World's Billionaires - #13

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• Arnault put up $15 million from his family's midsize construction company to buy Christian Dior in 1985.
• Since then he has built the world's largest luxury goods empire, LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, whose brands  include Dom Perignon, Fendi and Tag Heuer.
• LVMH, which he still heads, acquired premier French financial daily  Les Echos  from the Pearson Group last December.
• Son Antoine, 28, and daughter Delphine, 32, sit on LVMH’s board.
• Arnault has also set up an investment fund with his good friend and fellow billionaire, Albert Frere, in 2006; the pair own two wineries together.
• Via his investment arm, Groupe Arnault, owns French tour operator Go Voyages and a stake in French retail chain Carrefour.
• Arnault often spends New Year's Eve in his four-star hotel, Le Cheval Blanc, in ski resort Courchevel, France.
• He is also said to be a skilled pianist.

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