Gucci Owner Kering Banks on De Meo’s Record for a Turnaround

While fixing French carmaker Renault SA, Chief Executive Officer Luca de Meo pursued a hobby that would feed into his next job as CEO of Kering SA: A taste for the finer things in life, particularly Swiss watches.

“Brand management and marketing are his forte, which dovetails with what the luxury industry does — for which he seems passionate,” Luca Solca, an analyst at Bernstein wrote in a note, recalling a conversation about fine timepieces with De Meo at a Renault event three years ago. Now that De Meo has been named as CEO of the French owner of Gucci and other luxury brands, “it is not hard to imagine how intriguing he found the Kering opportunity,” Solca said.