Ben Gilbert: belief

Transcript context

…Totally. Here's the interesting thing about that. Bernard's definition of luxury, and I saved this one for last intentionally, is the combination of quality and creativity. Bernard actually doesn't like to use the word luxury outside of financial communications. His son Alexandre is the same way. He in particular thinks about these not as luxury brands, but just brands built by incredible craftsmen at every price point. He hates this idea that luxury means things for rich people. He also hates the idea that people are buying these finely crafted goods just for status. But I think that represents the shift of the business that LVMH is in. Some of the things they make are luxury. If you're buying a $20,000 Louis Vuitton bag or trunk, that's a luxury good, but there are lots of things that they sell that are actually expensive premium, where it's about the craftsmanship. The craftsmanship is so good, this durable thing will last forever. The creativity that went into this sets it apart from anything else in its category in a way that literally provides value to you. I do think, as they address more and more people, with more and more brands, and more and more price points, there's a lot more about these products that is actually ultra premium. I think the way that the leadership of the company talks about them—the durability, the craftsmanship—those are signs of premium objects, not luxury objects. That idea that LVMH is both luxury and ultra premium within the same conglomerate is a great point to make as we transition to the next big chapter of our LVMH drama here, which is just so delicious. They made a whole movie out of this. Books, movies, it's so great. Should we talk about some Gucci drama?…

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