Luca de Meo takes the reins of Kering in crisis
François-Henri Pinault is handing over the reins − at least in part. At 63, the man who has combined the roles of chair and chief executive officer of Kering since 2005 confirmed on Monday, June 16, that he plans to split these two functions and appoint Luca de Meo, the outgoing chief executive of Renault, as Kering's new CEO. Pinault will remain chair of the board of directors of the group, of which Artémis, the Pinault family holding company, owns 42.3% of the capital. He said he will continue to oversee the group's "major strategic directions."
This change in governance will require an extraordinary general meeting of Kering shareholders, scheduled for September 9, during which revisions will be made to the compensation policy and the age limits for the roles of chair and CEO. The Italian executive will formally take up his new position on September 15, immediately after the meeting.
According to Pinault, de Meo brings "agility," experience managing a publicly listed international group and the "energy" needed to "take the reins of the group." "It's the right time," said Pinault, who explained that he has been thinking about his succession since 2019 and had set a "20-year" horizon for his tenure at the helm of the group founded by his father, François Pinault, now 88 years old.
The Paris stock market welcomed the news. Kering shares jumped 11% in trading on Monday, following reports in Le Figaro that revealed the expected appointment of de Meo. Since then, financial analysts have issued a flurry of commentary. According to Edmond de Rothschild Asset Management, "investors will welcome the new governance as Mr. Pinault takes a step back." For months, luxury sector analysts had raised concerns about decisions made by Pinault − his lack of awareness of the broader economic context, his weak responses to internal crises at Gucci and Balenciaga and the group's struggles to attract fresh talent.
Although he lacks experience in the luxury sector, de Meo, a thoroughbred of the automotive industry, has − according to analysts at RBC Capital Markets − the ideal "outsider" profile "to make tough decisions and (...) bring depth to the current team."
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