One of the richest people in France, the owner of the Gucci brand, the Christie’s auction house, the Chateau-Latour vineyards, the Marigny theater in Paris, François Pinault, combined the incompatible business in his empire. Everything that his hands touched turned to gold.
François Pinault was interested in art canvases, sportswear, and sawmills. He also became known as a collector.
The hard way to a dream
François was born in French Brittany in 1936, on August 21. My father worked as a forester. He sent his son to study at a high school in Paris. At sixteen, Pino Jr. left his studies and went to travel. He decided to do only what he liked.
He did not attribute education to such concepts. To this day, François cannot endure diplomas and castes. He was not attracted by the career of a worker. For several years, the guy had to cope with odd jobs. But I realized that you can rely on yourself alone.
Determined to succeed, Pino went to Algeria. He stayed there for three years and returned with capital. Now he was sure exactly what he would do. Soon the marriage took place. The daughter of a timber supplier Louise Gaultier became the chosen one.
François opened his own business at home. The family has three children. At nearly thirty, the entrepreneur founded the Pinault group and began trading in timber. Gradually he made business acquaintances. So, the aspiring businessman met Jacques Chirac, then a promising politician.
Politics attracted incredible business prudence multiplied by an equally incredible flair. Shortly before the 1973 stock market crash, Pino sold the thriving company. He bought it back at a much lower price. The income from the procedure exceeded the income from the previous five years.
Business development
In 1988, François was already a respectable middle-class businessman. He had already managed to divorce and marry again, become a father of four children, when he decided it was time to turn into a billionaire. Very soon, the businessman turned into a successful broker on the Paris Stock Exchange. He bought up some enterprises, sold others.
All transactions were successful. Towards the end of 1989, CFAO chairman Paul Paoli invited Pinault to become his partner. Starting with one fifth, the businessman joined Acquisition to his group in a few months. The new organization was involved in the supply of electrical equipment to Africa.
The basis of the new empire was the proceeds from the mediation in the transaction on the purchase of the insurance company Executive Life. All the billions immediately went into business: they were used to purchase the first retail chain Conforama. A year later, François became the owner of Printemps, one of the largest department stores in the French capital. In 1994, the purchase of La Redoute and the largest bookstore chain Fnac took place.
The new group was now called PPR, Pinault-Printemps-Redoute. It has become the largest retail group in the country. Pino acquired a hosiery factory, a pharmaceutical company, a mail-order business, office equipment. Employees jokingly told about him that the boss trades in everything from paper clips to tractors.
Life after success
The new billionaire became interested in collecting. He visited exhibitions, met with renowned experts. In 1998, François acquired the auction house Christie’s and Sotheby’s. For the first time in nearly two and a half centuries, a foreigner entered an entirely British business.
However, after the acquisition, the businessman began to re-equip the headquarters of the auction for a hotel with boutiques. Meetings began to be held in French, and all management staff were replaced. Then the fashion house Gucci Group and the Yves Saint Laurent company fell into the sphere of interests of Pino.
During the preparation and execution of the transaction, the businessman managed to acquire the successful Boucheron jewelry company, famous for perfumes, watches and jewelry. PPR has become the holder of almost all of the world's most famous brands. Instead of himself in 2003, Pinault put at the helm of the empire the eldest son François-Henri, who graduated from the management school.
The entrepreneur himself decided to manage one of the best vineyards in the world, Château-Lyatour, and replenish his own art collection. In the latter there are already more than two thousand paintings. The issue of placing all the wealth was becoming more and more acute. After a long search, the choice fell on the Punta della Dogana building. Reconstruction work began in 2007.
Within a year and a half, the Venetian building received additional support points, was strengthened and restored. The composition "Boy with a Frog" by Charles Ray became a kind of cherry on the orta. She so well blended into the landscape that she became a new symbol of Venice.
The billionaire does not like official events and is in no hurry to give interviews. He happily arranged a personal life and lives with a faithful wife. All four children of the billionaire have become adults. François handed over the management of the companies to the elder, François-Henri. Of the celebrities, the entrepreneur prefers to communicate only with his son's wife, actress Salma Hayek.
The true patriarch of business was twice recognized as the most influential figure in the art world according to the magazine "Artreview". For the first time ever, a person without a diploma was able to lead such a prestigious rating. According to his contemporaries, Pino has perfectly mastered the national art of a businessman: he puts pots on all burners at once. This is his main principle in business and in life. Pino is also famous for its zeal, He does not waste a single centime in vain.
