Pi-Consulting

It’s not a bag, it’s art. Fashion and luxury goods purveyor LVMH (Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy, in full) is marking its 150th birthday with a serious espousal of the fine arts, opening an art gallery in its Paris store on the Champs Elysees. With the Louis Vuitton brand already bringing in over a quarter of the group’s $17 billion annual sales, LVMH can afford it. Already between three and five thousand visitors a day (mostly tourists) are crowding in for a look, putting the gallery-in-a-store ahead of all Paris attractions except the Notre Dame cathedral and the Eiffel tower. More eyes are now scrutinizing featured works by American Vanessa Beecroft at LVMH than those paying homage to the Mona Lisa down the road at the Louvre. (Says artist Ms. Beecroft: “I am not being used to sell bags, but to clean up the conscience [sic] of a sophisticated brand”. How then do we still explain the enigmatic smile on the face of the comparatively neglected Mona Lisa? She evidently has a top-of-the-range Louis Vuitton purse hidden away in her gracefully-folded hands. (Source: The Economist, Pi Market Research).

NOTE: Today is Mother’s Day..buy your mum something Sweet!