Capítulo 572: Chapter 572: Can We Cut in Line?
At Lyon's home ground, the second leg of the UEFA Champions League semi-final between Lyon and Arsenal ended with a score of 1:3. Arsenal advanced to the Champions League final with a total score of 5:1.
The next day, Inter Milan also eliminated Barcelona to advance to the final.
In the 8th district of Paris, Charles Capet and Alexandra Daddario checked into the famous Plaza Athenee on Montaigne Avenue after arriving from Lyon.
Montaigne Avenue is famous as the headquarters of the LV Group, with shops like Dior, Guerlain, and Fendi also located there.
LV Group held a party at the Plaza Athenee Hotel.
"Charles, I didn't expect you to have your eyes on Hermes back in 2008," Bernard Arnault said as he clinked glasses with Charles.
Charles whispered a few words to Alexandra Daddario, who then walked away with a smile.
"Since Thierry Hermes founded the Hermes brand, it has been over 170 years. The family has passed down through six generations with over 200 members. Currently, there are sixty or seventy members who own Hermes shares and can participate in business matters," Charles remarked as he looked at Bernard Arnault with a smile.
"How do you plan to deal with them?"
Because the third generation's leader had only daughters, the current Hermes family is actually three families of husbands, none of whom have the Hermes surname anymore.
"Money can solve many problems. We will meet with Hermes executives tomorrow. LV now owns 17% of Hermes shares, and you also own nearly 5%," Bernard Arnault said with a smile.
"We already own over 22% of Hermes shares!"
Charles found it quite un-gentlemanly that Hermes accused LV of not following the regulations to notify when increasing their shares to gain voting rights.
"Move quickly. The Hermes family has held control for too long," Charles reminded. Since the fifth-generation member Jean-Louis Dumas retired, the group saw its first non-family CEO, Patrick Thomas, this year.
However, people like COO Axel Dumas are still from the three main families!
Hermes, the king of the luxury goods world, with its handmade craftsmanship, has been pursued by countless socialites and female stars.
As a capital group, LV certainly coveted the highly prestigious Hermes.
"Charles, your Capet is now a top media group in Hollywood, with considerable influence in international promotions. The fashion industry can never part ways with media power," Bernard Arnault chuckled.
Charles took a sip of his drink and nodded. It didn't matter whether the acquisition of Hermes succeeded but he wouldn't underestimate Bernard Arnault.
Indeed, he was shameless and cold-blooded. The shares obtained through investment banks were definitely not clean. The French Securities and Exchange Commission, ha!
Shortly, Delphine Arnault also started a conversation with Charles. Since Capet acquired Universal, its reputation soared, making the partnership between LV and Capet even closer.
Delphine Arnault, who managed the jewel of the LV Group, Dior, had a deep relationship with Capet.
"Congratulations, Arsenal won against Lyon hands down," Delphine Arnault smiled, revealing herself as a soccer fan.
Charles chuckled, "Lyon was the French champion a few years ago, but now, not only Lyon but the entire French league isn't doing well!"
"No wonder, the financial crisis just passed, and now it's the European debt crisis. The major EU countries, Germany and France, need to provide loans to other EU countries," Delphine Arnault shook her head, deeply concerned about the economic situations in Greece, Portugal, and Spain.
Charles mentally noted Paris Bank Chairman Michel Pebereau's complaints, thinking, "It has nothing to do with me."
With the euro depreciating and investors fleeing, Charles also joined the brigade shorting the euro.
...
The next morning, Charles woke up in a suite at the Plaza Athenee Hotel. He patted Alexandra Daddario lying beside him and said, "I need to step out. You can go shopping in Paris. It's a great place for shopping!"
Alexandra Daddario happily replied, "Sure, let's have dinner together tonight!"
Charles nodded. Should he have dinner at the Eiffel Tower again? It went pretty well the last time with Liu Yifei.
At 10 a.m., in the conference room of Hermes headquarters on Faubourg Saint-Honore in Paris.
Charles followed Bernard Arnault and other LV Group representatives into a meeting with Hermes executives, led by Patrick Thomas and Axel Dumas.
One side was well-prepared, while the other was caught off guard. The atmosphere in the conference room was naturally tense.
Bernard Arnault joked, "I heard Hermes is releasing a new handbag. Can my wife cut in line for the reservation? My wife loves Hermes bags!"
Charles couldn't help but laugh. At such a tense moment, Bernard Arnault was indeed audacious.
He added, "Actually, my mother is also a fan of Hermes bags. If possible, she would like to cut in line too!"
Compared to the relaxed atmosphere on the LV side, the Hermes side was very worried, given that the other party already owned over 22% of Hermes shares.
Hermes COO Axel Dumas responded, "Even the First Lady has to wait in line like everyone else!"
"Alright, Arnault," Hermes Chairman Patrick Thomas broke in, giving a pointed look at Charles, who was wearing a Hermes suit.
"You are also a Hermes shareholder, yet you help LV acquire Hermes? Hermes's culture does not align with LV's commercial values. Hermes will never sell itself to a capital group!"
"Yes, we Hermes will never sell out..."
"LV has no gentlemanly demeanor, attacking us..."
Watching Hermes family members confront the LV executives with righteous indignation, Charles wondered why such a meeting needed to be so intense.
Less than 30 minutes later, the meeting ended. Charles only managed to make a joke about his mother cutting in line.
"Charles, not quite used to this, eh?" Bernard Arnault said, patting Charles on the shoulder, "Think of it as a fun activity."
Charles shook his head, "It's alright. But the Hermes family management model might need to change. If LV doesn't succeed this time, there might be no future chances."
Bernard Arnault just laughed, "I don't believe they will all stand united..."
*****
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