LVMH’s Strategy for a Paris 2024 Summer Olympic Takeover

All eyes are set on this year’s Summer Olympic games in Paris with an estimated draw of 1 billion people who will be watching the event around the world and 326,000 in-person attendees. In June 2023, LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault announced his plans to sponsor the 2024 Summer Olympics in a first-of-its-kind deal that comes with a USD 166 million (or approx. €150 million) payout. LVMH had previously stated its claims to leverage growth in brand awareness and potential affinity through the popularity of athletic associations. It is a move which Arnault aptly puts, “will contribute to heightening the appeal of France around the world.”

Branding & Marketing

It goes without saying that as the commercial partner of a mainstream sports event, LVMH will be expected to receive extensive exposure to a global audience through various marketing channels associated with the Olympics, including television broadcasts, digital platforms, and onsite signage. The first step is product placement and integration. There is an international recognition of the five multi-coloured Olympic rings. LVMH’s recognition, however — one could argue — is limited to a clientele versed in the appreciation of luxury goods. While the general public may recognise brands like Louis Vuitton and Dior, there is a disparity in the universal interest of LVMH as opposed to the Olympic Games which unites nations and people across generations and income brackets.

Image courtesy of LVMH & Stéphane Feugère

Next, an association with the Olympics would allow LVMH to deliver what they do best — luxury craftsmanship across fashion and hospitality. The physical manifestation of LVMH’s branding comes in the form of medals, torches, trunks and uniforms. This is where product placement and integration come in. Paris 2024 will entrust several essential roles to artisans from the LVMH Group. These include the design of the Olympic and Paralympic medals by Maison Chaumet while Louis Vuitton has crafted special trunks to case the medals and torches.

Image courtesy of LVMH

In April, LVMH and Berluti unveiled team France’s outfits for the Opening Ceremonies of the 2024 Paris Olympic and Paralympic Games. The Opening Ceremonies will see French athletes and coaches clad in Berluti tuxedos and shoes, all custom-tailored to immortalise the occasion. According to LVMH, choosing Berluti was strategic in various steps including highlighting the Maison as a unique French house and an ode to the founder’s practice as a master shoemaker. The project involved delivering 1,500 outfits for Team France which included tuxedos, shirts, belts, scarves or pocket squares, and shoes in an effort that involved approximately 180 people.

Athletic Endorsements

Timothée Adolphe

As a run-up to the games, LVMH has engaged Olympian brand ambassadors including para-athlete sprinter Timothée Adolphe and member of the Olympic French rugby sevens team Antoine Dupont with Louis Vuitton alongside double bronze para-cycling medalist para-cyclist Marie Patouillet at Maison Dior.

Marie Patouillet

Marie Patouillet will represent Dior as Ambassador for the Paralympic Games 2024 while Antoine Dupont and Timothée Adolphe will be ambassadors of Louis Vuitton for the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024 respectively.

Retail Expansion & Acquiring Prime Locations

Image courtesy of Unsplash

LVMH aims to capitalise on the influx of tourists and visitors during the Olympics by strategically positioning its retail outlets, flagship stores, and pop-up shops across Paris. This serves to drive footfall and sales as part of the conglomerate’s strategy to hone in on prime Parisian landmarks and property.

Arguably the pièce de résistance of Parisian architecture, the Champs-Élysées is set to undergo an “Olympic” transformation. According to Forbes, nearly a billion US dollars has been spent towards building a presence on the prime location and delivering a combination of both retail and hospitality. By doing so, LVMH will reinforce its real estate footprint in this area, ensuring a strong presence and visibility when it inevitably becomes a destination for shopping and leisure. During the Olympic and Paralympic Games Paris 2024, the Champs-Elysees will be transformed to host the urban sports competition, including BMX freestyle, skateboarding, and 3 by 3 basketball events.

Utilising the Parisian skyline, LVMH unveiled its “The Rooftops” campaign showcasing LVMH athletes paired with emblematic Paris monuments including the Fondation Louis Vuitton, the Panthéon, Montmartre and the Sacré-Coeur, the Arc de Triomphe and the Eiffel Tower. The video campaign was released in 60-second and 30-second versions and reprised in event schedule billboards for the Olympic & Paralympic Games Paris 2024 and on social networks, plus five display and print formats. As LVMH notes “Paris, the City of Light, city of arts and literature, a crossroads of history and passion… and now the city where our athletes will achieve their most memorable feats”.

According to reports from Forbes, LVMH is also set to organise a cultural path across some of its prime retail locations to showcase the convergence of art, sports and culture. These exhibitions will take place in many of the group’s brand flagships, including Guerlain, Berluti, Dior, and the La Samaritaine department store. During the games, visitors will be able to indulge in unique photography, art, and fashion exhibitions created specifically with the Olympic games in mind, aiming to bring sports and fashion together by highlighting the similar qualities of the two themes.

LVMH has also invested in retail expansion by shifting the perspective of physical stores into hospitality retail as a way to expand its brands’ ecosystems and to create immersive premium experiences and that allow for the elevation of each brand under the LVMH umbrella.

Sustainability

While it may not be high on LVMH’s checklist of a strategic takeover, this is the conglomerate’s chance to flex with its “environmental prowess” and highlight that the company is ahead of its competitors when it comes to sustainability. 2024 sees the general public place increasing emphasis on sustainability in major events like the Olympics, and LVMH could implement sustainability initiatives related to their operations, supply chain, and products to align with the sustainability goals of the Games. In an interview with Variety, the chairman & CEO of LVMH Inc. Anish Melwani — who heads the North American business of the luxury giant — stated that the long-term success of LVMH houses depends directly on preserving and respecting the natural resources used to make their products, which in turn increases their desirability.

When questioned about LVMH’s sustainability efforts, Melwani replied saying “…we cannot create top-quality Champagne without grapes, perfumes without roses and apparel without cotton. We created the LIFE (LVMH Initiatives for the Environment) program, which made sustainable development an integral part of our strategic business plans for all 75 houses”. LIFE is aimed at protecting biodiversity, fighting climate change, promoting the circular economy and providing production and sourcing transparency.

What Comes After Gold?

History will remember the 2024 Olympic Games as a global sporting event that was synonymous with LVMH. By association alone, LVMH has imbued itself into the tournament with medals, torches and uniforms — universal symbols of the games. With retail store expansions, numerous brand activations, and placing a foothold on Paris’ prime locations, it is up to LVMH to leverage these opportunities for longevity after the games have ended to truly get a return on the company’s multi-million dollar investment. As the world’s largest luxury goods conglomerate and one of the largest companies in the world, the LVMH and Olympic partnership could be the final feather in CEO Bernard Arnault’s cap to cement him as one of history’s most successful entrepreneurs and ensures a legacy for his children to follow through as LVMH lays the foundation for its own succession strategies.

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