Bernard Arnault and his family had been the richest in France since 2017, at the head of the LVMH empire. But the billionaire has just been dethroned by another family linked to the world of luxury. Who are they?
Bernard Arnault now second richest person in France
After dethroning Liliane Bettencourt in 2017, Bernard Arnault was the richest person in France. However, the man at the head of LVMH was not officially concerned about this title, as he told the newspaper Stupéfiant a few years ago:
I would like to be removed from this list. […] I don’t think it’s a very flattering characteristic, to be honest.”
Although he has not left the list, he has now been overtaken. The heirs of the Hermès family, another French luxury goods giant, are now ahead of the Arnault family.
At least, that’s what Challenges magazine claims in its annual ranking of France’s 500 richest people. We learn, incidentally, that these fortunes represent a total capital of $1.128 trillion and that there are 145 billionaires in France.
Unsurprisingly, the top five are largely based in the luxury industry. Hermès comes first, LVMH second, followed by the Wertheimer family (Chanel), the Bettencourt family (L’Oréal) and finally, in another category, the Dassault family.
