Bernard Arnault

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Jean Paul Gaultier Jumps on the Androgyny Bandwagon: In JPG’s latest ad campaign, Karolina Kurkova goes in for a smooch with blonde bombshell Andrej Pejic, a male model (yes, male) known for his feminine look who walked in the designer’s menswear show rocking a dress. Huffington Post

Gaga’s Meat Dress For Your Doll: Japanese toy company Bandai enlisted a London College of Fashion student to create pint-sized versions of Lady Gaga’s most iconic get ups. The most difficult to construct? The infamous meat dress of course! Using Parma ham, the mini dress took the student two weeks to finish. Telegraph

Miuccia Prada Doesn’t Use a Computer: The designer also really likes China and is considering politics as a future career. WWD, subscription required.

Bryan Boy Isn’t the Only One Making Money: Susanna Lau of Style Bubble dishes on how she made her popular blog a viable business. Up and coming bloggers–take note. Business of Fashion

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Today, France’s stock-market regulator told the Hermes family that they could legally pool their holdings in order to fend off a takeover by LVMH. As we’re sure you’re aware, LVMH has bought 20.21% of Hermes’ shares over the last few months. Although the Hermes family has kept over 70% of the company private, they still fear a hostile takeover by the luxury conglomerate, which views Hermes as what could be the final jewel in its crown. (If LVMH gets a hold of at least 33% of Hermes’ shares, French law says that they must launch a bid for the rest of the shares, although there are exceptions to the rule.)

To create a separate holding company that controls over 50% of Hermes’ shares–and that will be immune to LVMH’s advances–the family brand needed to get permission from French regulators. The regulator has agreed to Hermes’ conditions, but it’s likely an association that defends minority shareholders–which in this case includes LVMH–will appeal the decision.

Despite this small victory, it’s looking more and more likely that LVMH will someday control Hermes.

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Carine Canned? Racked is reporting that Carine Roitfeld was fired from French Vogue, citing the EIC as the reason for the mag being blacklisted at Balenciaga and Bernard Arnault threatening to pull all LVMH ads from the next issue. “Basically, she was fired,” a source tells Racked. Quel scandale! Not sure if we buy it though. {Racked}

Royal Dress Update: HuffPo’s royal’s correspondent is reporting that while the odds have Bruce Oldfield to design Kate Middleton’s wedding dress, she’ll likely wear a lesser known British designer who has dressed all the Middleton women (sister Pippa and mother Carole included) over the years. {Huffington Post}

When We Have a Lesbian President, ALT Knows How She Should Dress: In her Sunday Times column, Maureen Down mused about whether we are ready for a gay commander in chief following the landmark vote to repeal “Don’t Ask Don’t Tell.” She consulted André Leon Talley who told her that he imagines a lesbian president “who looks like Julie Andrews and dresses to meet heads of state in ‘ankle-length skirts, grazing the Manolo Blahnik kitten heels.’ She would save her ‘butch trouser suit for weekends at Camp David and vacation hikes in Yellowstone. No plaid lumberjack shirts at any time.’” {NYT}

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Keds Goes Back to The 90s: Keds has released a limited edition collection of sneakers called “Alternative to Everything.” We’re absolutely smitten with these 90s-inspired sneakers, which come in acid wash blue, gray denim and red plaid. {Refinery 29}

Copied Dye Job: Christina Hendricks told Harper’s Bazaar that way back when she was a model, she told Karen Elson that she should be a red head and gave Elson her formula. Now Elson’s confessed that Hendrick’s did, in fact, inspire her to go red. {The Cut}

Lanvin x H&M Drama: When Jennifer Lopez and Madonna both asked to “borrow” (i.e. have it before anyone else) pieces from the Lanvin x H&M collection, they were told that no one was allowed to wear the collection before the runway show on November 18. If this is true, then why were a few British celebs pictured wearing pieces from the collection at London’s Lanvin preview? Sure, Roisin Murphy and Sohpie Ellis-Bextor are celebs, but they’re no Madonna. What gives? {Elle}

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Execs at Hermes told French newspaper Le Figaro that they aren’t happy about LVMH’s sudden interest in the luxury group.

“The family has clearly and unanimously said: If you want to be friendly, Mister Arnault, you need to withdraw,” said Bertrand Puech, a fifth-generation descendant of founder Thierry Hermes.

LVMH denies that they’d like to acquire the company, of which they bought over $2 billion in shares last month. But it’s obvious that a hostile takeover isn’t completely out of the question.

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Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry is a startup advisor and writer based in Paris. He really, really likes luxury and fashion. And sorry ladies, he’s married. You can follow him on Twitter though, at @pegobry. From an economic perspective, luxury is a sector as fraught with peril as it is with reward. The rewards are immense: The best [...]

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Forbes magazine released their annual list of the world’s richest people yesterday, and LVMH ceo Bernard Arnault did pretty well. In fact, he was ranked #7, with an estimated net worth of $27.5 billion. François Pinault, Arnault’s arch rival and ceo of PPR–which owns brands like Balenciaga, Stella McCartney, Gucci and Alexander McQueen–was ranked #77, [...]

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Quote of the Day

“Few people are able to let go … Sometimes, it is just out of vanity,” –Jean-Jacques Picart, an advisor to Bernard Arnault, in a Reuters article on the aging heads of some of the biggest fashion houses.

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Luxury For Sale

So it seems Condé Nast is not the only one tightening up its stable of brands. Word is that LVMH has another big sale on. According to the head of a private equity firm who is currently in Paris looking at the fashion houses’ books, Celine, Loewe, and Kenzo are on the block. It appears [...]

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photo courtesy wwdMeet Camille Miceli. She’s the woman responsible for the brilliant plastic, paper chain necklaces on Louis Vuitton’s AW09 runway. After stints at Alaia and Chanel, she worked in Louis’ PR department right when Marc took over as Creative Director before working her way to the head of costume jewelry collections, a post she’s [...]

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DKNY for Sale?

LVMH is on a shopping spree but first it needs to unload some unwanted brands to raise cash the cash it hopes to spend. According to sources at an investment firm, Donna Karan’s DKNY brand is up for sale. LVMH bought Donna Karan International in 2001, five years after she took it public. Donna Karan [...]

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Gareth Pugh showed his first full menswear collection in Paris last night. The “visionary” collection – super skinny pants, platform patent boots, chain mail vests – might’ve sparked LVMH’s interest, according to The Telegraph. Delphine Arnault, Bernard‘s daughter, sat in the front row and personally congratulated Gareth on his show. The editorial darling could be [...]

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