LVMH is a European multinational luxury goods conglomerate, headquartered in Paris, France. It owns a portfolio of luxury brands that includes Louis Vuitton, Dom Perignon and Veuve Clicquot. It is currently owned by the Arnault family and led by the French businessman Bernard Arnault, who is also the principal of the French family office Groupe Arnault.
Groupe Arnault and LVMH are joining forces with the US-based private equity firm Catterton to launch a new global consumer-focused investment firm, L Catterton. L Catterton is set to become the largest consumer-focused firm of its kind, with $12 billion worth of assets under its management. It will be headquartered in Connecticut and London and the joint venture will be led by co-CEOs J Michael Chu and Scott A Dahnke – both currently managing partners at Catterton. The new partnership will be 60% owned by the partners of L Catterton and 40% jointly owned by LVMH and Groupe Arnault.
A partnership between a family office and private equity firm on this scale is unusual. But, according to experts, such agreements are on the rise – due in part to a low interest rate environment. As per a recent research, conducted by private equity platform iCapital Network, 62% of single family offices invest in private equity, with 70% allocating between 10% to 20% of their portfolio. Eight per cent allocated more than 50% to private investments. The Global Family Office Report 2015 also found that private equity outperformed all other asset classes for Family Offices, with actual returns averaging 15% in 2014.
Source: CampdenFB (http://www.campdenfb.com/article/arnault-family-office-and-family-business-enters-private-equity-partnership)