Bernard Arnault, LVMH chieftain, yesterday became the first luxury CEO to dare predict 2012 was going to be as good for the seemingly recession-proof industry as 2011 and 2010. Way to put himself out there!
The occasion was the release of LVMH’s 2011 annual results. Specifically, Mr Arnault said he was “fairly confident” about growth in 2012, which may not seem like a wholehearted rave, but compared to what I’ve heard from every other luxe CEO qualifies as super-positive.
Indeed, the presiding emotion I’ve detected in most other conversations is trepidation — that it could all turn on a dime — and great circumspection, with everyone singing the same “caution, fallback, measures in place” song about their approach to this year. When I saw Frederick Lukoff, ceo of Stella McCartney, last month, for example, he told me things were really good, but strategically they were playing it safe, given the uncertain global political and economic climate.
So I wonder whether Mr Arnault’s remarks will act as a sort of floodgate, allowing his peers to likewise acknowledge their own optimism, or whether they’ll keep refusing to commit. Either way, I think his statement was smart: it makes him look like not just a market leader, but a leader full stop. He who dares, wins and all that.
Vanessa has been the FT’s fashion editor since 2003, and is based in New York, though she lived in London for 12 years.