Château-d'Yquem

"Bernard Arnault did not buy this great wine to make money but as a personal investment in one of the jewels of French national heritage, a symbol of perfection. A bit like buying a work of art with no direct return expected. Only the grumpy will say that in this case, he could have paid for Château-d'Yquem himself and not have it purchased by LVMH."

"This is what happened with Yves Saint Laurent. Pinault had been tempted by luxury diversification for a long time, and the Sanofi Beauté file had been presented to him. After studying it in 1998, he decides not to pursue it, deeming the price too high and, most importantly, lacking the right person to turn the business around. After spending a day at sea in Saint-Tropez on a boat rented by Arnault in July, Pinault makes his decision. He calls the boss of LVMH: "I have decided not to pursue it. I don't have the right people, but you do. I wanted to inform you, Bernard, so that you can do what you want." "François, thank you for letting me know," Arnault responds. This is how LVMH was able to conduct its exclusive negotiation with Sanofi, only to break it off at the last moment. The same thing happened with Château Cheval-Blanc. This first-classed growth of Bordeaux is for sale. All the major potential buyers have, of course, been contacted: Arnault, who controls Château-d'Yquem, Pinault, who owns Château-Latour, as well as Albert Frère, the biggest Belgian fortune, Liliane Bettencourt,"