Rebirth of the Fashion King

Chapter 93 I like to be a little more free

Bernard Arnault ignored his daughter's astonishment.

His gaze darted quickly between Li Xun and Liu Yifei.

He was fast, but fast enough to make a judgment. This young man wasn't joking; he was serious.

Such frankness is rarer than talent in the fashion world.

"You're very direct," Bernard said with a smile.

"You too."

Bernard's lips twitched slightly.

"Then let's continue straight ahead." He gestured with his chin toward the empty seat next to him.

"Sit down and let's talk."

Li Xun held Liu Yifei's hand tightly and led her to sit down on the sofa next to him.

Liu Yifei's palms were slightly damp, but her back was very straight.

Delphine sat down to her father's right. The strategic advisor chose the adjacent table, took a black notebook from his briefcase, placed it on his lap, and did not open it.

Bernard didn't beat around the bush.

"Your debut forced my group's LV leather goods division to develop new products and also tore open a gap in Hermès' leather supply chain, which it had used for thirty years." Bernard's voice was not loud.

"Hermès' leather goods department held a special internal meeting last year to discuss how to deal with the premium price of your bag in the Asian market. You're so young, yet you've created a product that prompted Hermès to hold a special meeting, forcing LV to redesign it —"

He paused for a moment, picked up the champagne that the waiter had just brought, but didn't drink it; he just held it in his hand.

"You're at Chanel, with Karl Lagerfeld and Virginie above you. Karl can stay for at least another ten years, and Virginie is much younger than him. No matter how well you do, you'll have to wait ten years or even longer to become the creative director of Chanel."

He placed the champagne on the table.

"Come to LVMH, and I can give you a brand."

Liu Yifei felt her heart beating faster.

Although she doesn't work in the fashion industry, she knows what Bernard Arnault meant by "giving you a brand." LVMH owns more than seventy brands, from Louis Vuitton to Dior (which it acquired in part), from Givenchy to Fendi, from Loewe to Celine.

He's not talking about giving you a job, he's talking about giving you a brand.

Li Xun remained silent for a few seconds before speaking.

"Mr. Arnault, may I ask a question?"

"ask."

"Did Mr. Carl know you would be talking to me about this?"

Bernard glanced at him, and there was approval in that glance.

Good question. It's not about which brand you'll give me, or about salary and benefits. It's about whether Karl Lagerfeld was aware of the situation, whether he was assessing it, and whether he was focusing on the bigger picture while others were focused on personal gain.

"I've known Carl for over thirty years," Bernard said.

"I won't poach his people behind his back. Of course he knew I was coming to talk to you today. He didn't object. Carl never stops young people from going to bigger stages. That's what sets him apart from others."

Li Xun nodded.

"The second question."

"you say."

Which brand are you referring to?

Delphine spoke up at this moment.

She spoke a little faster than her father.

"Currently, there are two options. Givenchy's women's ready-to-wear line needs a creative director. Riccardo Tisci leans towards haute couture craftsmanship, but his control over the commercialization of ready-to-wear does not quite align with the group's strategic expectations."

Another option was Loewe. We completed the full acquisition and integration of it, and we needed someone who could redefine the brand's DNA.

"Givenchy," Li Xun repeated the name.

"You have feelings for Givenchy?" Delphine asked.

"Givenchy's problem isn't the creative director's problem," Li Xun said, his tone becoming serious.

"Givenchy's core image, established during the Audrey Hepburn era, is the little black dress, the Sabrina off-the-shoulder neckline, and the refined elegance of the Parisian woman."

The brand's equity has been diluted too much over the past two decades. Ricardo's haute couture collections are of high quality, but the problem is that the brand positioning has been oscillating between high-end craftsmanship and street fashion.

LVMH's marketing budget for Givenchy was not focused enough, and its store location strategy favored department stores rather than independent flagship stores, leading to a growing ambiguity in Givenchy's position in consumers' minds.

He stopped, realizing he had analyzed too many of the internal problems of a luxury goods group's chairman.

"Sorry, I think I've said too much."

"Go on," Bernard said, his voice now carrying an added layer of meaning.

He nodded and continued, "Givenchy needs more than just a creative director who can make clothes; it needs a complete brand reboot."

From visual identity systems to store design language, from ready-to-wear pricing strategies to the proportion of accessories, and even the selection logic of runway music.

If these things aren't handled collaboratively, having an additional ready-to-wear creative director won't have a lasting impact for more than three seasons.

Bernard Arnault placed his hand on his chin.

"What do you think of Loewe?" he asked.

"Loewe's problems are completely different from Givenchy's." Li Xun said almost without pausing, clearly indicating that he also knew about the brand.

"Loewe has the genes of a Spanish royal leather goods supplier, and its leather craftsmanship is no less than that of other brands, but its brand awareness is seriously lacking outside of the French and Italian markets."

Consumers in Asian markets—especially Japan and South Korea—have very low awareness of Loewe.

If Loewe is to revitalize its brand, the core strategy should be to explore the story of its leather craftsmanship while injecting it with a contemporary cultural narrative.

It requires someone who understands the cultural attributes of luxury brands.

"Do you think you understand the cultural attributes of luxury brands?" Bernard asked.

"I only understand part of it," Li Xun said.

"The essence of luxury goods is the condensation of time. Customers with real aspirations are different from those who have just become rich. They may not be pursuing 'Iogo' (value), but rather a story—this value narrative is universal. Whether in Europe, North America, or Asia, people who understand time and story will pay for it."

Li Xun added at the end: "But the East Asian market receives this narrative differently."

Tell me about it.

"When European consumers accept the value narrative of luxury goods, their frame of reference is historical heritage and craftsmanship."

A French customer bought a Chanel tweed jacket; she was buying the continuation of the Lesage atelier's embroidery craftsmanship, Coco Chanel's design philosophy of liberating the female body, and the cultural orthodoxy of French haute couture.

Li Xun spoke slowly.

"But East Asian consumers, especially Chinese consumers, have a completely different frame of reference. China did not experience the aristocratic era of Europe, the bourgeois culture of the 19th century, or the post-war consumerist revival."

The majority of luxury consumers in China are newly wealthy individuals whose wealth was accumulated by their first generation. Their understanding of luxury goods is not inherited from their mothers' wardrobes, but rather gradually built up through media, Google, and travel.

"So you think they don't understand luxury goods?" Delphine asked.

"Quite the opposite," Li Xun shook his head.

"They are more eager to understand luxury goods than European consumers. The problem is that many European luxury brands have chosen the wrong way of communicating when they enter the Chinese market. Either they oversimplify the brand story and compress 150 years of craftsmanship history into a single sentence, which makes consumers feel that it is not authentic enough."

Either you copy European marketing strategies and try to communicate with Shanghai consumers using French cultural context, but the result is that you're just separated by a layer of glass.

This might attract some customers who are drawn to LVIogo, but it won't attract the real "high-end" customers.

"You mean LVMH's strategy in the Chinese market needs to be adjusted?" he asked.

"It's not just LVMH, it's all European luxury brands that need a small adjustment." Li Xun nodded.

"The uniqueness of the Chinese market lies in its cultural foundation, which is completely different from that of Europe."

European luxury culture is based on scarcity and class distinctions, but the traditional Chinese literati's concept of luxury is based on taste and cultivation.

The literati and officials of historical periods did not pursue expensiveness itself, but rather used objects to express their spiritual realm.

A Yixing teapot can be very expensive, but the reason for its high price is not the brand "Iogo," but rather the quality of the clay, the craftsmanship, the charm of its shape, and the skill of the potter's hands honed over ten years or more.

"What does this have to do with modern luxury goods?" Bernard asked. There was no questioning in his tone, only a focused intent to advance the conversation.

"The point is that once Chinese consumers' purchasing power reaches a certain level, they will not be satisfied with just paying for Iogo."

They will start asking why this item is worth this price, and what its craftsmanship and cultural logic are.

This shift occurred in Japan in the 1980s, when Japanese consumers moved from blindly buying European brands to systematically studying craftsmanship and quality, ultimately giving rise to Japanese brands like Kapital and Visvim, which embody an Eastern philosophy of craftsmanship.

Li Xun paused for a moment to make sure everyone present was listening, then continued.

"The Chinese market will undergo the same transformation in the next decade. Whoever can seize the initiative in the process of Chinese consumers shifting from brand worship to craftsmanship recognition will be able to gain the largest incremental share in the future global luxury goods landscape."

"What you're saying is something that many people who have worked in the luxury goods industry for ten years can't summarize."

Li Xun sat quietly, waiting for Bernard to continue.

"LVMH is the world's largest luxury goods group. We have more than 70 brands, ranging from wines and spirits to fashion and leather goods, from perfumes and cosmetics to watches and jewelry, from boutique retail to hotels."

Our market capitalization has exceeded 50 billion euros this year, and we possess the world's most complete luxury goods ecosystem.

—”

"My invitation remains unchanged." Bernard revisited the main topic.

"Come to LVMH, choose Givenchy or Loewe, it's your choice. If you're not satisfied with either of these brands, we can discuss other possibilities."

Li Xun smiled and shook his head.

"Mr. Arnault, you just said that LVMH is the world's largest luxury goods group."

You're right. With over seventy brands and a market capitalization of five hundred billion euros, spanning from Paris to Tokyo to Shanghai to New York, you possess the most complete business empire in the luxury goods industry.

He paused for a moment.

"But that's precisely why I have no interest in joining LVMH."

As she finished speaking, Delphine's fingers tightened slightly around the champagne glass.

Bernard Arnault's expression remained unchanged.

"May I ask why?" Bernard's voice was calm.

"Because I don't want to join a team that has already won the game."

When Li Xun said this, there was no arrogance in his tone. This group is truly powerful.

"LVMH's business model is the optimal solution for this era. The synergistic effect of the multi-brand matrix, the vertical integration of the supply chain, the control of the boutique retail channels, and the M&A-driven growth logic—you have built this system almost perfectly over the past two decades."

Anyone with basic business sense would agree that LVMH represents the pinnacle of efficiency in the luxury goods industry.

Bernard nodded slightly.

"But," Li Xun continued.

"When you join a system that's already running perfectly, all I can do is optimize it. Givenchy gained a creative director, Loewe rebooted its brand DNA. You can actually find many other people to do the things I can do."

Ricardo Tissi is gone, but there's someone else.

The next creative director leaves, and there's always the one after that.

LVMH's brand portfolio has sufficient talent reserves to support this rotation.

"So what do you think you should do?" Bernard asked.

"I don't know," Li Xun answered honestly.

"But I'm sure I know what I don't want; I don't want to do optimization work on a system that's already been proven."

What I want is something that hasn't been clearly defined yet—it could be a new brand, a new design methodology, or some kind of fundamental innovation in the luxury goods industry.

I don't know its exact shape, but it shouldn't exist within a fully formed structure.

Bernard looked at him quietly.

The bubbles in the champagne glasses were rising, people were talking in hushed tones in the distance, and Anna Wintour’s laughter drifted from the depths of the hall, about three tables away.

"Do you know what you're refusing?" Bernard asked. This wasn't a threat; it was an older person's final confirmation to a younger person.

"Of course I know," Li Xun said.

"I'm turning down a ticket to a 50 billion euro business empire, I'm turning down a position to directly manage a top fashion brand, and I'm turning down an opportunity to work with the world's best luxury goods executives."

He paused for a moment, then added a sentence.

"But I am also rejecting certainty."

"Isn't certainty good?" Delphine interjected, her tone more of confusion than accusation.

As one of the heirs to LVMH, she grew up in a precisely planned world where certainty is the cornerstone of the luxury goods group's operation.

"The certainty is very good." Li Xun turned to her.

"The certainty of the supply chain, the certainty of the financial model, and the certainty of the brand positioning are the skeleton of the luxury goods business model. Without them, a brand cannot survive beyond the third quarter."

But Ms. Delphine, have you ever considered that when every component of a system becomes highly deterministic, its ability to generate truly groundbreaking innovations also declines?

Delphine didn't answer; her gaze towards Li Xun changed slightly.

"How many of the new brands launched by LVMH in the past decade have truly started from scratch?" Li asked.

"FentyBeauty is half of it, but it's in the beauty industry, not fashion."

After being acquired, KENZ0 underwent a youth-oriented reboot, but it was essentially an adjustment within the existing brand framework.

LVMH's growth engine has always been acquisitions, not organic brand incubation.

"Your understanding of business is beyond your age."

"Whether what I said is true or not has nothing to do with my age," Li Xun said.

Bernard smiled.

"You know who you remind me of—my younger self," Bernard said.

“But you’re smarter than I was at twenty-three,” Bernard added.

"When I was your age, I was working in the family's construction company and knew nothing about the luxury goods industry."

And you're already in Paris, sitting at the after-party in Cambon, rejecting an invitation from the world's largest luxury goods group, making that rejection seem like a choice of principle rather than arrogance.

"Perhaps it's just arrogance," Li Xun said.

"No," Bernard shook his head.

"Arrogance is not knowing what you don't know. When you know very well what you know and also know very well what you don't know, that's not arrogance, that's self-awareness."

He reached into his suit pocket and took out a business card, the kind that only a very few people could get their hands on—a white card with only his name and a handwritten phone number on it.

He placed the business card on the table, pressed it down with two fingers, and pushed it in front of Li Xun.

"What I just said still stands," Bernard said.

"Within five years, at any time you want to join LVMH, just make this call. You don't need to go through human resources, headhunters, or any other procedures. The day you get through, we'll pick up where we left off."

Li Xun glanced down at the business card. The white cardstock glowed with a warm glow in the candlelight, and the handwriting on it was in pen, with dark blue ink.

"Five years," he repeated the time span.

"Yes, five years ago you may not have graduated from Central Saint Martins yet, and five years later you may have taken Chanel or other brands to a height that we can't even imagine now, but no matter where you are, this invitation is valid."

Bernard stood up and straightened the buttons on his suit jacket, and Delphine followed suit.

"One last question." Bernard stood, looking down at Li Xun.

When you rejected me, were you thinking about Chanel's interests or your own principles?

Li Xun also stood up.

"Neither," Li Xun said.

"What I'm thinking is that if I accept your invitation now, and look back on this decision ten years from now, I will regret it, not because LVMH is not good enough, but because I have never really done something in my own way."

"Then do it, in your own way. The rules of Paris never reward conformists; this industry needs people who dare to say no."

He released his grip and turned to Liu Yifei. Liu Yifei held her breath slightly under his gaze.

"Crystal Liu," Bernard said to her with a smile.

"Your boyfriend just turned down the highest-paid boss in all of Europe. You should be proud of him."

"I—I have always been proud of him," Liu Yifei nodded and replied earnestly.

Bernard nodded slightly, then turned and left.

Delphine glanced at Li Xun one last time before leaving.

Li Xun did not avoid her gaze.

Delphine looked away and followed her father through the Cambon Hall.

Guests along the way adjusted their body language once again, making way for the head of LVMH.

Then he left.

Li Xun sat down again, looked down at the white business card on the table, and then put it into the inside pocket of his suit.

"I rejected Bernard Arnault," Liu Yifei said, looking at Li Xun with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Do you know how many designers around the world would do anything for that business card?

"A lot," Li Xun admitted.

"But you refused."

"Because of the reasons I just mentioned."

"There must be other reasons," Liu Yifei said, tilting her head as she looked at him.

"You didn't tell the whole story. What you said about not wanting to join a team that had already won was something you were saying to Bernard Arnault. What was your real reason?"

Li Xun remained silent for a while.

"I don't really like LV — and I prefer challenging strong opponents to teaming up," he said.

Liu Yifei blinked. "What?"

"Joining Ivmh doesn't help me much, but I find it very fun to challenge Ivmh."

Liu Yifei listened quietly as he finished speaking.

She didn't interrupt or try to understand what he meant; she simply touched his cheek lightly with the back of her hand after he stopped.

Do you know what your most charming feature is?

Li Xun was taken aback for a moment.

"What?"

"Not a single word you just said was about fame or fortune," Liu Yifei said, her eyes softening in the candlelight.

"You're not rejecting a better job; you're choosing something you truly want to do. Many people never understand the difference between these two things in their entire lives."

Looking at her, Li Xun suddenly felt that the dim light in Kangpeng Hall was not dark enough to cover up the things welling up in his heart at that moment.

But before he could speak, a voice interrupted from the side.

"He was certainly not turning down a better position."

Virginie Viard, who had somehow appeared nearby, was holding a barely touched glass of Veuve Clicquot champagne.

His expression was as languid and sharp as ever.

"He simply turned down a position that would have made him a manager," Virginie said to Liu Yifei in heavily accented French, then added haltingly in Chinese.

"Design, create, freedom, everything, all of it."

Liu Yifei's eyes lit up, and she said "merci" in French.

"You can already speak French?" Virginie raised her eyebrows.

"I've been studying for quite a while," Liu Yifei said with a smile.

Virginie turned to Li Xun and switched back to French.

"Bernard Arnault stayed here for twenty minutes."

Everyone in the Cambon Hall is guessing what you two talked about. Anna has already asked me. Karl won't ask on his own initiative, but he'll be unhappy if you go back and don't tell him anything.

"The old man should be able to guess."

Virginia shook her head.

"Sometimes he can be like a child, don't you know that?"