Rank 1
Bernard Arnault & family
215B
LVMH
Paris
France
- Arnault apparently wooed his wife, Helene Mercier, a concert pianist, by playing Chopin and other classical composers on the piano.
- Arnault and LVMH own a 40% stake in private equity firm L Catterton, which has more than $30 billion in assets, including investments in Birkenstock and Equinox.
- Bernard Arnault oversees the LVMH empire of 75 fashion and cosmetics brands, including Louis Vuitton and Sephora.
- LVMH acquired American jeweler Tiffany & Co in 2021 for $15.8 billion, believed to be the biggest luxury brand acquisition ever.
- Arnault's holding company Agache backs venture capital firm Aglaé Ventures, which has investments in businesses such as Netflix and TikTok parent company ByteDance.
- His father made a small fortune in construction; Arnault got his start by putting up $15 million from that business to buy Christian Dior in 1984.
- Arnault's five children all work at LVMH; in July 2022, he proposed a reorganization of his holding company Agache to give them equal stakes.