Latest news with #Moët-Hennessy
Daily Mail
04-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Daily Mail
Christie Brinkley's tragic lost love BEFORE Billy Joel: Dashing champagne heir died in race crash aged 27
Christie Brinkley was swept up in a fairytale romance with a devastating ending a year before her tumultuous union with hitmaker Billy Joel began. The supermodel, famed for her peppy smile and California girl looks, was fresh off an eight year marriage to French artist Jean-François Allaux when she first connected with another Frenchman, champagne heir Olivier Chandon de Brailles in 1982. Chandon was the handsome only son of billionaire Frederic Chandon de Brailles, chairman of the Moët-Hennessy group, who was forging a career in race car driving. A chance meeting with the uber-wealthy Moët-Chandon nepo baby at NYC hotspot Studio 54 sparked 'love at first sight' for the Sports Illustrated icon. They swiftly became one of the power couples of the 80s, but friction arose over Chandon's desire to purse professional race car driving - despite his family and Brinkley's reported misgivings over his chosen career. On March 2 1983 Brinkley's worst fears were realized when the high-octane sport claimed Chandon's life in a freak crash in West Palm Beach, Florida. He was just 27 years old. Less than an hour before his death, a heartbroken Brinkley had made plans to meet Chandon that evening. The pair's fateful first meeting came at a soiree to promote the 1982 Christie Brinkley calendar. A smitten Chandon sent her a dozen white roses afterwards with a note: 'Hope to see you again before the flowers die.' Brinkley said it was 'love at first sight' when she first locked eyes with Chandon, a French citizen who had moved to New York City to study. Chandon had attended the exclusive Le Rosey School in Switzerland, and had served in the French Air Force. His passion for racing began in Europe, where he competed in his first race aged just 18. He moved to New York City in 1979 to study marketing and work in the sales department of United Technologies before resuming his racing career. Described as being 'blessed with great charm and poise' Chandon spoke five languages fluently, had a black belt in Taekwondo and was also an 'avid skydiver.' They swiftly became one of the power couples of the 80s but friction arose over Chandon's desire to forge a successful race car career - despite his family and Brinkley's misgivings - pictured 1982 Their romance went from strength-to-strength and the high profile pair attended numerous glittering parties together, with Brinkley regularly spotted supporting him at the race track. The only cloud on the horizon of the romance was concern over Chandon's vocation. He dropped the de Brailles from his name due to concern from his family over safety in the sport, per Motorsport Memorial. Chandon competed professionally only once in the 1982 Formula Super Vee USA with Wilbur Bunce Racing and in a Ralt RT5 (Volkswagen), finishing in 43rd position - but he was determined to prove himself in the ruthless race car world. His final days were spent preparing for the Formula Atlantic season with the Fred Opert Racing Team of New York. At a cost of $600 a day, the team rented Moroso Motorsport Park - now known as the Palm Beach International Raceway - to test the new 1983 Ralt and and an older car. On Tuesday March 1, the day before his death, Chandon drove for more than 100 miles in the older car to acclimatize himself with the track. The next day Chandon climbed into the new Ralt Formula Atlantic car and began driving around the Park's B-Line Highway. On his tenth lap around the track, the car left the road and crashed into a barrier at more than 100mph. The vehicle catapulted into a canal 12 meters from the track with a helpless Chandon pinned in the car by his feet. Although his injuries were survivable, he was unable to escape and drowned. When told of the accident, a distraught Christie stayed in California. Then Palm Beach Sheriff's Sgt. J.J. Andersen said the driver's father, Frederic, who was the owner of the car, was expected to fly to Florida from France. He said: 'He will be meeting with the race team to discuss what happened. No one has said there was a mechanical failure, but we will continue to look into it.' The Palm Beach Medical Examiner confirmed there were no signs of blows to the head or any body injuries that might have contributed to his death. His cause of death was confirmed as 'asphyxiation by drowning.' The cause of the accident remains a mystery to this day - with a stuck throttle or driver error touted as possible theories. Chandon is buried in the Laferte-sur-Aube cemetery, Haute-Marne, France. Brinkley moved on with musician Joel soon after Chandon's death. The pair had met for the first time in January 1983, two months before Chandon's crash, while they were both on vacation in St. Barts. The Piano Man singer explained that he reached out to Brinkley after he heard that her boyfriend had died to offer his condolences, they struck up a friendship, and things eventually turned romantic. The two started dating while he was still in a relationship with Elle Macpherson, as Billy wrote in his 2014 memoir, Billy Joel: The Definitive Biography, that he once brought Christie home while Elle was already asleep in his bed. More than four decades on from his death, Chandon has remained in a now 71-year-old Brinkley's thoughts and memories. She reflects on their relationship in her new memoir, Uptown Girl, and previously revealed that she had to take time off from her modelling career to rebuild after Chandon's death. She said: 'I remember coming close to [starring in Darryl Hannah film] Splash but that was when my boyfriend Olivier was killed in the car accident. And I just had to take a little sabbatical.'
RTÉ News
02-05-2025
- Business
- RTÉ News
LVMH's Moet Hennessy to cut workforce by 10%, FT reports
LVMH group's wine and spirits business Moet Hennessy will shrink its workforce by more than 10%, about 1,200 employees, the Financial Times has reported, citing an internal video message from the division's CEO, Jean-Jacques Guiony. Guiony and his deputy, Alexandre Arnault, son of LVMH owner Bernard Arnault, told staff at Moet Hennessy this week that they planned to cut the workforce back to 2019 levels, the newspaper said, adding that a timeline for the job cuts was not immediately known. Organic sales at Moet Hennessy, LVMH's weakest division, dropped 9% in the first quarter, hit by a slump in its key US and Chinese markets. This dragged other sectors of the luxury goods empire, which encompasses brands from Louis Vuitton to Moet & Chandon. "While Moët-Hennessy's business has returned to its 2019 level, Moët-Hennessy announced yesterday its intention to adjust its organisation and gradually return to its 2019 staffing levels, primarily by managing its natural turnover and not filling vacant positions," LVMH said, according to the FT report. Alexandre Arnault, who has links with U.S. President Donald Trump's family, was assigned the job of helping turn around the group's wine and spirits business in November 2024, a task that could be more difficult now, as 20% reciprocal tariffs imposed by Trump on all European Union goods could have an impact on the company. Last month, the French wine and spirits exporters group said that the sales of French wine and spirits were expected to slide in the US following Trump's tariff announcement.
Fashion Network
01-05-2025
- Business
- Fashion Network
LVMH's Moet Hennessy to cut workforce by 10%, FT reports
LVMH group's wine and spirits business Moet Hennessy will shrink its workforce by more than 10%, about 1,200 employees, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing an internal video message from the division's CEO, Jean-Jacques Guiony. Guiony and his deputy, Alexandre Arnault, son of LVMH owner Bernard Arnault, told staff at Moet Hennessy this week that they planned to cut the workforce back to 2019 levels, the newspaper said, adding that a timeline for the job cuts was not immediately known. Organic sales at Moet Hennessy, LVMH's weakest division, dropped 9% in the first quarter, hit by a slump in its key U.S. and Chinese markets. This dragged other sectors of the luxury goods empire, which encompasses brands from Louis Vuitton to Moet & Chandon. "While Moët-Hennessy's business has returned to its 2019 level, Moët-Hennessy announced yesterday its intention to adjust its organisation and gradually return to its 2019 staffing levels, primarily by managing its natural turnover and not filling vacant positions," LVMH said, according to the FT report. LVMH and Moet Hennessy did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Alexandre Arnault, who has links with U.S. President Donald Trump 's family, was assigned the job of helping turn around the group's wine and spirits business in November 2024, a task that could be more difficult now, as 20% reciprocal tariffs imposed by Trump on all European Union goods could have an impact on the company. Last month, the French wine and spirits exporters group said that the sales of French wine and spirits were expected to slide in the U.S. following Trump's tariff announcement.
Reuters
01-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
LVMH's Moet Hennessy to cut workforce by 10%, FT reports
May 1 (Reuters) - LVMH ( opens new tab group's wine and spirits business Moet Hennessy will shrink its workforce by more than 10%, about 1,200 employees, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing an internal video message from the division's CEO, Jean-Jacques Guiony. Guiony and his deputy, Alexandre Arnault, son of LVMH owner Bernard Arnault, told staff at Moet Hennessy this week that they planned to cut the workforce back to 2019 levels, the newspaper said, adding that a timeline for the job cuts was not immediately known. Organic sales at Moet Hennessy, LVMH's weakest division, dropped 9% in the first quarter, hit by a slump in its key U.S. and Chinese markets. This dragged other sectors of the luxury goods empire, which encompasses brands from Louis Vuitton to Moet & Chandon. "While Moët-Hennessy's business has returned to its 2019 level, Moët-Hennessy announced yesterday its intention to adjust its organisation and gradually return to its 2019 staffing levels, primarily by managing its natural turnover and not filling vacant positions," LVMH said, according to the FT report. LVMH and Moet Hennessy did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Alexandre Arnault, who has links with U.S. President Donald Trump's family, was assigned the job of helping turn around the group's wine and spirits business in November 2024, a task that could be more difficult now, as 20% reciprocal tariffs imposed by Trump on all European Union goods could have an impact on the company. Last month, the French wine and spirits exporters group said that the sales of French wine and spirits were expected to slide in the U.S. following Trump's tariff announcement.
CNA
01-05-2025
- Business
- CNA
LVMH's Moet Hennessy to cut workforce by 10%, FT reports
LVMH group's wine and spirits business Moet Hennessy will shrink its workforce by more than 10 per cent, about 1,200 employees, the Financial Times reported on Thursday, citing an internal video message from the division's CEO, Jean-Jacques Guiony. Guiony and his deputy, Alexandre Arnault, son of LVMH owner Bernard Arnault, told staff at Moet Hennessy this week that they planned to cut the workforce back to 2019 levels, the newspaper said, adding that a timeline for the job cuts was not immediately known. Organic sales at Moet Hennessy, LVMH's weakest division, dropped 9 per cent in the first quarter, hit by a slump in its key U.S. and Chinese markets. This dragged other sectors of the luxury goods empire, which encompasses brands from Louis Vuitton to Moet & Chandon. "While Moët-Hennessy's business has returned to its 2019 level, Moët-Hennessy announced yesterday its intention to adjust its organisation and gradually return to its 2019 staffing levels, primarily by managing its natural turnover and not filling vacant positions," LVMH said, according to the FT report. LVMH and Moet Hennessy did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment. Alexandre Arnault, who has links with U.S. President Donald Trump's family, was assigned the job of helping turn around the group's wine and spirits business in November 2024, a task that could be more difficult now, as 20 per cent reciprocal tariffs imposed by Trump on all European Union goods could have an impact on the company. Last month, the French wine and spirits exporters group said that the sales of French wine and spirits were expected to slide in the U.S. following Trump's tariff announcement.
