Richemont names new boss for Cartier jewellery

By John Revill

ZURICH (Reuters) -Richemont has appointed a new boss at its jewellery business Cartier, worn by Hollywood stars and royalty, the luxury group said on Tuesday.

Louis Ferla, who is CEO of Swiss watchmaker Vacheron Constantin, will replace Cyrille Vigneron as chief executive officer from Sept. 1.

Vigneron, 63, is retiring after eight years leading Cartier whose famous wearers have included actresses Elizabeth Taylor, Grace Kelly and Nicole Kidman as well as Princess Diana and Kate, Britain's Princess of Wales.

Analysts predicted a smooth transition and said it was part of a generational change at Richemont, which in May announced Nicolas Bos as its group CEO.

They also pointed to the importance of Cartier to Richemont.

The world's biggest branded jewellery business, known for its Tank watches, Trinity rings and Panther jewellery, Cartier generated more than half of the group's operating profit of 4.8 billion euros ($5.14 billion)last year.

Ferla, who has been CEO at Vacheron Constantin since 2017 and is in his late 40s, spent 10 years at Cartier earlier in his career, including leading its China business.

Richemont CEO Bos said Cartier would thrive under Ferla's leadership.

"I have always admired Louis's strategic vision and inspiring management style, which have served him well in turning Vacheron Constantin into one of the world's leading luxury watchmakers," he said in a statement.

Kepler Cheuvreux analyst Jon Cox said Ferla had "big boots to fill", but noted the executive knew the Cartier business. He also drew the contrast to fashion-led soft luxury, where change at the top can be more disruptive.

"Richemont's hard luxury brands are not so reliant on top executives and creative directors to drive the brands, which more often rely on heritage and ever green collections that are reinterpreted for growth," Cox said.

Bernstein analyst Luca Solca said Ferla should be well-suited to his new job.

"I think Vacheron Constantin has been one of the most successful specialist watchmakers houses of Richemont in recent years - and Louis Ferla gets much of the credit for that," he said.

($1 = 0.9334 euros)

(Reporting by John Revill, editing by Miranda Murray and Barbara Lewis)