The Business of Fashion
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
Agenda-setting intelligence, analysis and advice for the global fashion community.
After spending more than 15 years and $1 billion turning Paris’s La Samaritaine department store into a duty-free shopping mall and luxury hotel, LVMH is finally set to reopen the iconic store June 23.
The reopening was delayed for more than a year due to the coronavirus pandemic.
While nearby rival BHV has doubled down on catering to local clients, including by replacing handbags with home goods in much of its ground-floor spots, La Samaritaine is continuing to bet on a rebound in tourist shopping. LVMH’s tax-free airport shopping division DFS will be the main tenant, along with a new outpost of the Cheval Blanc hotel chain.
The guidance was issued as the French group released first-quarter sales that confirmed forecasts for a slowdown. Weak demand in China and poor performance at flagship Gucci are weighing on the group.
Consumers face less, not more, choice if handbag brands can't scale up to compete with LVMH, argues Andrea Felsted.
As the French luxury group attempts to get back on track, investors, former insiders and industry observers say the group needs a far more drastic overhaul than it has planned, reports Bloomberg.
After growing the brand’s annual sales to nearly €2.5 billion, the star designer has been locked in a thorny contract negotiation with owner LVMH that could lead to his exit, sources say. BoF breaks down what Slimane brought to Celine and what his departure could mean.