A few days ago, Bernard Arnault, under his flagship company LVMH (Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton), became the richest man in the world, his wealth crossing $200 billion. He overtook Jeff Bezos of Amazon.

I like to see the happening from a marketing perspective.

His company deals in 5 main categories that enjoy 72 different brands. Of course, he had the option to bring the entire range under 1 brand and could have saved tons of marketing money. But he did not. Each brand means something to someone – a classic case of niche marketing. And that’s how it should be.

Every brand has a personality. And they build followers accordingly. If one cannot afford to raise many children, it’s better to stick to one-child policy. One healthy offspring is better than having a bunch of weak siblings.

LVMH brand count:

1. Wines and spirits – 27
2. Perfumes and Cosmetics – 15
3. Fashion and leather goods – 17
4. Watches and Jewelry – 7
5. Selective Retailing – 6

And the brand names:

Wines and Spirits
• Ao Yun
• Ardbeg
• Armand de Brignac (50%)
• Belvedere
• Bodega Numanthia
• Cape Mentelle
• Chandon
• Château Cheval Blanc
• Chateau d’Esclans
• Château d’Yquem
• Chateau du Galoupet
• Cloudy Bay
• Colgin
• Dom Pérignon
• Eminente
• Glenmorangie
• Hennessy
• Krug
• Mercier
• Moët & Chandon
• Newton Vineyard
• Ruinart
• Terrazas de los Andes
• Veuve Clicquot
• Volcan de mi Tierra
• Whistlepig (Minority stake)
• Woodinville

Fashion and leather goods
• Berluti
• Celine
• Christian Dior
• Emilio Pucci
• Fendi
• Givenchy
• Kenzo
• Loewe
• Loro Piana
• Louis Vuitton
• Marc Jacobs
• Moynat
• Patou
• Rimowa
• Stella McCartney

Perfumes and cosmetics
• Acqua di Parma
• Benefit Cosmetics
• Cha Ling
• Fresh
• Givenchy Parfums
• Guerlain
• Kendo Brands
• BITE Beauty
• Fenty Beauty by Rihanna
• Marc Jacobs Beauty
• KVD Vegan Beauty (formerly Kat Von D Beauty)
• OleHenriksen
• Kenzo Parfums
• Maison Francis Kurkdjian
• Make Up For Ever
• Parfums Christian Dior
• Perfumes Loewe

Watches and Jewellery
• Bulgari
• Chaumet
• Fred
• Hublot
• TAG Heuer
• Tiffany & Co.
• Zenith

Selective retailing
• DFS
• La Grande Epicerie
• La Samaritaine
• Le Bon Marché
• Sephora
• Starboard Cruise Services

Note: I depended on the Internet for my research. I stand to be corrected should the numbers or names be incorrect. Irrespective of the details, my belief stands – to each his own.