(Bloomberg) -- The head of LVMH’s wines and spirits division is set to leave as the world’s largest luxury company wrestles with a slump in consumer demand in China that’s hurt sales of Cognac and Champagne.
Philippe Schaus, 61, could depart LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton SE with an announcement confirming his exit expected imminently, people familiar with the departure of the executive said. LVMH and Schaus both declined to comment.
The planned move comes after LVMH reported this week a slump in third-quarter sales with wines and spirits once again the worst-performing division, hurt particularly by lower Chinese demand for products such as Hennessy Cognac.
It’s also the latest change in an ongoing shakeup of the executive committee that will likely prompt further questions around the future leadership at the French conglomerate controlled by billionaire Bernard Arnault.
Chris de Lapuente, who oversees the division which includes Sephora, is another high-profile executive set to leave on Oct. 31. He is 61 and LVMH said he plans to retire.
Luxembourg-born Schaus joined LVMH more than two decades ago, initially at Louis Vuitton, before moving on to the group’s duty free business DFS in Hong Kong. Schaus has headed Moet Hennessy, the division which alongside Cognac also includes Champagne labels such as Moet & Chandon, for the past seven years. He joined the LVMH executive committee 12 years ago.
The wines and spirits division fared the worst in the first nine months of this year, continuing a trend which saw it lag all other units in 2023.
LVMH is controlled by Arnault who’s 75 and his five children all work inside the group. Only Delphine Arnault, his eldest child, is present on the executive committee. Delphine is chief executive officer of Christian Dior Couture, the group’s second biggest fashion label after Louis Vuitton.
French publication La Lettre reported earlier that Schaus was set to leave.
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