Three of France’s wealthiest families — mega billionaires behind luxury giants LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, Kering and L’Oreal — pledged a combined EUR500 million to help rescue a national icon after a huge fire ripped through the famous Paris cathedral in 2019. LVMH CEO Bernard Arnault put up EUR200 million, matched by the Bettencourt Meyers family, which controls L’Oreal. The Pinault family, which operates luxury conglomerate Kering, pledged EUR100 million. Other donors paid the remaining EUR200 million.
On Dec 7, Notre Dame de Paris, the iconic 12th-century medieval cathedral in the French capital, reopened its doors five years after a devastating fire destroyed its roof and its spire.
US President-elect Donald Trump, current First Lady Jill Biden, England’s Prince William, world leaders Ukraine’s President Volodymyr Zelensky and other guests, including the world’s richest man Elon Musk, joined the host, French President Emmanuel Macron, for the ceremony. The Paris landmark’s restoration and rebuilding cost over EUR700 million ($989 million) and took over five years.
