Jean-Louis Dumas
| Jean-Louis Dumas | |
|---|---|
| Born |
Jean-Louis Robert Frédéric Dumas 2 February 1938 Paris, France |
| Died | 1 May 2010 (aged 72) Paris, France |
| Nationality | French |
| Alma mater | Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris |
| Occupation | Businessperson, artistic designer |
| Employer | Hermès chairman and design chief |
| Board member of | Hermès |
Jean-Louis Robert Frédéric Dumas (2 February 1938 – 1 May 2010) was a French businessman who was the chairman of the Hermès group from 1978 until 2006. He also served as the company's artistic director. Dumas is credited with turning Hermès into a global luxury brand during his tenure as chairman.
Jean-Louis Robert Frédéric Dumas was born in Paris, France on 2 February 1938. He also used the last name Dumas-Hermès. His father was Robert Dumas, while his mother was one of Émile-Maurice Hermès' four daughters. Dumas' grandfather Émile-Maurice Hermès had been a grandson of Thierry. Dumas attended the Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris, also dubbed Sciences Po. He also traveled in Iran, Afghanistan, and Nepal in a Citroën 2CV. After then traveling Scandinavia and Czechoslovakia while the drummer of a jazz ensemble, Dumas was sent to Algeria to perform his compulsory military service.
In 1963, Dumas entered Bloomingdale's buyer-trainer program in New York. In 1964, he joined Hermès, which his family had founded in 1937. Dumas later became CEO of the Hermès Group and served as the company's artistic director. His father died in 1978, and Dumas became chairman. Expanding into the United States and Asia, he turned Hermès into a global brand after taking in the chairmanship, adding interests in Jean-Paul Gaultier and the Leica camera maker to the company.
In the 1980s Gaultier was working on fashion design in Paris, with Belgian designer Martin Margiela working as his design assistant from 1984 until 1987. He took the company public in 1993, with around 3/4ths of the company remaining family-owned. Jean Louis-Dumas retired as the chairman and artistic director of Hermès in January 2006 due to declining health. He was replaced in the position by his son Pierre-Alexis Dumas.
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