Lvmh goes to the Olympics

«Lvmh is pleased to invite you for an important announcement», the invitation read, complete with an emphatic request not to even show the receipt. The 6 p.m. appointment yesterday at the Grand palais èphémère on Place Joffre seemed to refer to the long-awaited announcement of the partnership with the Paris 2024 summer Olympics. Bernard Arnault announced that the deal was on the table at Lvmh’s annual general meeting in Paris in April. However, he added that «like any discussion, it may or may not end with a signature». Finally, the confirmation. Arnault himself was pleased to announce during the event at the Palais èphémère that the group’s slogan for the games would be «Artisan of All Victories». The Group will be a partner in the Games to the tune of around 150 million euros, a significant sum that will essentially save the Paris budget. In fact, it represents about 10% of the total sponsorship.

The group will sponsor fashion brands Louis Vuitton and Dior, champagne and spirits brand Moët Hennessy, and jeweler Chaumet, which will design medals for the event. The group will also sponsor athletes, including french swimmer Léon Marchand, while its beauty retailer Sephora will sponsor the Olympic torch relay. Antoine Arnault formalizes Lvmh’s participation as a «creative partner» in the Paris 2024 Olympic games. If it took Lvmh a while to get on the Olympic sponsorship bandwagon, it is also because such a contract follows very precise rules. For example, the companies in question are not allowed to activate their rights abroad. According to market sources, this would cost around 50 million euros. To communicate outside France, they have to negotiate with the national Olympic committees (Nocs).

This was undoubtedly the reason why Lvmh had to be convinced, since in 2022 only 6% of its sales will be generated in France and its main markets are North America and Asia. The partnership with Air France was only made official last Friday. A month and a half ago, Tony Estanguet, president of the Paris 2024 organizing committee, said that sponsorship revenue was «on track to reach 92% by the end of the year» despite the fact that it had been reassessed at 1.226 billion euros, or one-third of the Paris 2024 budget, which now stands at 4.4 billion euros. Some 15 new partners have been announced since the start of the year.

«We will continue to negotiate, it could take 15 days or six months» Antoine Arnault, the group’s director of communication and Image, reminded us a few weeks ago. Now the deal is done. One year before the Olympic games, the agreement signed between the Paris 2024 organizing committee and the world’s largest luxury group, which is also Europe’s most valuable company with a market capitalization of more than 400 billion euros, has replenished the Games’ coffers. Speaking at Lvmh’s annual general meeting in April, Antoine Arnault predicted that the opening ceremony, which will take place on the banks of the Seine rather than in a stadium, could be the most watched event in Olympic history. To paraphrase the famous maxim attributed to the founder of the modern games, Pierre de Coubertin, the most important thing for Lvmhis not just to participate. (All rights reserved)