"Okay, the next big news about a well-known company is that the current board member of LVMH and former LV CEO Henri Lacamier is dissatisfied with the current LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault's way of running the company and his attitude towards the company. The excessive interference of the LV brand. When he took the stage to speak at the LV autumn conference at Paris Fashion Week today, he publicly expressed his dissatisfaction with LVMH’s decision-makers. He believed that some of this year’s new product designs were interfered by Bernard Arnault. It did not reflect LV's brand expertise at all, and the press conference was crude and vulgar, with no sense of innovation. He even criticized his company's board of directors for being blind and allowing an amateur who built a house to do whatever he wanted, so that LV's style became worse and worse. , the products are becoming more and more tacky, and the secular aesthetic has made LV almost the same as the second-rate brand..."
"At the same time, we also noticed that in today's stock market, LVMH's stock price fell sharply, 100%. Third, there are rumors that the change in LVMH’s stock price today is due to the internal disputes within the LVMH group. Henry Lacamier, the heir to LV, is dissatisfied with Bernard Arnault, the actual controller of LVMH, who submitted to the board of directors to retire at the age of 70. plan. In order to prevent himself from quitting the board of directors due to the new system and thus completely losing control of the family brand, he is planning to sue Bernard Arnault in legal proceedings. He claims that the current top decision-maker of LVMH has no influence on the group company. There are considerable illegal activities in the management and operation of the company, and we also plan to use this as a reason to apply for the re-split of the LVMH Group..."
"Okay, let us connect to our off-site Reporter, let’s take a look, what do the guests at today’s LV autumn conference think of this sudden incident in the fashion industry?”
On the glowing TV screen, at this time, as France The host of the news channel ended the on-site broadcast, and the TV camera turned to the LV autumn conference.
The reporter on the sidelines of the news program briefly introduced the situation at the scene, and soon handed the microphone to a man with a big belly.
The fat man in the middle who was asked for his opinion was the executive vice president of LVMH according to the reporter’s verbal identity.
“Oh, today is such a disaster for this conference. This guy Henry is crazy and talks nonsense. His performance today is so disgraceful. I have always respected his artistic style and respect He is the inheritor of the LV brand, but now I am only deeply disappointed with him. This guy is simply an arrogant man, and his accusations against Mr. Arnault are purely biased. You know, every product of every brand. There will always be some objections, but it is normal to have disputes, because as a product, you need to find a balance between artistic and commercial value, so no matter what, he should not ruin his company's reputation on this occasion. What you said today was vulgar, and it completely hurt all of our feelings. I mean, everyone knows the importance of this conference. There are many people at LVMH who have devoted their efforts to this. We. Is it a sign of being educated to work hard but be laughed at by him?..."
The camera on the TV screen changed again, and the reporter on the sidelines continued, "Okay, let's go again. Listen to other people’s opinions.”
This was followed by interviews with several live guests.
Alain Delon was holding up champagne, "You ask me what I think? I don't know. The scene that happened today was something that everyone expected. To be honest, I have no idea about LV's product design. No objection, after all, it is something that women like. I just didn’t expect that LVMH is already full of internal conflicts. I am very worried that this brand that has maintained its reputation for hundreds of years will decline because of this. This is our luggage brand like a pearl in France. Ah. After all, anyone in business knows that no matter how good the product is, stability and unity within the company are the most important thing, right? I’m just glad that I didn’t buy too many LVMH shares. , I just hope that the stock market will not react too violently to this matter, so that I can sell it with a smaller loss tomorrow..."
Catherine Deneuve took the initiative to come over. Her face was pink and she seemed to be a little drunk on champagne, so she was unceremonious, even unscrupulous, talking to the camera.
“Oh, I have to say. The scene that happened today finally made me understand why I dislike some of LV’s new products this year so much. I’m afraid they are indeed the work of an amateur. I don’t care. What others say, anyway, from the perspective of a user like me, I hope that the things I use are full of creativity and design. I can only say that if this matter is what I think it is, it is due to the competition for interests within the company. It is really disappointing to deprive designers of their creative rights. The fashion industry is not that simple. It is not just about adding high-end materials to create something that people like. Think about it. If a fashion brand does not have a soul that can support it, or if the brand has to adopt many restrictions on creation and consider everything from practicality and commerciality, then the brand will have no practical significance. This is why I used to go. I like Dior, and now I am surrounded by Yves Saint Laurent. The answer is the designer..."
This is the afternoon of Thursday, October 15, 1987.
The location is Bernard Arnault’s office at LVMH headquarters.
The only people in the room at this time were Bernard Arnault himself and his financial backer from Lazard Bank, Frank Meyer.
They had finished reading the reports on the news channel together. Needless to say, their expressions were not very good at this time.
“Haha, you actually played such a little trick on me.”
Bernard Arnault sneered disdainfully at his partner sitting across from him, “Henry is now an old lunatic at the end of his rope. I thought he would know how powerful he was and retire honestly. I didn’t expect him to do such a disgusting thing..."
"That’s true." Frank Meyer immediately agreed." This guy actually denigrated his own brand in public, which will greatly shake the public's confidence in LVMH. You have also seen those remarks. If even those celebrities have doubts about LV's products, more people will be affected by them. , this matter will be terrible once it gets fermented..."
"Asshole, those Alain Delon and Catherine Deneuve actually turned against me? How dare they slander LV's reputation as guests? If you know who invited them here, you must fire him. And that Henri Lacamier is simply asking for his own death. There is no need to wait until the proposal to retire at the age of seventy is passed. I will convene the board of directors tomorrow. , proposed to suspend him and completely prohibit him from participating in any business activities related to LV. All board members will agree with my decision."
Bernard Arnault continued to be indignant and complained to his sponsor.
However, Frank Meyer was not interested in the power struggle within his company. He only cared about his own investments.
"Don't be angry, these are just trivial matters. The top priority is that we must make amends for this matter as soon as possible, try to restore the impact and maintain the stock price. We must not allow this kind of thing to develop. We have finally managed to get things to this point. Now the stock price is high and you have gained absolute control. Just hold on. If you keep going, you will definitely win. No one will have enough financial resources to compete with you for chips. According to LVMH's current revenue situation, the third quarterly report will be enough to maintain the current stock price. Important things cannot happen now. As long as the stock price can be stabilized, you can slowly kick out the people who don't like it and then kick it out. Then completely digest the fruits of your victory."
"Yeah, I know that." Bernard Arnault nodded, "But you don't have to worry about it, I have the ability to do it tomorrow. Regarding holding a press conference to clarify this matter, my authority on the board of directors has been deeply entrenched. The public will see the unified opinion of the LVMH board of directors through the media. As for excellent designers, it’s hard to say that I’m an outsider, but as long as I’m willing to spend money, I can hire an expert. You should know that no matter how famous the designer is, I can recruit him. , Dior clothing just let me revitalize it." "Then you shouldn't be careless." Frank Meyer shrugged noncommittally. "I have to remind you that you are now the boss of a listed company, and the impact of stocks on market value is very important. The stock price itself is enough to reflect the public's confidence in you. If the stock price falls, there will be a more serious loss of public confidence. I think After today’s stock market situation, the turnover rate is almost 4%. It has not been this high for a long time. Trading amount. In my experience, this is not a good sign. There must be a big selling order, so I have to worry about whether your opponent is deliberately using this desperate approach to lower the stock price and deliberately short. He owns 30% of the shares, and his friend Pierre Carton also owns some shares. If they want to divide shares, they can really bring down the stock price, and then we will have to bear the risk of huge losses..."
When he said this, Bernard Arnault couldn't help but become suspicious. , "You mean, this is a conspiracy deliberately carried out by Henry. Perhaps Henry is planning to short LV. This is what he did for MH's stock. But the question is, what's the benefit to him? When the stock price is high, he can at least make money by selling it. After all the hardships, can they still make money at this time? Do you have any illusions and want to arbitrage through securities lending and then buy back the shares at a low price? ”
"I don't know." Frank Meyer shook his head. "If they were rational, of course they would know that when our shareholding has reached 40%, it is no longer realistic for them to compete for the company's equity. But the problem is ...Does your opponent still have sense? Does Henry have sense to publicly slander LV's reputation? "
Frank Meyer looked at it with a joking expression. The person in power sitting behind the desk said, "To be honest, even I have to say that you are really despicable in the way you cause trouble. You have deceived almost everyone, and you have taken advantage of everyone's trust in you. You got all this. And you are so ruthless that as soon as you get the equity, you will kick everyone out and completely deprive them of all power in the company. If I were them, I would go crazy with anger. They will retaliate at all costs. So hatred may explain everything. After all, LVMH's stock price is already somewhat out of line with its fundamentals, although it is more likely that they will succeed. There is no way to save the situation, but at least it can make you suffer a huge loss in the value of the stock."
But when he heard what he said, Bernard Arnault smiled without feeling dissatisfied at all.
"Then they have found the wrong opponent. I will never lose. I will ask someone to check it out. If I really think what you said, then I will send their If they swallow up the shares and push up the stock price, they are giving me money.”
You know, the first company that Bernard Arnault succeeded in usurping the throne was his family company. The first chairman he fired was his father.
Even the Dior clothing was obtained by defrauding the French government by acquiring the Bossac Textile Group and then dismantling and selling it in a word game.
So why does he care about this when he has done so many immoral things?
When others mention it, he will only be proud of his huge profits and the pain he brings to others.
However, there is still a very practical question. Is it necessary to acquire shares or money? Where does the money come from?
"I'm talking about old friends. How about raising another 200 million US dollars for me? If, I mean if, they really do this, I will completely defeat them this time. Then I will let them continue You can't even buy the stocks that were closed at low prices," Bernard Arnault asked with a smile.
However, Frank Meyer refused,
"I think it's better to forget it. I said we can't just watch them quietly jump off the building to their death. We have to intervene. Besides, I have already I gave you too much money. There is discipline within the company and pressure from the outside. We at Lazard only have so much money in France, and most of it is given to you. From the perspective of risk diversification, it is impossible for me to give you any more money."
"Then I will take out a mortgage. Isn’t it okay if the thing comes out?” Bernard Arnault still asked persistently.
"Collateral? No, no, you mean LVMH shares, right? Since you want to operate this stock, the fluctuations will increase, and of course you cannot use this stock as collateral."
“No, I mean Dior clothing, LVM H's stock price has nothing to do with Dior clothing. The company's current market value is more than one billion US dollars. I'll mortgage 20% of the shares in my name to you. Is that enough? And I can give you double the interest, so you can. Put half of it in your own pocket, you damn Jew!"
"Well, you can think about it." Frank Meyer finally relented.
Bernard Arnault was also happy now, "Okay, old friend. I won't let your help go in vain. Our cooperation has always been seamless and always goes without any disadvantage. Isn't it?"
At this point, the two subtle ghosts who were full of money calculations finally reached an agreement on business and countermeasures.
However, the next day, October 16, the last trading day of the week, something even more surprising happened to them, so that everything they had planned could not be counted.
For no other reason, because they discovered that even Dior clothing had begun to be sold in large quantities, and the sales were even stronger than LVMH. The turnover rate was as high as 6%, and the stock price fell in one day. Seven percent.
At this moment, both of them felt extremely strange, and they were worried. (End of this chapter)