Sharon Stone the look for Dior perfume

Christian Dior presented Hollywood actress Sharon Stone as the face of its new Capture Totale line, set to launch in the spring of next year.

The Oscar-winning beauty joined Parfums Christian Dior ceo Claude Martinez at LVMH's Paris headquarters yesterday to make the announcement in front of an international press gathering attended by over 250 journalists

No details on the Capture Totale line have been released. “She's not chasing her 20s because she knows her age is sexy,” said Martinez of Stone, who sat next to him, decked out in a ruby velvet Dior dress. This is Stone's first deal with a beauty brand.

October 2005

Chairman's Message

Christian Dior Couture has tripled its revenues since 1998. We have won our bet to give new momentum to the Dior brand. However, we had to face an extremely difficult environment – the events of September 11, 2001 in the United States, the SARS epidemic in Asia, the war in Iraq, the sharp decline of the dollar and the yen against the euro. All these events, which could have destabilized us, instead validated the merits of the policy implemented.

This policy was not always unanimously supported. Some predicted the death of Haute Couture; but, in fact, it was the Brands that developed a culture of excellence that are the most dynamic today. Why should we cut our roots or refuse to take advantage of the extraordinary laboratory of ideas formed by Haute Couture? Creation and experimentation are the keys to our success. With three highly talented designers, Christian Dior is clearly signaling the priority it gives to innovation. This human wealth is an exception in the luxury market, but it is the foundation of our success.

Christian Dior’s international fame dates back to 1947, the year of the mythic “New Look” collection. During that period, however, the group was primarily based in France and was present abroad only through its licensees. Since that era, we have rethought our presence in the world’s major markets and have developed our own international network of stores. Our network has grown from 66 boutiques in 1998 to 184 at the end of 2004 – the proof of the dynamic performance of our teams! We are present in all regions of the world, particularly in high-potential zones. We have rebalanced our historical presence from Europe to North America and Asia: -in only 18 months, we will have opened three “flagship” stores in Japan, and we are now turning toward China, where we already have 6 boutiques. At the end of 2005, our network will be close to 200 boutiques.

This steady growth in the network confirms the solid growth of the brand and the remarkable appeal of its creativity and expertise for luxury consumers. The success of the collections and new products in 2004 testifies to this appeal. The women’s ready-to-wear, including the new “Veste Dior”, and the leather goods and shoe lines designed by John Galliano were highly successful. Dior Homme, under the influence of Hedi Slimane, recorded very strong growth and made a remarkable entrance in new product territories, driven by the successful launch of the “Chiffre Rouge” watch. Finally, the jewelry business, under the artistic direction of Victoire de Castellane, also performed very well, expanding its lines of extremely creative and highly prized new product lines, including “Gourmette”.

In 2004, LVMH again strengthened its leadership position and demonstrated its ability to generate profitable growth, much greater than global economic growth, in a difficult monetary context.

Over the last three years, LVMH has posted the best performances in the luxury sector and substantially strengthened its financial structure: between 2002 and 2004, its net income grew more than 80%, its operating margin improved from 16 to 19%, it reduced its debt significantly as a result of the strong improvement in its cash flow.

LVMH is in an excellent position to continue its growth while actively managing its brand portfolio. This year will be very dynamic: sales growth will be driven by an accelerated innovation rate, the expansion of the store network and major investments. Louis Vuitton is launching two new leather lines that have already been exceptionally successful; Parfums Christian Dior will roll out two perfumes this year; TAG Heuer continues to innovate with an automatic chronograph that measures one-hundredth of a second; a new women’s line that incarnates the timeless values of the Fashion House will enhance the watch collections of Montres Dior; Sephora will intensify its policy for exclusivity and innovative services…

Backed by the dynamic performance of its two subsidiaries Christian Dior Couture and LVMH, the Christian Dior Group intends to improve its performance and increase its leading edge. Our confidence is based on the talent of our teams, managers, artisans and designers, on the mobility and responsiveness of our organization, on our ability to stimulate high-potential brands, and on the power of our retail networks. It is also based on the loyalty of our shareholders who support the strategy of the world’s leading luxury group, our shareholders to whom I extend my heartfelt thanks