LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault speaks to CNBC's Sara Eisen at the Yale CEO Summit

I'm very competitive. I always want to win. The success of my group is based on the combination of creativity and organization. Today, Louis Vuitton is by far the largest and number one luxury brand in the world. Every competitor is trying to imitate. I think they are not successful, but they try. In 30 years from now, LVMH will still be at the head of the luxury sector. And LVMH is today just at the beginning, in spite of its size. Our business model is based on creativity, innovation and quality.

There aren't very many people in the world who can do what he's done. In life, he is exactly the opposite of what people think he is. We're dealing with one of the most successful people in the world, one of the great tastemakers in the world, somebody with great vision, somebody with a great eye.

He's always thinking, always thinking about the future, not only about the iconic titles, brands that he has.

People who don't know him have a completely different idea than the people who know him. He's one of the wealthiest people in the world and his wealth was accomplished in a single generation.

LVMH is comprised of 70 different brands divided into six different sectors. It covers everything from the highest-end perfumes and wines to the best leather goods in the world.

In the '90s, I had the idea of a luxury group. And at the time, I was very much criticized for it. I remember people telling me it does not make sense to put together so many brands.

You know the brands: it's Givenchy, it's Fendi, Sephora.

Sephora, he again was completely ahead of the game. I remember when it first opened and everyone said he was crazy and it would never work.

He recognized that there would be a taste for luxury goods and frankly an ability to pay for them.

Bernard Arnault is the architect that brought them all together under one house.

And it was a success. It is a recognized success. He's a dreamer. He dreams.

Big dreams. And then he has the guts to go after those dreams. Sometimes I try to tell him the dream's too big, but of course he's always right. The dreams are never big enough.

We are pleased to welcome, and I will ask them to come up in sequence in just one moment, Dame Anna Wintour, Global Editorial Director of Vogue and Chief Content Officer of Condé Nast. We'll be bringing up, of course, Steve Schwarzman, a great personal friend of mine for many decades, the chairman and CEO of Blackstone. Another friend of mine, Ivanka Trump, of course, entrepreneur, philanthropist, and has actually helped us in our government going through some pretty important transitions in recent past. Michael Burke, chairman and CEO of LVMH Americas, whom you just met in passing and hopefully will be considered a new friend of mine if I don't push wrong buttons here at the podium and too much smoke coming out by doing something

that leads to a crisis. And then Sarah will be with us to help moderate and lead us in a Q&A discussion. Afterwards, briefly, Sarah Eisen, an anchor at CNBC's Squawk on the Street and their consumer goods superstar among various fields of expertise. So I'd like to bring up now Dame Anna Wintour.

Thank you. So good afternoon, everyone. It is a pleasure to be here with you today to honor the great Bernard Arnault. A few weeks ago, I was in London to give his daughter and colleague Delphine a prestigious award. And now here I am in New York presenting Bernard with the vaunted Yale Legend in Leadership Award. Any other Arnaults due to receive honors should feel free to look me up. I seem to be the officier, as the French would say, de permanence for this task. Though I fear that for so accomplished and industrious a family, it could easily turn into a round-the-clock posting. The truth is that when it comes to the business of creativity, there are talented leaders and then there is Bernard Arnault.

It is astonishing to think how different the work that I do, how different the recent history of fashion would be if he had not swept into our path. And yet, what exactly Bernard does do remains mysterious. As many of you will have noticed, Bernard is not an easy man to get to know. I have been meeting with him for some four decades, and yet I still find him as fascinatingly enigmatic as Gerhard Richter's Forest Three painting, which is, of course, in Bernard's collection. All I seem to have is traces and gestures linking from a person who has worked across the canvas at great speed. To say that Bernard is interested in his companies is like saying Glenn Gould was interested in Bach. He is an obsessive who feels the enterprise in every corner of his soul.

Bernard and I were once lucky enough both to be invited to a meeting at the White House, a different time and a different administration. I proposed that afterwards we might enjoy what the Capitol had to offer. Perhaps we could visit a couple of museums along the Mall or see what was on at the Kennedy Center. Bernard took on the unhappy expression of a man who had been asked to attend a three-hour lecture on soil erosion. His notion of a great day in the American capital, it turned out, was the same as his notion of a relaxing Saturday morning in Paris, which is visiting all the LVMH shops in town to see what they could be doing better. For these reasons and for others, one might not guess he was a man with a singular fashion genius.

I'm not sure I've ever seen him wearing anything other than a blue or a gray suit. The idea that he might one day show up in a bright Kenzo embroidered sweater is, I think I speak for all of us here in saying, both tantalizing and also rather alarming. And yet somewhere beneath his dark tie is a man of brave and radical conviction. It was Bernard, after all, who brought two scrappy, unknown British kids, John Galliano and Alexander McQueen, to Dior and Givenchy, and who installed Virgil Abloh, Marc Jacobs, and Phoebe Philo, and so many others in fashion's firmament. And that was just the '90s. Today, we are in the midst of a new moment of thrilling upheaval in fashion, and Bernard is once more at its core.

His year has been filled with unexpected and exciting new appointments. The exceptional young Irish designer, Jonathan Anderson, is reimagining Loewe, while the rising American stars, Jack McCollough and Lazaro Hernandez, have jumped in headfirst at Proenza Schouler. Maria Grazia Chiuri, in a gesture that recognizes her remarkable talent, has been dispatched to revive the hallowed halls of Dior. At our lunches over the years, I have begun very slowly to find a window onto where this daring and this passion comes from. We discuss art, of which Bernard has quietly but surely become one of France's leading champions, not least through his extraordinary Fondation Louis Vuitton museum in Paris. We talk about politics and the economic future, which in both of our countries has been on a dizzying ride.

We talk about young talent in fashion, or at least I talk about it. Bernard listens courteously, and he mostly ignores my suggestions. And of course, most joyfully for me, we talk about tennis. I think I won a French Open trophy of my own, at least in Bernard's eyes, for introducing him some years ago to the great Roger Federer. But the truth is that like Roger or like fashion itself, Bernard himself has changed with the times. He has opened and become more global along with the world that he represents. In China recently, many people approached asking Bernard to bless their babies for luck, something that I believe otherwise happens only to Tom Cruise. It's that extraordinary flexibility, that openness, and that eagerness I believe is the secret to Bernard's brilliant core.

He has, of course, relationships with the great and the good across the world, and he seems, in his own way, to be having the time of his life. And that is surely thanks to the support, emotional, intellectual, and yes, professional that he gets from his family. This past October, in a biblical, biblical storm in Milan, I somehow found myself sitting in a courtyard outside, wrapped in cashmere, loaned to me by Frédéric Arnault. He wanted me to stay, despite the torrential rain, because he wanted to talk with passion about the quality and expansion of the house for which he is the CEO, Loro Piana. The fruit really doesn't fall far from the tree, I thought. Frédéric is surely a man who visits his stores every Saturday.

It is unsurprising that all the Arnault children are intelligent, well-mannered, and seem to speak 100 languages. But it is a testament to Bernard that they share their father's passion and eye for the creative world, that glint of eagerness and wonder that sometimes shines through his eyes. They all clear a space for creativity and imaginative risk at a moment when across the world these qualities seem embattled. So congratulations on receiving the Yale Legend in Leadership Award, Bernard, and please tell all your family. I'd be happy to introduce any of them, anytime, anywhere. Thank you.

Thank you very much. That was just beautiful, Anna, thank you so much. Spoken, of course, with somebody who understands the world of culture, but also a world of the written word. That eloquence, Steve, I don't know how you're gonna do it, but you're up to it, is, I would hate to have to follow that as a cold call, Steve Schwarzman.

Now, that's a tough act to follow. But I met Bernard Arnault 25 years ago. I went to his house in Saint-Tropez, where I have a house as well. And it was a dinner for seven people. And Bernard and I were walking outside the house looking over the Mediterranean and in a classic American fashion, I said something like, so how did you make your money? And he said, well, it was very interesting. He said, I was working at my family business, which started in the engineering area, and then he took it into real estate. And then he said, I was contacted by Antoine Bernheim, this very famous managing partner of Lazard Frères. And he said they had a very interesting situation with a company called Boussac Saint-Frères, which was in bankruptcy.

And they were looking at taking it over and rationalizing it, which means selling off the parts and seeing if there's a lot left for the effort. And they asked him if he wanted to do that for them. So he said it was a really interesting opportunity, and they ended up getting control of the company. And it had a huge number of subsidiaries. I think it was at least 40. And he said, "After we got control, my job was to sell them off, make the company more efficient. And when I got to the end of the project, you know, I was supposed to get compensation for that, very much like today's leveraged buyout business." And he said, "I decided instead of compensation, I'd like a small, unprofitable company at the end of it called Christian Dior."

And that's what he got out of the deal.

And he said, "I thought it had real potential," which I guess is one of the great understatements. And he also got a company called Bon Marché, which was a department store business. And he used that, took two years to figure that out, and then after that, you know, he ended up in a complex situation with LVMH and ended up merging that and turning it around, and everything basically worked. He said, "It was not something that I expected at all." And his background as a person, he went to the Polytechnique, which is the top university in France, and he got a degree in mathematics and civil engineering. So you wouldn't exactly think he'd be in the fashion business with that background. And the question is, how does he do all these things?

And I found out from one of my friends, as you would think with a company of this scale, that he has a large staff and there's constant things put in front of him and so forth, uh, for approval. But as it works out, he doesn't have a staff. He does everything himself. He works with just one person on every deal, and he's done a huge number of deals in his life, almost all of which have a very interesting real estate component where he had his own success before this building of the luxury business. And he's a brilliant strategist as well as a tactician. When I saw him with some frequency in Saint-Tropez, we would play tennis. And I had mentioned his interest. And so the first time we went out, it was just the two of us.

I used to play every day in those times. And he's a very tall, lanky person. He got on the court. And I didn't quite know what to expect. And he hits the ball quite hard. And he has one dominant stroke, which is a cross-court topspin forehand. And we were playing a match, and I didn't play matches so much. I used to just hit for the pleasure of it. I used to be intensely competitive, but I thought I graduated. And you get on a court with Bernard, it's a fight to the death. And I didn't expect that. And the first time, the ball just sort of whizzed by me with that spin, going over to my right, sort of forcing me off the court. And I said, "The guy won't hit that a second time because you know it's coming."

And of course, he hit it the second time with even more spin and wider strokes, forcing you off the court further. And so we had a very enjoyable two sets. I forgot who won, which meant he probably did. We had a rematch, and we did that for a while. And as it worked out, we mostly split sets, because I had to go into my old personality, not so mellow. And I could see tennis reveals people's personalities. And this is someone who refuses to lose. And unfortunately, he met someone who was vaguely similar. And it was lots of fun. And then he started bringing his children over, and we would play doubles. And so I know most of the people in the family, and I've watched them grow up, and now, whether they're running Tiffany's or Loro Piana or Dior or whatever, it's amazing to see how focused everybody is.

Bernard's all about family. He is an exceptionally private person, as Anna said. And what we used to do after we played tennis was just sit around for like an hour to hour and a half talking about the world. And Bernard is a very interesting person to talk about the world because he touches a lot of parts of it. And he's always looking for new things to do. And he has an intensity of focus on everything that he does, both macro and micro. There's nothing that escapes him. And like all great entrepreneurs, he's always ready for the next project. And it's like it's the first one. And like every entrepreneur, it's a project that must work. There's no averaging here. Every project works. Every new line has to work.

Every new designer has to work. And he's one of the few people who have mathematical analytical skills, but also has this sense of style. He loves music, which is a lot like mathematics. He was a piano player himself, as is his wife, at the concert level. And enormous appreciation, as Anna mentioned, of art. He's built this marvelous facility in the Bois de Boulogne, you know, for exhibition space for LVMH. And he's really one of the most extraordinary people. Bernard's success is no accident. This is not a one-hit wonder. This is somebody who's on it every time, in every way, and it clearly gives him enormous pleasure.

And that's part of what

makes him who he is. So, it's a particular pleasure for me to be asked to do this because he's not a normal person, and I love being around people who have this astonishing dimension: everything new is exciting, wonderful, to be created, to be maximized, and he's got it as much as anyone in the world. Thank you.

So, magnificent saga, the whole history of that relationship. Steve, thank you very much. And Ivanka, if you don't mind, thank you.

Thank you, Jeff. Thank you, Stephen, and beautiful, beautiful words all around. It is a privilege to be here to celebrate Bernard Arnault, a leader who has built and rebuilt industries, shaped creativity across continents, and elevated the meaning of craftsmanship. And yet, like expressed up here by both Steve and Anna, the quality that I most admire in Bernard has nothing to do with business. It's his devotion to family. Every Saturday, without exception, the entire Arnault family gathers together for lunch at the home of Bernard and his amazing wife, Hélène. All of his children, all of their children, every week. Before lunch, Bernard often visits his shops, as he has done for decades, with one of his children by his side.

In a world that moves quickly, Bernard chooses presence. In a life defined by innovation, he chooses ritual—a grounding force that reveals who he is far more than any headline or even any award. I'm fortunate to know all of Bernard's children and to count them and their partners as friends. They're remarkable: kind and curious, grounded, united. Their character reflects the values Bernard instilled: intention, discipline, boldness, affection—qualities shaped at those Saturday lunches and mirrored in the way he leads. That same consistency defines his relationship with his team. Bernard expects excellence, and he offers loyalty, mentorship, and trust in return. Many of LVMH's senior leaders have spent decades under his guidance, a testament to a culture built on integrity, humility, and shared purpose.

He has strengthened iconic maisons with the exact same care, protecting their soul and their heritage while guiding them towards renewed relevance. And then there's his legendary curiosity, the right-brain, left-brain fusion that is so unique in Bernard. He can propel the most visionary creative, take the boldest risk, and then still be able to see around corners with uncanny business sense and precision. It is the same spirit that drove him to spend more than 14 years working alongside the great architectural master, Frank Gehry, very sadly just passed, to bring the Fondation Louis Vuitton to life, a project he considers among his proudest. Working with Bernard and his incredible team has given me firsthand experience of his impeccably high standards, passion, dedication, and rigor.

He brings that same discipline, as we've heard, to the tennis court, training four hours every week, regardless of weather and regardless of his schedule. Ever since the day he met Roger Federer, played him, and vowed, after earning one single point, that the next time they played, he would earn two. And he brings it to music, sharing with Hélène a deep love of the classical repertoire, even performing at the National Philharmonic Orchestra in Russia in 2017. One of my favorite stories to hear Bernard tell is of his first trip to New York in the 1970s when he asked a taxi driver if he knew the name of the French president. The cab driver said, 'No, but I know Christian Dior.' As Bertrand Stalla-Bourdillon, Group Vice President of Retail Development at LVMH, who has worked alongside Bernard for 30 years, told me just a couple of weeks ago in Paris, 'Greatness is the moment where vision and legacy meet.'

That seems like a perfect working title for Bernard's life. Bernard's vision has defined iconic houses, yes, but more importantly, it has influenced people—those he's raised, those he's mentored, and the countless individuals inspired by his example. Bernard, your legacy will endure not only through the maisons you have shaped, but through the quiet integrity with which you lead, create, build, and inspire, reflected beautifully in the family and teams who carry your values into the world with such passion and grace. Today's award honors a legendary career, but equally a deeply admirable life. It is a privilege to present you the Yale Legend in Leadership Award. And while you join us virtually, we are honored to have Mr. Burke here to accept on your behalf.

As one of your longest-serving advisors and executives and somebody who has helped build and guide LVMH's presence in North America, being here is a powerful reflection of the trust, dedication, and enduring partnerships that define your leadership. Thank you, Mr. Bernard Arnault, and congratulations.

Thank you. The choreography would be if the, the three presenters could step over there and present together to Mr. Michael Burke. That would be wonderful. And then Michael would share a few words and bring in our guest recipient before we hand the show over to you, Sarah. But, Sarah, I know that you, you listen very carefully, think on your feet for a living. But what we just heard as they're having their photos taken—I'm just doing fill, as you would say on air, is—is tap dancing. It's a pretty remarkable thing because we, we, we heard three presenters. We've all done multiple presentations. You must admit that's about as great a set of presentations we ever heard. They weren't scripted. There's no teleprompter here.

They weren't working in committee for weeks trying to figure out who's covering what piece of the puzzle. But somehow they all, instinct—instinctively drew on a different piece of their relationship with Bernard Arnault, and I didn't see their scripts in advance. I, in hindsight, probably should have requested, but they spoke from their heart. As Anna, of course, who but you could speak to the aesthetic vision as you understood it and the definition of how he saw beauty and how perhaps the two of you sometimes saw it differently along the way, but also as you addressed the distinctiveness of his character, the privacy, and the paradoxical humility of somebody in the world of building brands like no one else can.

Who would you expect that humility to be with? And then as we turn to Steve, his, of course, is the entrepreneurial spirit, the business vision, and what you brought out about financial acumen with just a staff of one. As you can see, I've got teams of attendant staff here trying forever to pick up after me, and I'm just running this little show here. And here he manages to build the greatest of all fashion brands with just one person that he is able to do those deals. But also, Steve, as you brought out, in addition to the financial acumen and the entrepreneurial spirit, of course, is that competitiveness that brought out the old Steve Schwarzman that I knew in my youth as well, is that—that's sort of pretty astounding.

If I had reflected on it, I would have thought, Ivanka, to ask you to turn to everything from family to foundation, but it didn't occur to me. But of course, you knew to speak to what you saw when you manage and enjoy your relationship with Bernard Arnault. You understood, as the other two presenters understood, something about the family and different life stages in the family, but also their role in society, as you saw it, which was so astounding, and understanding this sense of discipline, the sense of philanthropy, the sense of giving back. So, uh, I don't think I could ever give an award presentation again now, having heard the three of you. And as you present to Michael, if Michael, if you have a few words you'd like to share before we turn to Mr. Arnault, would be tremendous. Thank you very much.

Ladies and gentlemen, in June of 1963, a young boy in Frankfurt, myself, watched on a flickering black-and-white television as President Kennedy stood before half a million Berliners with—and with fire in his voice, declared, "Ich bin ein Berliner." On that day, something profound stirred within me. I sensed that a new era of boldness, freedom, and limitless possibility was dawning for the world. 13 years later, destiny led me to Paris. There, a young entrepreneur named Bernard Arnault looked at a nervous intern, again myself, and chose to take a chance. Little did I know then that I had just entered the orbit of a man who would profoundly change the world, not through speeches, but through an unparalleled vision, unwavering courage, and an almost superhuman instinct for greatness.

40 years have since passed—four decades marked by audacious decisions, spectacular successes, hard-won lessons, and triumphs that continue to take my breath away. Bernard Arnault believes passionately in the creative freedom of every individual. Bernard Arnault champions the freedom to transform the wildest dreams into tangible reality. Bernard Arnault perceives brilliance where others might only see nascent potential. Today, as I stand before you to accept this esteemed award on his behalf, I feel a compelling urge to draw a parallel between that momentous day in 1963 and this present moment. And so I proclaim, Bernard, du bist ein Mensch. Thank you.

Thank you so much. It's an honor to meet you. If our presenters could all grab their seats. We actually have a courtesy monitor, so don't think we're looking rude if people aren't creating whiplash and craning their necks behind themselves as we grab our seats so that we can look forward. And thank you very much. Beautiful, Michael, and... Mr. Arnault.

Good afternoon. I would like to begin by thanking Professor Sonnenfeld, the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute, and all of you in the room for this award. To be recognized by this group, a group dedicated to lifelong education for the world's foremost leaders and thinkers, is an enormous honor for me and for all at LVMH. I have long believed that what leaders can learn from one another is far more valuable than anything we can learn alone—a tenet, I know, this Institute and Professor Sonnenfeld share and promote. I also want to thank my wonderful friends Anna Wintour, Steve Schwarzman, and Ivanka Trump for the extraordinary words I have heard a few minutes ago. I would also like to acknowledge the Trump family, whom my family and I have known for more than 40 years, since

the time when I was living in the United States in the '80s. Over these many years, I have valued the importance President Trump places on loyalty, commitment, and family, which resonates strongly with my own life and work. I have always admired his extraordinary energy, his decisiveness, and his willingness to act with conviction. Anna, Steve, Ivanka, I am grateful to each of you for taking the time to present me with this award and for your extremely kind words. I deeply regret that I could not be there in person to accept it. Thank you. I know the focus of today's conversations is uncertainty, and I am grateful to have the chance to offer my perspective. My time as founder and CEO of LVMH since the late '80s has taught me that as the world evolves around us, we must evolve with it and embrace change while never losing sight of the core values and guiding principles upon which our businesses and institutions are built.

Today, I suspect we can all agree that change is happening faster than ever, and that the way in which we live, communicate, and transact, as well as the way in which businesses function, is being constantly reshaped by the geopolitical environment, economic uncertainty, and seismic events of our time, and not least our fast-developing technologies. I also suspect we share the view that turbulence and uncertainty are not a barrier to leadership. In fact, quite the opposite. In turbulent times, we must anchor ourselves to our enduring values and principles. For LVMH, that anchor is clear: our commitment to exceptional craftsmanship, cultural heritage, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. These commitments are what our clients seek, what our brands are built on, and what ultimately stands the test of time.

Staying true to those values in a volatile world requires long-term stewardship. It means making steadfast decisions that preserve and strengthen the quality of our products today and for generations to come. It also means investing in our businesses and in the communities we serve around the world, supporting cultural development, workforce training, job creation, and upholding ethical standards, both in how we operate and how our products are made. My own journey and that of LVMH has been deeply shaped by the United States. From the very beginning, America has been a land of opportunity, creativity, and entrepreneurship for our group. This enduring relationship was powerfully reinforced with the acquisition of Tiffany, the largest in LVMH history.

Tiffany is not only an iconic American maison; it embodies the values that guide us: craftsmanship, heritage, and the relentless pursuit of excellence. Its place within our group, LVMH, reflects both our respect for American creativity and our longstanding belief in the strength of transatlantic ties. Luxury, by its nature, demands a long-term vision. Craftsmanship requires time and intention. Excellence is built through talent and savoir-faire, and creativity is driven by passion. Of course, long-term thinking does not mean resisting change. On the contrary, the success of each of our maisons rests on their commitment to a careful balance between tradition and innovation. We actively support and partner with technology startups, including those advancing blockchain and AI, not only because we believe in their potential, but because they embody the same creativity and entrepreneurship that has always defined our group, LVMH.

These values, of course, are not exclusive to luxury. They are principles that every leader and organization should embrace. When external forces are beyond our control, we can still control what we create, how we operate, who we employ, and the standards we uphold. I am confident this is a belief we share and one that will enable our businesses to remain resilient amid uncertainty and change, and to identify and seize opportunities as they arise. Once again, thank you to Professor Sonnenfeld and the Yale Chief Executive Leadership Institute for this honor that you make me today. I wish you and your families a very joyful holiday season and a very prosperous new year. Thank you very much.

Mr. Arnault, you provided the very definition of what we hope to accomplish the past 24 hours in this program where we're addressing the unfolding and navigation, if you will, of the new world order, but not quite sure what it meant. It's a term that so many people have used, from Henry Kissinger to President Bush 43 to all the way back to, of course, Churchill and Roosevelt. But I think it was H.G. Wells who used the term first, but only the way you did as seeing it—surprised to hear it articulated this way because it's what we intended. We just never spelled it out to everybody here. It's as if you've been with us. It's understanding a geopolitical disruption and the polarities of such disruption on one hand, with the continuity of values of legacy that somehow you captured in your remarks.

So given how uplifting that was, it's the classic mic drop moment. I have to stop right now or I'm going to dilute any quality of what I would have to add and hand it over to somebody who knows how not to drop a mic. And if you don't mind, we'd love it if you could handle a couple of questions in an exchange with Sarah Eisen of CNBC leading it.

Well, thank you, Jeff, and thank you, Mr. Arnault, for the opportunity. Now's the hard part. Just if you could take some questions, I think we're happy to hear from you. You said something in your speech that really resonated, and I think a lot of the presenters painted you as a person with such vision for the future. And you said long-term thinking doesn't mean rejecting change. And I am curious, as the king of luxury, how you see the luxury market developing over the coming years and what consumer changes are the most important that you're paying attention to?

Thank you. I think, first of all, I don't like so much the word 'luxury.' Maybe it will seem strange to you. But what I do, what I try to do with my group, is to produce high-quality products that are really what people look for. Luxury, you know, in the world, you have something like show-off, or something that has not real roots. What we do is to build a group with products, with brands that are rooted in history, in quality, in craftsmanship. And for that, as you ask about the future of these businesses, I think the future is very positive. Obviously, you have always difficult times. You have crises. You have geopolitical crises. You have economic crises. And we went through many of them during the last 40 years.

But at the end, I am proud that the group has built continuously, has grown continuously, because we are showing something in the world for which the interest of people is constantly growing. You know, we are part of the history of the country where we have some brands. I think with Tiffany in the U.S., we are part of the U.S. history. And in France, we have some brands that were created around more than 500 years ago. And we are part of France's history. And very often, when I travel the world, I feel myself like a kind of ambassador, not only a businessman, but I represent countries. And I am asked a lot of questions about how this is done in France, how this watch is done by Louis Vuitton in Switzerland, for instance, where we have one of the most incredible producers of watches in Geneva.

And to give you an example of the difference and the mix in our activity between high technology and history, we just bought in Geneva, in La Fabrique du Temps, which is a subsidiary producing some of the most beautiful watches in the world, a machine dating to the 18th century, because these machines were the only ones able to create the type of finishing on these watches and the movement that we wanted to find. And we are, at the same time, using the latest AI in this factory for supply chain, for packaging, and for a lot of things that today do not really need the same type of craftsmanship. But I am confident in the future prospects of our activities, because the more the technology is growing, the more efficient it appears and it develops, the more many companies, including LVMH, are using it,

the more people look at the details, at the quality, and at a lot of aspects of the product that only the hand of a person, man or woman, can do. And so I could give you more details, but maybe I don't want to be too long.

No, that's okay. I was actually going to ask about AI next, and clearly you talk about how it can work with human craftsmanship. How do you think about the transformation of the way we shop and what we want in our AI future?

But AI, which is growing, I think, is really a form of modern revolution. And I think we are only at the beginning. But it's like in the past, when you have a revolution, a technical revolution, they change a lot of things, but the history is still there. And a lot of our products will not be touched in their fabrication by AI. There is a big difference in the world between consumer products that you sell in supermarkets and that are very necessary, and the products of high quality, which is our domain, and they can—the demand for them can go in parallel. And what we observe today is, since the crisis—the last big crisis was COVID, and after this crisis, the conception, the desire, which is a very important word for us, desire—

The desire has changed. And to give you one example, today, people are looking not only for products, which I just described, but also for experiences. And we have some, I think, over the years, we invested in many domains. And we have some of the best hotels in the world through Cheval Blanc and through Belmond. And I see, after this crisis, the demand for these beautiful places has increased. So people, they want to find the best quality, the most extraordinary thing. And in places like this, AI is very useful for some tasks, but they cannot go in the kitchen very easily. With Arnaud Donckele, we are three stars and produce or help too much for the cooking. But they can help a lot for the registration, for all the process, and can save a lot of energy.

So I think we are very far still with AI robots and application like this to replace the craftsman or the craftswoman. And at the same time, when I visit in Champagne, places where we have our stock of bottles of Champagne, it's empty. Nobody is there. It's only everything is automatic. And you have already some robots doing it, and it will increase, but not for the vinification. You see?

All three of the presenters spoke really beautifully about your family and your relationship with your children, about your children as business leaders and the values you've instilled in them. How are you going to decide who's going to succeed you?

Good question. Excellent. Good question. And when? I have just been comforted by my board for the next 10 years. So maybe if you have the kindness to talk to me again in 10 years, I can give you a more precise answer. But what I try to do is, LVMH, first of all, is a family group. And not only with my children, but it's a way of managing a business. It's not what we call in French société anonyme. To the opposite, it's a family. So everybody entering LVMH enters not only a big company, quite successful company, but they enter a family. So they are members of the family and we take care of them like in the family. Obviously, we have more than 200,000 people, so the relationship is not as close as in the small family.

But it's a family. And for my children, I tried since their birth to explain to them that they are very lucky to be in a family that has the chance to manage such a group. For getting responsibility, they have to merit the responsibility and to prove they can do it. And they are in the process of doing it. And it's fun to run a family company because the relationship is different. And I'm not talking only for my children. It concerns a lot of people in the company. You have seen Michael. Michael, I would like to thank also for his nice words. He's working with me for more than 40 years. So he's a member of the family. And as in any family, at one point there is a succession. Uh, instead, unless I do not play very well tennis, or I got a ball in my head on tennis court, that I will make this 10 years. We'll ask you again in 10 years, and we've heard you're a very good tennis player. We've all learned that today. Thank you for the opportunity, for the questions, Mr. Arnault. Thank you. Thank you very much. Thank you.

Very, very impressive to be here, and sorry again not to being able to be with you. Thank you.

I want to thank Mr. Bernard Arnault for that very insightful set of responses explaining the past, the present with a guide to the future, and the panel for those distinctively beautiful and revealing separate personal relationships you have and insight into a very unusual character that the world is a much better place because we have them. And Sarah, I marvel at you and all of CNBC and what you've done for me today that has the group shocked that we're beginning together and ending together at the same time. I'm from Philadelphia, and the great maestro of the Philadelphia Orchestra, Eugene Ormandy, once had a revolt from the Philadelphia Orchestra because even the strings revolted, as Steve would remember this, as he's from Philadelphia, that the string section was under Ormandy, especially strong.

And even the concertmaster, like the shop steward of them, revolted and said, "We're just not ready. We have to, we can't just go into concert tonight, Friday night." And he said, "We have to, the weekend's begun." And they said, "We can't go on." He said, "Not only must you, but you will. But the good news for you is that it's just Mahler. As long as we begin together and end together, they'll never know the difference." And you began with me yesterday and ended today. And thankfully for the guests who brought this to such an eloquent and aesthetic close, we had something, a sense of where we were all going. And I want to thank you not just for the punctuality, but for the insight and the caring and the sharing through all of this and a very powerful experience.

And now we know what the new world order is. And Greg, I don't know if we all have an exact blueprint, but we know quite some things to do next. And again, thank you, everybody. We hope to see you in the future at our next program. We'll be in Washington, I think, on March 10th. And please stay in touch and have happy holidays, everybody. Thanks, team.

And, Jess Miller, thank you so much.