When Johann Rupert, chairman of Richemont, first approached Nicolas Bos about becoming CEO of the Swiss luxury conglomerate, he was turned down. Bos, then CEO and creative director of Van Cleef & Arpels, was not ready to leave his successful tenure at the Richemont-owned jeweler, where sales had more than doubled in five years according to HSBC estimates.
Rupert, a South African billionaire and Richemont’s controlling shareholder, recounted in May how Bos initially declined the offer. “When I first urged Nicolas to consider it, he was having so much fun growing [Van Cleef] that he actually declined, which I found very nice,” Rupert said. “That’s the kind of person you want, somebody who doesn’t want to have all the power.”
This stance shifted recently as Richemont announced a significant restructuring of the CEO role, granting it more power and oversight across all the group’s brands. Bos was named to the newly expanded position, effective June 1, while current CEO Jerome Lambert transitioned to chief operating officer.
Bos, a Frenchman well-regarded by colleagues and a Richemont veteran, steps into the role during a challenging period for the luxury industry. Growth is slowing from the pandemic boom, the outlook for the crucial Chinese market remains uncertain, and questions about long-term succession at Richemont continue.
Historically, Richemont’s decision-making process has been centralized, with Rupert heavily involved alongside Lambert, who oversaw the group’s smaller brands. The group’s major brands, Van Cleef & Arpels and Cartier, along with financial operations, reported directly to Rupert. At 73, Rupert remains deeply engaged in management but has no clear successor among his three children and has not yet appointed an executive successor. Many leading luxury groups, such as LVMH and Prada, face similar succession dilemmas.
Bos’s appointment provides some clarity to investors on the potential generational transition at Richemont. He will assume some of Rupert’s daily management responsibilities, though Rupert has no plans to step back. “The question of succession planning is not as relevant as it was a few weeks ago,” said HSBC analyst Erwan Rambourg. “Now you have someone capable who is going to run the group. That provides a lot of relief because in many of the conversations we’ve had with investors, they were asking: what’s next, what’s after Rupert. You’ve just bought yourself quite a bit of time.”
Investors responded positively to Bos’s promotion, with Richemont shares rising 6%, extending their gains to 27% this year. “He looks younger and is dynamic, he talks the talk. People like him and he’s clearly highly competent,” said one investor, though they acknowledged it doesn’t entirely resolve the succession issue.
Founded in 1988 by Rupert through a spin-off from his father Anton’s South African conglomerate, Richemont grew from holding minority stakes in luxury brands to becoming a dominant player. Key acquisitions included Cartier in 1993, Vacheron Constantin in 1996, and Van Cleef & Arpels in 1999. The group’s net profits surged from £106.5 million in its first year to €2.35 billion last year, with a market capitalization of SFr76.4 billion.
Bos’s expertise in jewelry, Richemont’s largest division by sales, is expected to be a significant asset in his new role. Despite industry-wide softening, Richemont’s jewelry sales have remained robust. However, Bos will face challenges such as a weaker Chinese market, declining high-end watch sales, and finding a buyer for the lossmaking ecommerce business Yoox Net-a-Porter. Additionally, managing the succession at Cartier, as CEO Cyrille Vigneron nears retirement, will be crucial.
A Paris native with a passion for the arts and literature, Bos began his career at the Cartier Foundation in 1992 after graduating from France’s ESSEC business school. His deep involvement in both the business and creative sides of Van Cleef & Arpels, where he eventually became CEO while retaining his creative director role, has been instrumental in the brand’s turnaround and growth.
“Nicolas is pretty much the only CEO in the sector with both left and right brain abilities, being creative and a merchant. That’s incredibly rare,” said Rambourg. Bos’s dual expertise is expected to bring a more traditional and structured management approach to Richemont’s upper echelons, a change welcomed by analysts and investors alike.
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