Identity Crisis At Lvmh?

For decades, Parisians have shopped for everything from lingerie to hardware at La Samaritaine, a vast department store overlooking the Pont Neuf on the Seine's Right Bank. But the 130-year-old landmark is about to get a makeover. LVMH Moet Hennessy Louis Vuitton has taken a controlling $200 million stake in La Samaritaine and plans to renovate it as a luxury emporium stocked with upscale brands such as Fendi and Christian Dior.

Why does the world's biggest luxury- goods maker need a dowdy old department store? Because LVMH is intent on building a retail empire to complement its prowess in luxury goods. Since 1997, the company has opened or acquired more than 500 stores, from the Sephora cosmetics chain to specialty shops selling sunglasses and watches. Such outlets accounted for nearly $2 billion in sales during the first nine months of this year, equaling revenues from longer-established LVMH boutique chains. Last year, LVMH even brought in Myron Ullman, a former CEO of Macy's, as No. 2 to Chairman Bernard Arnault.