French luxury goods company LVMH has agreed to buy a majority stake in French independent perfume house Maison Francis Kurkdjian as it expands in fast-growing niche luxury fragrances.
In 1985, at the age of 26, Francis Kurkdjian created a perfume that would become the catalyst for his career; Jean Paul Gaultier Le Male. Now, the French-Armenian perfumer, who launched his eponymous brand in 1999 with French-Lebanese businessman, a former partner at Ernst & Young in Paris, Marc Chaya, has become the latest to sell to the Louis Vuitton Moët Hennessey (LVMH) portofolio.
Speaking about the new partnership in which both Kurkdjian and Chaya will continue in their roles, Bernard Arnault, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of LVMH says: “I am delighted to welcome Maison Francis Kurkdjian to the LVMH Group. Their avant-garde spirit and the quality of their creations give this fragrance House great potential and a promising future”.
“LVMH clearly understands the nature of our Maison, and the Group’s approach to custom-crafted creativity guarantees that our distinctive identity will thrive for the long-term”, added Kurkdjian, who has also previously crafted perfumes for Christian Dior, Lancôme, Yves Saint Laurent, Burberry, Giorgio Armani, Versace, Nina Ricci, Baccarat, Carven, Narciso Rodriguez, Kenzo and Elizabeth Arden.
Exploring new creative territories in fragrances through his own bespoke fragrance atelier, collaborations with artists and pop-up installations. Francis Kurkdjian received the honorary title of Chevalier des Arts et Lettres in 2008, and became a member in January 2016 of Comité Colbert, the association promoting French luxury and know-how.
Maison Francis Kurkdjian, with estimated annual sales of between 15 and 20 million euros, has two stores in Paris, four in Taiwan, one in Malaysia and another in Dubai.
Its perfumes, which cost up to 1,200 euros ($1,290) for 70 milliliters, are sold in more than 500 select locations in more than 40 countries.
Yakymour 