When LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault announced last week that he would be donating the materials and workforce of the luxury groups’ perfume house to combat the shortage of hand sanitiser for health authorities who are managing the novel coronavirus outbreak, we knew the disinfectant would be something to behold,, but the end result is truly elegant. Although the black and white label is sparse and simple, listing the usage and ingredients, it is easy to spot that the Art Deco-inspired bottles are borrowed from LVMH’s Christian Dior brand by the CD emblems on top of the pump.
The decision to switch over Givenchy, Guerlain and Christian Dior production lines to service French hospitals came last Saturday night, and according to the Financial Times, products were turned around in 72 hours by last Monday, at which time the number of diagnosed cases in the country rose to 6,633 (at time of publication:France is one of the European countries hardest hit by the pandemic, with more than 16,000 cases and 600 deaths).
Still, LVMH is not the only fashion and beauty company that is stepping in to help the country. Fragrance beauty group COTY, produces beauty products for Burberry, Calvin Kelin, Gucci and Chloé has also stepped up to provide hand sanitiser free of charge to those on the frontline. Furthermore, in conjunction with its rival luxury group, Kering, LVMH have ordered 40 million surgical masks from China to France, with Saint Laurent and Balenciaga manufacturing masks also.