in the firm.
In 2016, L Catterton Asia and Crescent Point, two private equity firms backed by LVMH, bought a majority stake in GXG.
In April 2017, LVMH announced it would gain ownership of Christian Dior haute couture, leather, men's and women's ready-to-wear, and footwear lines to integrate the entire Dior brand within its luxury group.
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In January 2018, LVMH announced record sales of 42.6 billion euros in 2017, up 13% over the previous year, as all divisions turned in strong performances. In the same year, the net profit increased by 29%. On 1 November 2018, co-founder Alain Chevalier died at age 87.
On 12 May 2019, the fashion house Fenty, created by Barbadian singer Rihanna, was launched by LVMH in Paris. It is the first new fashion house by LVMH in 32 years, and she is the first woman of colour to head a brand under LVMH. On 15 July 2019, LVMH announced a new partnership to further develop the Stella McCartney House. On 29 November 2019, LVMH announced its 55% stake in Château d'Esclans, the producer best known for the brand Whispering Angel. The acquisition was part of LVMH's move to offer a beloved high-end rosé portfolio, in addition to reaching customers worldwide. In November 2019, LVMH expressed plans to acquire Tiffany & Co. for approximately US$16.2 billion. The deal was expected to close by June 2020. LVMH issued a statement in September 2020 indicating that the takeover would not proceed and that the deal was "invalid," citing Tiffany's mismanagement during the COVID-19 pandemic. Subsequently, Tiffany filed suit against LVMH, asking the court to compel the purchase or to assess damages against the defendant; LVMH planned to countersuit, alleging that mismanagement had invalidated the purchase agreement.
In mid-September 2020, a reliable source told Forbes that the reason for Arnault's decision to cancel the Tiffany purchase was purely financial: because Tiffany was paying millions in dividends to shareholders despite a financial loss of US$32 million during the pandemic. Some US$70 million had already been paid out by Tiffany, with an additional US$70 million scheduled to be paid in November 2020. LVMH filed a counterclaim against the court action commenced by Tiffany; a statement issued by LVMH blamed Tiffany's mismanagement during the pandemic and claimed that it was "burning cash and reporting losses". In late October 2020, Tiffany and LVMH agreed to go back to the original takeover plan, though at a slightly reduced price of nearly $16 billion, a minor reduction of 2.6% from the aforementioned deal. The new deal reduced the amount paid per share by LVMH from the original price of $135 to $131.50. As of late 2020, LVMH has the largest market capitalization of any company in France, and also in the Eurozone with a record of 261 billion euros ($317.6 billion). As of December 2020, Arnault's own fortune was nearly half that, with a personal net worth of $151.7 billion.
LVMH completed the purchase of Tiffany in January 2021. In 2021, with a valuation of $329 billion, LVMH became the most valuable company in Europe.
In January 2022, LVMH acquired a minority stake in the New York-based label Aimé Leon Dore for an undisclosed sum. The investment was made through the conglomerate's LVMH Luxury Ventures arm. In March 2022, LVMH announced the closure of its 120+ stores in Russia, pointing to "the current circumstances in the region", subsequent to the Russian invasion of Ukraine. An LVMH spokesperson stated the company would continue to pay salary and benefits to its 3,500 employees in Russia. In November 2022, it was announced LVMH had acquired the Piedmont-based jewellery maker Pedemonte Group. In 2025, LVMH's Russian subsidiary extended the lease agreement for its office in the Citidel business centre on Zemlyanoy Val Street in central Moscow.
On 24 April 2023, LVMH became the first European company to reach a $500 billion valuation.
In November 2023, LVMH agreed to acquire the Los Angeles-based eyewear brand Barton Perreira for $80 million.
In June 2024, LVMH acquired Swiza, the owner of L'Epée 1839, a Swiss manufacturer known for high-end clocks and 'horological creations'. L'Epée 1839 produces intricate clocks, including those with perpetual calendars and tourbillons.
In 2024 LVMH's revenue reached 84.68 billion euros, or 1% organic growth for the year.
In 2025, MHCS (part of Moët Hennessy and Louis Vuitton) applied for the registration of four champagne trademarks in Russia. According to Rospatent, these are the Moet & Chandon, Dom Pérignon, Ruinart, and Mercier brands.
In September 2025, following the death of Giorgio Armani, it was disclosed that LVMH had been named in Armani's will as a preferred buyer of a minority stake in the company. The plan provides for an initial 15% purchase within 18 months, with the option to increase this to as much as 54.9% over the following three to five years.
In November 2025, LVMH's watchmaking unit purchased a minority stake in Swiss manufacturer La Joux-Perret—a subsidiary of Citizen Watch Group.
In the first half of 2025, LVMH reported a 4% fall in revenue and a 22% plunge in profits. This is due to unexpected turbulence in the luxury market.
From Wikipedia’s article on LVMH, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5