Anne Dewavrin: Bernard Arnault’s First Wife, Children, and Family Story
Anne Dewavrin is Bernard Arnault’s first wife and the mother of his two oldest children, Delphine and Antoine Arnault. They married in 1973 and divorced in 1990, years before LVMH became the global luxury group it is today. While her former husband and children later became major public figures, she kept a much quieter life.
Her story helps explain an earlier chapter of the Arnault family, before Dior, Louis Vuitton, and LVMH came to define the name. She was there during Bernard Arnault’s years in the family construction business, the family’s move to New York, and the childhood years that Delphine later described in rare interviews.
Life With Bernard Arnault Before Global Fame
Anne Dewavrin married Bernard Arnault in 1973. At the time, he was still building his career in the family business in northern France. He had studied engineering at École Polytechnique and joined the company after graduation.
LVMH’s official biography says he started as an engineer and later moved into senior management. In 1978, he became chairman of the family firm.
The couple welcomed their daughter Delphine on April 4, 1975. Their son Antoine was born on June 4, 1977.
Those years looked very different from the public life the Arnault family would have later. Bernard had business ambitions, but he was not yet the luxury leader known around the world today.
The family also spent several years in the United States. In a 2024 Vogue interview, Delphine said they moved to New Rochelle, New York, while her father tried to grow the family real estate business in the U.S.
She and Antoine attended a Franco-American school. Delphine remembered those years as calm and centered on school, sports, and family life.
She also shared one of the few direct memories of her mother from that period. She recalled Dewavrin wearing long skirts and boots in Roubaix in the 1970s, with a style she compared to Céline.
The family later returned to France. Soon after that, Bernard’s business career moved in a very different direction.
When the Marriage Ended
The 1980s brought major changes for the family.
Bernard took control of Financière Agache in 1984 and began building a luxury business around Christian Dior. In 1989, he became the main shareholder of LVMH.
The marriage ended in 1990.
By that point, Anne Dewavrin had shared nearly two decades of his adult life. She had been part of the early business years, the move to the United States, and the childhood of Delphine and Antoine.
A year after the divorce, Bernard married Canadian pianist Hélène Mercier. They later had three sons, Alexandre, Frédéric, and Jean.
Dewavrin did not turn the end of the marriage into a public story. She rarely gave interviews and did not build a media identity around her former husband.
Delphine Arnault’s Career Grew From Those Early Years
Delphine later became one of the most important figures in luxury fashion.
She studied at EDHEC and the London School of Economics before starting her career at McKinsey. She then moved into fashion and joined Christian Dior Couture in 2001.
LVMH says she later became deputy managing director at Dior. In 2013, she moved to Louis Vuitton as executive vice president.
In February 2023, she became chairman and CEO of Christian Dior Couture. She also serves on the LVMH board and its executive committee.
Her public career is far more visible than her mother’s life, but her comments about childhood show that the family was not always surrounded by the kind of fame it has today.
In her Vogue interview, Delphine described a family that valued work, discipline, school, and sports. Those memories help fill in the years when Anne was raising her children before the family name became a global symbol of luxury.
Antoine Arnault Took His Own Route Through LVMH
Antoine also joined the family business, but his path developed differently.
He studied at HEC Montreal and later earned an MBA from INSEAD. Before joining LVMH, he started an internet company.
He then moved into roles at Louis Vuitton, where he worked in communication and brand strategy. In 2011, he became CEO of Berluti.
Antoine also helped create Les Journées Particulières, an event that opens LVMH workshops and heritage sites to the public.
In 2013, he became chairman of Loro Piana. He later took wider group roles in image and environmental strategy.
In February 2026, he joined the LVMH Executive Committee.
Both children from the first marriage therefore became major figures in the group, but they did so in different areas. Delphine focused more on brand and product leadership. Antoine moved toward communication, image, and group strategy.
Anne Dewavrin Stayed Outside LVMH Management
Unlike her children, Anne Dewavrin did not take a public management role at LVMH.
There is no strong company record showing her as an executive, board member, or senior adviser inside the group.
That point is important because many short online biographies attach job titles or business roles to her without strong support.
Her place in the Arnault story is much more personal. She shared Bernard’s early adult life and raised Delphine and Antoine before the family entered its most public years.
Reliable sources say far less about her own work. That gap should not be filled with guesses.
The New Rochelle Years Add a Human Side to the Story
The family’s time in New Rochelle gives a rare look at what life was like before luxury fame took over the Arnault name.
Delphine told Vogue that they lived there for about three years while her father worked on expanding the family business in the United States.
She and Antoine attended a school where part of the day was taught in French and part in English.
She remembered the U.S. school system as less intense than the one she knew in France. Sports were also a regular part of family life.
These years came before major fashion deals, global brand leadership, and the intense attention that later followed the family.
Dewavrin was part of that quieter home life, raising two young children while the family tested a new life abroad.
Her Later Marriage to Patrice de Maistre
After the divorce, Dewavrin later married French wealth manager Patrice de Maistre.
La Tribune identified her as de Maistre’s wife in 2010 while reporting on the Bettencourt affair.
De Maistre became widely known for managing part of Liliane Bettencourt’s fortune. His name later appeared throughout the legal and political scandal that grew around the case.
Dewavrin herself stayed largely outside that public story. Reports focused on her husband’s work and legal troubles rather than on her own life.
Sources do not agree on the exact year of the marriage, so it is more accurate to state the relationship without forcing a date that is not clearly settled.
The Children Became Her Strongest Public Link to LVMH
Today, the clearest public link between Anne Dewavrin and LVMH is through her children.
Delphine leads Christian Dior Couture. Antoine holds several senior roles across the Arnault family business.
Their three younger half-brothers also entered the group. That means all five of Bernard Arnault’s children now have positions tied to LVMH or its brands.
Dewavrin’s place is different. She is part of the family history, not the public management structure.
That difference makes her story more personal than corporate. She belongs to the years when the family was still growing, moving, and building its future.
Anne Dewavrin Today
Anne Dewavrin remains one of the most private people connected to the Arnault family.
She was married to Bernard Arnault from 1973 to 1990. They had two children, Delphine and Antoine, and spent part of their family life in New York before returning to France.
Both children later became senior figures inside LVMH, while their mother stayed outside the company’s public leadership.
Her life is a reminder that the Arnault family story did not begin with Dior boardrooms or luxury headlines. It also included ordinary family years, school runs, sports, a move abroad, and a marriage that ended before LVMH became the giant it is today.
That quieter chapter helps explain where Delphine and Antoine came from and why Anne Dewavrin still matters in the family story, even though she chose not to live as a public figure.
For another biography about a private former spouse who stayed outside the spotlight, read our Ingrid Quinn biography on LakewoodScoop.co.uk.