LVMH heir Arnault promoted to group executive board

PARIS, Feb 9 (Reuters) – LVMH heir Antoine Arnault was promoted to the luxury group’s executive committee on ‍Monday, the latest high-profile appointment as CEO and chairman Bernard Arnault reshuffles leadership roles.

The family-controlled group is facing increased investor scrutiny over its governance structure, Reuters reported last ‌month, with some investors calling ‌for greater transparency on Arnault’s succession plans.

Antoine Arnault, 48, is one of the firm’s best-known public faces as director of image and ​environment, also overseeing group communications.

He is the second of Arnault’s five ‍children to join ​the inner circle of managers ​steering the world’s largest luxury group after ‍his sister Delphine Arnault, the CEO of Dior.

Veronique Courtois, who heads beauty operations, was also promoted to the executive committee while board member Stephane ‍Rinderknech is leaving the company to pursue new projects, the group said.

Bernard Arnault, 76, is ‍France’s richest ‍man and has been ​running LVMH for almost 40 ​years.

Arnault’s ⁠three other children from a ‌second marriage also hold executive roles in different branches of the sprawling group of more than 75 brands.

(reporting by Tassilo Hummel, editing by Helen Reid and Benoit ⁠Van Overstraeten)