The incoming President brings a unique mix of credentials to the role from senior positions at Louis Vuitton and Loro Piana alongside an early career at the Musée du Louvre, as LVMH moves to deepen its retail presence across a region that has become an increasingly important part of the group’s Asia strategy.

LVMH has named Francois Kohler as President of its South & Southeast Asia operations, effective 23 February. He succeeds Chris Chong, who is leaving the group to pursue new opportunities.

Kohler joins from Loro Piana, the ultra-premium Italian Maison within the LVMH stable, where he served as Country Manager for MedZone & Greater France. He has previously held the role of Retail Development Director for the LVMH Group and a series of senior positions within Louis Vuitton. His background is notable for an early career at the Musée du Louvre, before moving into the luxury industry. Kohler will be based in Singapore.

Stéphane Bianchi, Chairman and CEO of LVMH’s Watches & Jewellery division, to whom Kohler will report, said he was selected for his “entrepreneurial leadership and his ability to thrive in multicultural environments.” His mandate will be to accelerate the retail ambitions of LVMH’s 75-plus Maisons across the region, with a focus on expanding store networks and deepening client engagement.

Chong, who came to LVMH from CapitaLand Investment, where he managed assets including ION Orchard and Jewel Changi Airport, was previously credited with bringing operational structure to the group’s South and Southeast Asia business, coordinating activity across brands from Dior and Givenchy to Bulgari and Tiffany & Co.

The appointment arrives at a moment of significant geographic recalibration for the luxury sector. For the full year 2025, LVMH revenues fell 5% on a reported basis to $95.3 billion (€80.8 billion), though organic revenue declined by a more modest 1%, highlighting the significant impact of currency fluctuations throughout the year. Much of that traces back to mainland China, which contracted between 3 to 5% over the full year, despite returning to positive growth in the final months as local demand began to stabilise. As per BTB‘s prior analysis, Chinese luxury consumption has not disappeared so much as relocated, with outbound travel to Japan and Europe having absorbed an increasing share, reshaping where and how the industry’s most important consumer base spends.

South and Southeast Asia have emerged as a more structurally resilient counterweight. As analysis of the broader sector has observed, the regions now outperforming luxury’s global average tend to be anchored by consumers for whom luxury is a discretionary extension of established wealth rather than an aspirational stretch—a distinction that matters considerably when sentiment turns. LVMH reported a meaningful improvement across the sub-region by late 2025, with Asia (excluding Japan) returning to 2% growth in the second half of the year as local demand stabilised. Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia, and Singapore are increasingly central to its growth strategy, supported by a strong Sephora presence (4% growth) and a younger consumer base driving demand in Fashion & Leather Goods.

Kohler’s brief will be to press that advantage, expanding LVMH’s retail network and raising the profile of its Maisons across the region.