LVMH chief Bernard Arnault inaugurated the two specialized leather goods workshops in the presence of French Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire.
The minister donned white cotton gloves to pick up a crocodile leather Capucines handbag in a dégradé of silver and gold, as he listened attentively to an employee explain part of the production process, which requires 350 steps.“I salute the worldwide success of LVMH, which is good for France,” Le Maire said, noting that the group has recruited 1,800 artisans over the last five years.
The Oratoire workshop in neighboring Azé, meanwhile, is being touted as the first industrial building of its type in France, with an eco-design that cuts energy consumption by half compared with a classic Vuitton leather goods workshop.The two sites, which employ 150 people but will eventually house 500, specialize in bags made from exotic skins such as crocodile, ostrich and python leather, joining three other Vuitton workshops in France with similar skills.
“Since then, the sales volume at Louis Vuitton has multiplied by 30,” he said in a speech to staff at the Abbaye Vendôme site, crediting the highly skilled workers for the success of the company. “LVMH is a family-run group and when you join LVMH, when you join Vuitton, you don’t join an anonymous company, you join a family,” he told them.Piotr Stoklosa/Courtesy of Louis Vuitton
Vuitton’s arrival in Vendôme has helped to attract other luxury manufacturers, such as porcelain maker Marie Daâge, local officials reported. The town was formerly home to tanneries and supplied gloves to the French royal court during the rule of Renaissance King Francis I, but in recent years it has specialized in the production of metal parts for industries such as cars and aeronautics.
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