What is Bernard Arnault’s Net Worth?
Introduction
Bernard Arnault has a net worth of $119.4 Billion as of June 2022.
Bernard Arnault is a French businessman who has served as chief executive officer at the Louis Vuitton conglomerate since 1989. He is the chief shareholder of the fashion company and has been the most wealthy man in France.
Early Life
Bernard Jean Etienne Arnault, a French civil engineer, was born in Roubaix on March 5, 1949. Jean Leon Arnault was his father and he owned and operated a civil engineering firm.
Bernard attended Maxence Van Der Meersch High school in Roubaix, France. He then went on to Ecole Polytechnique. He received a degree as an engineer in 1971.
Career
After graduating college, Bernard was involved in his father’s business. He wanted to help expand the company’s horizons and get involved in more lucrative businesses.
He convinced his father to end the construction division so he could reap the rewards. The family invested in real estate after the construction division was disbanded. They were very successful at this.
Bernard quickly rose up the ranks of the company, becoming the director for development in 1974 and CEO in 1977. He then became president in 1979.
The French Socialists forced the family’s 1981 relocation to America. They continued to prosper by expanding their real estate in the US.
Arnault, who returned to France in 1983, saw an opportunity to expand his business into the textile sector when Boussac Saint-Freres went bankrupt. To fund the purchase of Boussac, he worked with Antoine Bernheim (a managing partner at an investment firm called Lazard Freres).
Arnault, upon receiving the company, sold most of its shares and retained only the Christian Dior brand as well as the Le Bon Marche department store. He was Dior’s CEO by 1985.
Arnault was invited in 1987 to invest in LVMH and ultimately decided to join Guinness PLC in a joint investment.
He would continue to invest in the company and make more over the years. He had 43.5% of company shares by 1989 and started to replace average employees with people who would surpass his expectations.
He continued to buy other companies, including ‘Guerlain’, ‘Marc Jacobs’, ‘Sephora,’ and a few more, as he sought to help and grow new businesses.
Highlights
These are some of Bernard Arnault’s greatest moments:
- Became CEO of Ferinel (1977)
- Invested $15 million in the purchase of Boussac Saint-Frères
- Became CEO of Dior (1985)
- Held 43.5% of shared in LVMH (Louis Vitton Moet Hennessey, 1989)
Three Rules To Success From Bernard Arnault
We now know the details about Bernard Arnault’s net worth and his success story. Let’s look at some lessons we can take from him.
1. Be patient
Waiting is the best way to get everything. It will come when it is time.
2. Appreciate the creativity
It is crucial to be able to appreciate and respect creativity in order to produce any item or idea. If you want to achieve a high-quality and valuable outcome, you can’t cheat the creative process.
3. Success is all about the creative process
Any product’s success is directly related to its creative process. It is a fact that there is no other way. To achieve the best outcome requires patience and creative thinking.
Favorite Quotes From Bernard Arnault
In business, patience is a virtue. Perhaps I am not patient enough. However, I believe that the greatest lesson I have learned is to be patient and wait until the right time.
I love the combination of creativity and the creative process.
You can begin to understand creative people if you are able to deeply appreciate their work and love how they think.