LVMH has underperformed mainly because of big question marks hanging over the development strategy of Louis Vuitton," said Chicuong Dang, fund manager at French asset management firm KBL Richelieu.
Jacobs' departure, to take his eponymous own label public, is part of a series of leadership changes at Vuitton, the most significant in two decades, as it tries to reposition itself as a more exclusive, less ubiquitous brand.