Louis Vuitton promotes David Ponzo to head of global commercial activities

By

Dominique Muret

Published
Jan 16, 2021

The game of musical chairs continues at LVMH. One week after naming Anthony Ledru as the new CEO of Tiffany & Co., the global luxury conglomerate has announced the appointment of David Ponzo as executive vice president for global commercial activities at Louis Vuitton. This role was previously held by Ledru prior to his move to the American jeweller, which was acquired by the French luxury group earlier this month. 

Since 2015, Ponzo has led Louis Vuitton's operations in Japan, a position in which he will be replaced by Nicolas Villeger. With his latest promotion, Ponzo has been placed in a key role, as one of his main responsibilities will be overseeing Louis Vuitton's vast network of 460 stores, as well as its e-commerce platform.

The executive has more than proved his skills over the course of a career notable for its rich and varied international experience. This includes a range of management posts in Asia, at Omega, Swatch and finally at Louis Vuitton, where Ponzo became CEO and president for Japan in 2016, a role in which he appears to have attracted the attention of LVMH's top management. 

In an internal memo, Louis Vuitton CEO Michael Burke, who has also held the role of chairman of the board at Tiffany since last week, piled praise on the executive. "Over the last five years, David has successfully led a Japanese management team that has become synonymous with excellence. He has contributed to the development of the sophistication and desirability of our brand by cultivating the local clientele and concentrating on high-end products, organising several superb events and exhibitions, and guiding the opening of unique stores," he said. "The energy and enthusiasm that he inspired in his teams allowed us to achieve strong performances in Japan once again."

Villeger, Ponzo's successor at the head of Louis Vuitton's Japanese operations, also boasts extensive experience in Asia, where he has worked for more than 20 years. For this graduate of the Ecole Centrale de Paris, his latest role is a return to LVMH, which set him on the right track at the beginning of his career by sending him to Tokyo for 16 months in 1996. 

Choosing to stay in the Japanese capital, the executive held successive roles at Shiseido, Estée Lauder and Longchamp. Still in Asia, he then transferred to Coach, where he worked in Singapore and South Korea, before returning to Japan. Following a stint at Tesla, he joined LVMH again in 2017, taking over as managing director of duty free company DFS in Japan and Korea until January of last year. Most recently, Villeger has been focused on his own consulting firm, Tradentry.