Whichever sporting heroes bring home the medals at the Paris Olympics later this month, there will only be one true winner: LVMH founder, chairman and chief executive officer Bernard Arnault. Despite the political turmoil in France – and the impact this has had on Arnault’s wealth after the decline in LVMH shares – his brands will have a starring role in the games.

LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE has spent €150 million ($163 million) to be one of the premium sponsors of the Olympic and Paralympic Games. It will also be the first-ever “creative partner,” with its brands including Louis Vuitton and Dior intertwined with the competition, its locations hosting cultural events and a roster of French athletes as ambassadors.

It’s an unprecedented intermingling of designer labelling and sports, underlining the increasing might of the bling behemoth, which enjoys sales now four times bigger than its nearest rivals and a market capitalisation of about €350 billion. Only Birkin bag maker Hermès International comes anywhere close to its value.

But Arnault can’t afford anything other than a clean sweep of medals. After three years of blockbuster growth, luxury sales have decelerated. The political upheaval in France can’t be ignored; some consumers are souring on top-end goods, while the dominance of the European luxury brands is being highlighted by Saks Fifth Avenue owner Hudson’s Bay Co.’s $2.65 billion acquisition of rival Neiman Marcus in an attempt to compete with them more effectively.

Arnault was initially reluctant to write a check to sponsor the games, Bloomberg Businessweek reported. Now, LVMH brands will be almost synonymous with them, designing medals, dressing French athletes and providing the champagne for VIP events. Dior will even be involved in the opening ceremony, although the details remain top secret. Analysts at Bernstein describe the scale of the investment as “flabbergasting.”

Such a barrage of publicity is needed. Although LVMH is expected to generate almost €90 billion of sales this year, up from €54 billion in 2019, even it hasn’t been immune to the industry slowdown.

Chinese VIPs are still spending, but the middle class is under pressure from a deepening property slump. Similarly in the US, as the super wealthy continue to splash on Hermès handbags and Brunello Cucinelli SpA cashmere sweaters, the simply comfortable are constrained by high borrowing costs and lingering inflation. Earlier this year, the hope had been that the luxury market would rebound in the second half of 2024, as demanding comparisons with last year’s Chinese revenge spending fade. Now a recovery looks unlikely before 2025. That explains why shares in LVMH have lost almost all of their gains since January.

And the Olympics might delay the recovery further. Travel restrictions across Paris and luxury big spenders choosing to visit Milan instead may dampen demand in the French capital. But this short-term pain will be worth it.

LVMH’s visibility will beam its brands to viewers around the globe. They may not be in the market for a bag or wallet today, but when they are, they’ll remember the trays in Louis Vuitton’s iconic Damier check pattern on which medals were presented to winners.

What’s more, the involvement underlines that LVMH is more than just a seller of physical goods. Arnault said two years ago that Louis Vuitton was “not just a fashion brand,” but a “cultural brand.”  The Neverfull bag maker’s CEO Pietro Beccari told the Financial Times in May that there was “no household in the world that doesn’t have [contact with] Louis Vuitton products.”

This might be hyperbole, but he’s not too far off. Appointing first the late Virgil Abloh, and then Pharrell Williams, as the house’s menswear creative director connected it to music and associated subcultures, such as streetwear. The Olympics will fuse it to sport. A campaign earlier this year for  Louis Vuitton’s Christopher backpack featured tennis rivals Roger Federer and Rafael Nadal scaling the summit of Italy’s Dolomites.

And welcoming the world to Paris plays into another of Arnault’s strategies: moving further into hospitality. The theory is that when Chinese travellers do return to Europe in significant numbers, they won’t just be wearing the company’s clothes, shoes and jewellery, they’ll be able to vacation in an LVMH-controlled ecosystem, spanning hotels and restaurants. LVMH’s recent purchase of old school Paris bistro Chez l’Ami Louis, as well as reports that Arnault is among the bidders for Venice’s Hotel Bauer, underline the intent.

But LVMH’s Olympic sponsorship must run smoothly. It’s not yet clear what flavour of government will emerge in France, and consequently what policies affecting luxury groups might result. The hope is that given the importance of the games to Paris, politics will take a back seat to spectacle. But this can’t be guaranteed.

Meanwhile, US competition authorities are eyeing the luxury goods market, probing Tapestry Inc.’s $8.5 billion takeover bid for rival Capri Holdings Ltd. The deal between Saks Fifth Avenue and Neiman Marcus may put the industry under further scrutiny. This matters because LVMH isn’t done shopping. As well as hospitality, it has room to expand in watches and jewellery, with Arnault taking a personal equity stake in Cartier owner Cie Financiere Richemont SA.

Finally, some consumers have begun to balk at the rising costs of upmarket items, while allegations of poor working conditions in factories making Dior bags in Italy risk a broader backlash.

Despite being the third-richest man in the world, Arnault likes to get his money’s worth, as his haggling over the price of Tiffany & Co. four years ago demonstrated. That investment has paid off handsomely. He will be hoping for a similarly sparkling return from going for gold at the first Luxury Olympics.

By Andrea Felsted

Disclosure: LVMH is part of a group of investors who, together, hold a minority interest in The Business of Fashion. All investors have signed shareholders’ documentation guaranteeing BoF’s complete editorial independence.

Rocco Liu has been named editorial director of Vogue China, publisher Condé Nast confirmed. The top job was last held by Margaret Zhang, a divisive figure who departed the magazine after three years as editor-in-chief.

Liu joined Condé Nast China in 2009, working his way up the ranks of GQ China from the role of editor to social media director. He became editorial director of the men’s fashion title in 2021 after serving in the acting role for around a year. A former English teacher, the digitally savvy editor has been credited with the success of GQ Lab, an online sub-brand that launched on WeChat before expanding to other social media platforms including Xiaohongshu and Bilibili.

“I have long admired everything Rocco has done at GQ,” said Anna Wintour, global chief content officer of Condé Nast and editor-in-chief of American Vogue, in a statement. “He has great instincts for creating stories that live on new platforms, that find new audiences, and for imagining events that get people talking. In all the work he’s done with us, he’s been super creative, ambitious and has proven that he knows how to make an impact.”

Condé Nast, which publishes Vogue China under a copyright cooperation partnership, will be looking to Liu, a Chinese mainlander and familiar face at the company’s Beijing unit, to steady the ship after Zhang’s controversial three-year tenure.

Reception to Zhang’s work was mixed. Critics accused the Australian-born influencer of not having a deep enough understanding of the Chinese market while fans celebrated what they saw as the fresh perspective of a youthful outsider. Zhang succeeded Angelica Cheung, Vogue China’s founding editor who resigned in 2020 after 15 years in the job.

Liu, who holds a Bachelor’s degree in English language and literature translation from Beijing Foreign Studies University, will be responsible for the Vogue China brand across all platforms and events, with immediate effect. Known locally as Liu Chong, he is the first male to lead the women’s fashion publication in China. His successor at GQ China will be named at a later date.

Learn more:

Margaret Zhang to Exit Vogue China

Condé Nast said it is searching for a successor to take over after Zhang, whose appointment never became less divisive.

As some of you might know, I’m expecting my second child later this month. I plan to take the very necessary, fully paid parental leave that I’m offered at The Business of Fashion (which should be mandatory everywhere), so this will be my last column for The Business of Beauty until the spring.

With a newborn and a two-year-old at home, I fully expect to be in the throes of chaos, complete with sleepless nights, nursing and postpartum complications. I certainly was last time. But, I imagine sooner or later there will be some days that I’ll be thinking about beauty – not my own vanity necessarily, but the evolving and ever-active industry that we work in.

I have plenty of thoughts and questions about what the next several months are going to look like (these have only been intensified by my multiple pregnancy wake ups a night). Since it’ll be a while before I write any more columns where I unpack those ideas, here are the things I’ll be watching and wondering about during my time away:

Which Beauty Retailer Will Win Over Gen Alpha?

I love Piper Sandler’s annual “Taking Stock of Teens” survey. For years, Ulta Beauty has taken the top spot for beauty destinations, with 41 percent of teens saying it was their preferred retailer to shop for cosmetics and skincare in 2023. This year, the US’s biggest beauty store ceded share: Sephora took the number one position on the survey with 37 percent of teens reporting that they shopped there versus 31 percent saying they are more partial to Ulta Beauty.

Given the recent headlines and outrage around “Sephora Tweens” I wasn’t totally surprised by the data, but how did this happen?

Ulta Beauty won the generational war against Sephora with Millennials and older Gen-Zers, but young Gen-Z and Gen Alpha have recently made the latter the retailer to beat. Despite Sephora’s overall higher price point and positioning, its emphasis on skincare and beauty playground atmosphere has made it a go-to for tweens.

Right now, I’m not totally sold on the notion that Sephora’s assortment just veers more to Gen Alpha (Drunk Elephant and Sol de Janeiro, Gen Alpha favourites, have both expanded to Ulta Beauty), but I am interested in how Ulta Beauty goes on the offensive through product. In its heyday, its partnerships with celebrity brands like Kylie Cosmetics, KKW and Florence by Mills did the trick alongside its broad assortment of high end and affordable lines. While that’s not an exact solve today, Hailey Bieber’s Rhode, which is said to be looking for a retail partner, still hasn’t found wholesale distribution.

What Happens to the Big Makeup M&A Boom?

For the better part of the year, you have heard me go on about how competitive the beauty M&A market is, especially for colour cosmetics. Considering that it is July, 2024 hasn’t proven to be the frothy deal-making scene that was expected at the end of last year. So many brands are in the market, and it’s going to take much of the year to figure out who gets bought, by whom and for how much.

Much like 2023, when K18 and Dr. Dennis Gross announced that they were acquired on the same day by Unilever and Shiseido, respectively, I suspect most of these lines aren’t going to find homes till the winter.

As for Rare Beauty, I’m still betting no decisions will be made until 2025.

Will The Estée Lauder Companies’ Fabrizio Freda Stay Put?

When The Estée Lauder Companies announced its recovery playbook alongside its sixth consecutive quarter of declining sales in February, many in our world expected that president and chief executive Fabrizio Freda would be out before long. The company has already confirmed that longtime chief financial officer, Tracey Travis, will be retiring in June 2025.

While succession theories featuring Jane Lauder, heir and executive vice president of enterprise marketing and chief data officer, and executive group president Stephane de La Faverie have loomed since last year, it appears that Freda is committed to the conglomerate’s turnaround plan. That includes its up to five percent workforce reduction, which is said to be announced later this summer. Sources tell me that Freda is staying put to get the company through to the other side. But, I wouldn’t be surprised to see more very important ELC leadership changes occur before the end of the year.

Will Luxury’s Beauty Strategy Take Hold?

It was just over a year ago that LVMH named Stéphane Rinderknech as chairman and chief executive of the company’s beauty division. In the time since, the luxury house’s overall beauty strategy hasn’t shifted much, except for the announcement of the much-anticipated Celine Beauty, set to debut this fall. LVMH’s beauty business remains on fire. Insiders have said that Rinderknech is eyeing acquisitions to make his mark. I’ve heard that fragrance-heavy brands are very much in the mix. Remember, the conglomerate was once in the running for Aesop.

Over at Kering, more of its luxury lines are focussed on extensions, with one reportedly launching fragrance this fall. The LVMH competitor has yet to make big moves since the Creed acquisition last year, so I imagine more of its owned brands will begin to make beauty-centric announcements in the near future starting with perfumes. The same can be said for Richemont but details on Cartier’s beauty announcement remain under lock and key. And of course, ELC’s big reveal on Balmain Beauty (and whether it has the legs to be the blockbuster that is Tom Ford) is set to be unveiled for Fashion Month.

Though the chasm between the haves and the have nots continues to widen, I expect to see more beauty labels make their ultra luxury bet.

That’s it for me for now. In the coming months, our fantastic beauty correspondents, Daniela Morosini and Liz Flora, will be your go-tos for breaking news and features. BoF’s executive editor Brian Baskin and news and features editor Diana Pearl will be shepherding our coverage. And don’t forget to look out for columns and stories from our regular contributors like Isamaya Ffrench, Faran Krentcil, Brennan Kilbane and more.

See you in the spring!

Here are my top picks from our insight and analysis on beauty and wellness this week:

1. The Biggest Summer Beauty Trends to Watch

Seasonal staples like SPF and beachy scents are getting an update, while new product innovations have taken off thanks to influencers.

2. What’s Hot in Sunscreen Now

Years into SPF’s beauty-fuelled reinvention, new trends are still emerging, from the growing popularity of foreign formulas to innovations in texture.

3. The Tricky Politics of the ‘No Makeup’ Look

In a recent Vogue editorial, celebrity bride Olivia Culpo spoke about skipping mascara and lip liner on her wedding day, touching off a fierce debate about what ‘no makeup’ really is.

THE BUSINESS OF BEAUTY NEWS IN BRIEF

Estée Lauder CFO Tracey Travis Set to Retire. Travis, who has been in the position for 12 years, will remain in her role for the next year, with her retirement effective June 30, 2025. Her successor has already been selected — ELC declined to share who it is at this moment, saying in a statement that they will be revealed in the next few weeks.

UK Tycoon Jatania poised to buy The Body Shop out of administration. Aurea Holding, an investment firm that Jatania runs with former UBS Group AG banker Paul Raphael, is in exclusive talks to acquire the brand after beating rival bidders in an auction process. The new owners plan to retain all of The Body Shop’s UK stores.

Dyson to cut about 1,000 UK jobs as new CEO reviews strategy. The company cited rapid growth and redundancies as reasons for the cuts. The company informed workers it plans to maintain its research and development hub in the country.

Puig to join Spain’s blue-chip index. Just over two months after the cosmetics company completed the country’s biggest initial public offering in nearly a decade, it will join its blue-chip equities on July 22. Puig’s share price has risen more than 3 percent since its market debut. It will replace Melia Hotels in the IBEX 35 index.

Naked Sundays to launch in Ulta Beauty. The Australian sun care brand will debut on the retailer’s website on July 14 and in 800 Ulta Beauty stores in March 2025. The move follows successful expansions into Target stores and Canada’s Shoppers Drug Mart stores in February and June respectively.

David Beckham to launch a wellness brand. Beckham is now an investor in publicly listed biotech firm Prenetics, and will serve as a co-founder of a new wellness brand, IM8, under its umbrella. As well as being a co-founding partner, Beckham will also be an ambassador for the brand.

Rabanne announces Troye Sivan as ambassador. The Australian pop singer will be the brand’s first makeup ambassador and will front its Fresh Touch Foundation campaign.

Welcome back to Haul of Fame, your must-read beauty roundup for new products, new ideas and a tiny suggestion that scrunchies might be a viable accessory now. (Sorry.)

Included in today’s issue: Allies of Skin, Alpyn Beauty, By/Rosie Jane, Fenty Beauty, Gen See, ghd, Hanni, Hourglass Cosmetics, J.R. Liggett, Louis Vuitton, Morphe, Naturium, Nyx, Pottery Barn, Quip, RMS Beauty, Snowfox Skincare, and Tamagotchis.

But first…

I’m friends with a TV star who rose to fame as a dream-girl blonde in the 1990s. She’s now 55, but her face doesn’t look it. “Fillers?” I asked her. “Estrogen,” she corrected. “You get it prescribed as a cream during menopause. You’re supposed to use it vaginally. But everyone in Hollywood uses it as a skin cream, even in their 30s and 40s. They’re doing it off-label.”

Her phrasing made me curious. Even five years ago, “off-label” was a medical term. Now the phrase — which means using a prescription substance for something other than its intended purpose — is a rising beauty buzzword. That’s mostly thanks to Ozempic, the diabetes regulator that’s now used as weight loss candy off-label, of course.

Today, “off-label skincare” is a popular TikTok tag, with recent view surges for the Juvaderm injectable Skinvive, along with estrogen and tretinoin, a Vitamin A derivative used for acne and fine lines. Even Josie Maran, the Maybelline model turned natural beauty entrepreneur, told her 260 thousand followers that she was using her argan oil “off-label” in a recent Instagram reel. She was employing it as a heel moisturiser and cuticle oil.

Why is “off-label” so on-trend? Partly because in today’s super-stressful medical landscape, feeling like you might know better than your doctor — and certainly better than Big Pharma — is a way to take back some agency from opaque insurance bills, impossible appointment bookings, and the very real fear that your doctor just isn’t listening to you.

Who is listening? Marketing executives and entrepreneurs.

Which brings us to the menopause-led brand Alloy, one of the brands hopping on the off-label tagline with their M4 Estriol cream. Created last year and available for about $50 per tube, the cream is “a powerhouse for ageing skin,” according to Dr. Corinne Menn, one of Alloy’s prescribing physicians, who dealt with early menopause herself after combating breast cancer.

“Estrogen is responsible for stimulating collagen production and creating hyaluronic acid,” said Dr. Menn. “That’s what fillers are made of — but we can stimulate our bodies to create it naturally when estrogen is around. In my opinion, that’s a much better way to go.”

Many studies and doctors agree with Dr. Menn. Many others — including my gold standard, the OBGYN Dr. Jenn Gunter, have said there’s too little evidence and too many unknowns, which is a real risk when dealing with skincare chemicals. So this week, Alloy released a new peer-reviewed study about the cream’s safety and effectiveness when used as directed by a doctor. Dr. Menn hopes that Alloy and other companies can use the added science, along with studies by menopause experts like Dr. Ellen to take the off-label trend and turn it into an on-label reality.

“I once used my vaginal cream as an eye cream for sure,” she laughed. “And it was good! But that part of the body is… uh… wetter. Your face absorbs products differently. So when a brand gives you an on-label option, you know, it’s not trying to trick you. It’s trying to give you better results.”

What Else Is New

Skincare

Allies of Skin introduced its Copper Tripeptide & Ectoin Advanced Repair Serum on July 10. It “promotes skin recovery by addressing the seven telltale signs of a damaged barrier,” and comes in the deep blue packaging also favoured by Augustinus Bader and Prequel.

Starting July 10, Alpyn Beauty’s Willow & Sweet Agave Plumping Lip Mask will be available in a tube instead of a jar, which is great for anyone trying to apply in-flight skincare without actually touching the face.

J.R. Liggett’s Body Oil in a Bar is a solid moisturiser that boasts plastic-free packaging (yay!). Available starting July 9, it’s meant to be used wet or dry, and made with coconut, lavender, jojoba and almond oils.

Quip’s 360 Oscillating Toothbrush launched on July 10, with a teeny tiny head to actually scrub every individual tooth. Have you heard of people using (new, clean) Quip brush heads as pedicure tools during DIY spa days? It’s happening.

Snowfox Skincare’s Anti-Pollution Bio Polymer Serum hits shelves on July 11. Its founder, Phoebe Song, says “pollution is one of the worst enemies of sensitive skin.” She is totally correct — which is why I assume all her products are made without plastic or single-use packaging, right? Right? (Insert Natalie Portman Star Wars meme here.)

Hanni — the self-proclaimed “go-to for lazy people”— has a new body care stick called The Fatty. It hit shelves on July 9 and includes lots of fatty acids to help moisturise skin. It does not include fragrance, which might be why the National Eczema Association gave it their seal of approval, a first for the brand.

On July 8, Herbivore unveiled Blue Wave, a salicylic acid serum with blue tansy, a teeny tiny flower that grows around the Mediterranean shoreline, and has been used as a folk remedy for burns.

Makeup

Naturium’s first batch of Phyto-Glow Lip Balms sold out four times. Its new range, the Fruity Collection, drops on July 12 and includes watermelon, strawberry, mango and peach flavours. They cost $10 and the tweens in my life have already swiped them from my purse.

Fenty Beauty’s hotly anticipated Gloss Bomb hybrid lipsticks and Trace’d Out lip pencils go live on their website starting July 12. There are ten shades each, including the absolute banger of a name “Blaz’d Donut.” It’s a light pink beige and I’m sold.

Want a cheaper option? Nyx Cosmetics introduced six new shades of their Fat Oil, which is also a hybrid lip pigment, on July 9. It’s about half the price of Fenty, but the names — “Chillin Like a Villain” and “Living the Cream”— could use some work.

More blush! (Who’s surprised?) Gen See’s Flush Glow sticks launched on July 9 with five cheeky shades that can be used as a blush, highlight or contour. It features the cream-to-powder finish that seems to be very popular this season, and also appreciated in a heatwave, where you don’t want to feel like your creamy makeup is melting off. Meanwhile, Morphe’s Hot Shot Blush Drops debuted on July 11 with a water-based formula that lets colour build from sheer to “Dove Cameron at Valentino.” There are also Hot Shot Sun Drops for bronzing. And Hourglass Cosmetics has Unreal Liquid Blush, a serum-like formula, dropping the same day.

A certain corner of the internet is going insane because Tamagotchi, that little Japanese toy that looks like a robot egg from a Happy Meal, is getting its own makeup line — mostly pots of jelly-coloured lip gloss. It’s courtesy of parent company Bandai, and hit the internet on July 5.

Hair Care

On July 10, ghd released its Duet Blowdry tool, an electric dryer wand that uses “20 percent less energy consumption” than previous models while promising zero heat damage and visible shine and body. It’s $400, or about 8 blowouts at Drybar.

Fragrance

RMS Beauty’s first perfume, Scarlet Moon, launched on July 9. It’s a collaboration with Douglas Little from Heretic Perfumes (which makes a surprisingly good bug spray!) and smells like blood oranges.

On July 9, By/Rosie Jane introduced its Missy fragrance as a body oil. It’s still got pineapple, mandarin and amber notes, but now it can slide around your legs after a shower.

Louis Vuitton unveiled a campaign for its LVERS fragrance on July 10. The scent is “inspired by light and photosynthesis” and the imagery includes sun-drenched shots of shirtless men in jorts holding perfume bottles like skateboards. This is actually kind of thrilling, and it seems Pharrell is determined to shake up the ways men see luxury fragrance. Let’s see how it goes.

And finally

Did you know Pottery Barn sells $40 scrunchies now? There are also sheepskin Prada scrunchies happening. I fear this is going to be a thing.