LVMH, the good student of sustainable development.

The LVMH group is the world leader in luxury, present in 5 sectors: Wines & Spirits, Fashion & Leather Goods, Perfumes & Cosmetics, Watches & Jewelry and Selective Retailing. The company, headed by Bernard Arnault, employs more than 163,000 people around the world and in 2019 generated sales of 53.7 billion euros. Among other brands, the group has renowned houses such as Louis Vuitton,, Dior, Fendi. Givenchy, Moet Hennessy, Bulgari, Guerlain or even Sephora.

In terms of environmental protection, the stakes are considerable for a player in this sector. Indeed, luxury is a particularly polluting activity. Because all the houses of the group "feed" on fruits of this nature to manufacture their products, it becomes more than vital to apply eco-responsible measures in terms of respect for the environment and measures for the sustainability of finished products. .

In this regard, the leader of LVMH did not wait to follow the ecological fashion wagon to become aware of the impact of his activities on the natural environment and lead his group to begin a transition towards sustainable development. On this subject, Bernard Arnault declared: " We understood as early as 1992 that development could only be sustainable " or again: " The environment did not interest many people at the time. It was not for us to follow a fad ”.

It is therefore since 1992 that the group has been stepping up its efforts to contain the impact of its activities on nature. In its various houses, the group has put in place roadmaps in order to monitor the evolution of its commitments in favor of the environment and biodiversity.

In February 2020, we can mention the Maisons des Vins et Spiritueux, which met at the Vinexpo trade fair in Paris to find solutions to protect floors. Starting from current wine-growing practices, what could be the axes of ecological improvement.

The group goes even further. In fact, on July 28, 2020, an initiative was launched in Charente to eliminate the use of synthetic herbicides in crops. Named: “Ferme des 30,000: Cap 0 herbicide” group, this strong commitment should be met for the Maison's own estates in 2021 and gradually for the Maison's wine-growing partners in the years to come. The group indicates that "to meet this challenge, 16 estates will test over the next five years alternative practices to chemical weed control. The results of this pilot scheme will then be sent to 1,600 wine growers who will benefit from support for the implementation of viable techniques that respect the environment in their farms. "Remember that this plan, which the Ministry of Agriculture and Food is behind, aims to engage 30,000 farms by 2021 in the transition to agroecology, in a way a" regenerative "agriculture . Other practices have been launched. After a diagnostic phase in 2020, the pilot vineyards will reflect on mechanical work under the row in 2021, plant and non-plant cover in 2022, robotics and the autonomous tractor in 2023, before taking stock of all these actions and present the results of the experiments carried out to partner winegrowers in 2024.

Another example in September 2019, the Fashion & Leather Goods division of the group published a charter relating to animal welfare in the supply of raw materials. .

Also, many commitments have been made by the Perfumes & Cosmetics and Watches & Jewelry divisions. Indeed, these sectors are very dependent on biodiversity and have the interest of protecting and understanding it over time. To do this, they have created sectors that respect local cultures and communities. Like most international groups, LVMH intends to adopt a local citizen approach.

There are many examples within the group. Each house works diligently to respect the general roadmap established by the LIFE - LVMH Initiatives For the Environment program. And if the current results are to be believed, it looks like the group is ahead of targets. Along with its actions to protect biodiversity, LVMH contributes to the climate effort by reducing its CO2 emissions linked to the energy consumption of its stores and production sites, and to the transport of raw materials. The Group has already exceeded the LIFE 2020 objective of reducing its carbon footprint by 25%.
LVMH's commitment to preserving biodiversity is also expressed through its partnership with UNESCO's intergovernmental scientific program “Man and the Biosphere” , the objective of which is to harmoniously coexist human development. and preservation of the environment.

Every year the Green Week takes place. Held from October 19 to 22, 2020, Green Week 2020 aims to promote the reflection of all European partners towards ecological transition. This year, the open debate on the theme "A New Beginning for People and Nature" aimed to highlight the importance of biodiversity and the major role played by its preservation through sustainable economic and societal measures and ethical. LVMH has established itself as one of the many players able to put in place initiatives to support an economy affected by the pandemic and to stimulate recovery in a post-pandemic world.