Management changes at Cartier and Baume & Mercier

30 OCT 2002

Mr Bernard Fornas has been appointed as Chief Executive of Cartier, Richemont’s principal operating subsidiary. He replaces Mr Guy Leymarie, who has left the Group for personal reasons.

Mr Fornas joined Richemont nine years ago and is currently Chief Executive of Baume & Mercier. Prior to joining Baume & Mercier in 2001, he was Marketing Director of Cartier. Mr Fornas’ role at Baume & Mercier will be taken over by Mr Michel Nieto, currently Marketing and Communications Director at Baume & Mercier.

Congratulating Mr Fornas on his appointment, Mr Johann Rupert, Executive Chairman of Richemont said: "It is a pleasure to welcome Bernard back to Cartier. Cartier is Richemont’s leading maison and retains its commanding position as one of the world’s foremost luxury goods businesses. With the launch of its new watches “Roadster” and “Divan”, and its new jewellery collection “The Kiss of the Dragon”, together with the continuing development of its boutique network, Cartier is extremely well positioned. I wish Bernard every success in his new role."

About Richemont

Richemont is a Swiss luxury goods group. The Group owns a portfolio of leading international brands including Cartier, Van Cleef & Arpels, Dunhill, Montblanc and Lancel as well as the prestigious watch manufacturers Jaeger-LeCoultre, Piaget, Baume & Mercier, IWC, Vacheron Constantin, A. Lange & Söhne and Officine Panerai.