The luxury conglomerate that is the parent company of Louis Vuitton is LVMH. The name expands to LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, reflecting the group’s origins in the merger of Louis Vuitton with Moët Hennessy.
LVMH was created in 1987 and developed into a diversified luxury group with fashion, leather goods, wines and spirits, watches, jewelry, perfumes, cosmetics, and selective retail businesses. Louis Vuitton remains one of its flagship maisons, or prestigious brand houses, rather than being the name of the entire conglomerate.
A common mix-up is Kering, another major French luxury group that owns brands such as Gucci, Saint Laurent, and Balenciaga. Richemont is also a major luxury owner, known for maisons including Cartier and Van Cleef & Arpels, while Prada Group is a separate Italian company.
LVMH’s structure allows its maisons to retain distinct identities while sharing the resources and scale of a global parent group.