VivaTech, Europe's largest start-up and technology event, and founding partner LVMH, organized VivaTech 2023 at the Paris Expo Porte de Versailles. This is also the 7th edition of the event. Through this event, the LVMH Group once again showcased the innovative achievements of its brands and partner startups.
This year, no fewer than 18 LVMH Maisons presented 25 innovations in the venue's two spaces, The Dream Box and the LVMH Court.
The LVMH Pavilion The Dream Box, built around the theme of "Dream", is located in Hall 1. The infield space is about 600 square meters, all of which adopt ecological design, and the appearance of the pavilion will change continuously throughout the day. In addition to being used by VivaTech, the 18 startups shortlisted for the LVMH Innovation Prize 2023, as well as the 6 previous winners, are showcased in the Dream Box, whose solutions have already helped some businesses enhance the customer experience of the future.
The LVMH Court, located in Hall 2, is the first time LVMH has established for VivaTech a space entirely dedicated to sports innovation, showcasing the solutions provided by LVMH's brands to improve the sports experience of athletes and sports enthusiasts.
On the first day of the event on June 14th, the LVMH Group announced two strategic partnerships: One is to cooperate with Epic Games, the developer of the games "Unreal Engine" and "Fortnite", aiming to change the group's creative approach , to bring customers an immersive new experience of product discovery; the second is to cooperate with Apple and its Tap to Pay on iPhone, which will first be launched in stores of LVMH's brand house in the United States, creating exciting new in-store experience.
How are brands harnessing the power of technology?
Fendi has brought a unique and immersive experience to many customers at the Dream Box. The white architectural model on the stand perfectly replicates Fendi's headquarters in Rome, which is also the stage for the brand's AR (Augmented Reality) experience. Through interactive devices, participants can put on headsets and experience a wondrous virtual tour of this iconic location.
Dior Couture has created a unique customer application called Dior Star for brand sales staff, which combines digital innovation and human expertise to facilitate sales to deepen their connection with customers. This breakthrough creative solution is part of an integrated connected ecosystem that supports Dior sales consultants throughout the sales process. Sales staff can use Dior Star to prepare for one-on-one customer visits, such as reviewing customer backgrounds, preparing wish lists, booking time, using tap-to-pay to complete purchases and payments quickly and easily, tax refunds, etc.
Louis Vuitton has launched a VR experience called "Asnières Immersive" (pictured below), which combines the brand's history and future technology. With the help of virtual reality technology, audiences around the world can enjoy a first-person perspective, revealing a 'Louis Vuitton like never before'. The brand said, "With the help of VR equipment, participants will be taken to Asnières, the birthplace of Louis Vuitton, to visit the historic workshop and the former residence of the founder, explore the brand's iconic products and extraordinary craft."
Loro Piana unveiled the brand's innovations in traceability and blockchain technology, showing how its products can be traced and authenticated via the luxury industry's Aura blockchain. At present, Loro Piana customers will receive a digital product passport after purchase, which records detailed information such as the source of raw fiber, weaving date, weaving place, and when and where the garment was made.
This conference is also the debut of Tiffany & Co. in VivaTech. The Maison presents a special edition of one of the most iconic High Jewelery pieces, the Bird on a Rock brooch designed by Jean Schlumberger in 1956 (below). In addition to admiring the real-life version of the jewelry (a diamond-encrusted bird perched on a faceted amethyst), visitors can use a digital app to customize the details of the brooch and choose to place the bird on any of the stones, resulting in a personalized virtual brooch with a bird on a rock and "see the bird flying over it" through AR (Augmented Reality) technology.
While the brands were holding exhibitions, in the corner of the venue, LVMH human resources also had close conversations with visitors, introducing many career opportunities in technology and digital aspects of LVMH and its brands to potential job seekers.
LVMH Innovation Competition Announced at VivaTech
On June 15th, the second day of the conference, it was also the day when the LVMH Innovation Competition Awards Ceremony was held. Today's stage is handed over to start-ups. A record number of more than 1,300 start-ups participated in the seventh edition of the LVMH Innovation Competition this year. Among them, seven start-up companies were awarded, whose solutions bring great potential to the future of the luxury industry.
The full list of winners of the 2023 LVMH Prize for Innovation is as follows:
Omnichannel and Retail Awards: Save your Wardrobe
Operational Excellence: LivingPackets
Immersive Digital Experiences: Absolute Labs
Sustainability and Green Technology: Woola
Employee Experience, Diversity and Inclusion: Neobrain
Images and Media: Vidmob
Data and Artificial Intelligence Special Award: Chatlab
Among them, London-based start-up Save your Wardrobe won the first place. The award ceremony was co-hosted by supermodel Julia Sieger and LVMH Group Virtual Innovation Ambassador Livi, and the award was presented by LVMH Chairman Bernard Arnault.
Save your Wardrobe provides brand customers with a technology-driven, digital platform for garment care and repair, which helps drive the life cycle of products. Hasna Kourda, co-founder and CEO of Save your Wardrobe, said, "This award is a tremendous recognition of the work we've accomplished and a monumental milestone in our journey, inspiring us to continue pushing the boundaries of luxury experiences while protecting, Determination to extend the legacy of the Maisons under LVMH."
Bernard Arnault congratulated all the startups shortlisted and the winners, and highlighted the values that LVMH and the startups share - innovation, excellence, entrepreneurship and commitment, saying, "For a startup, just having an idea is Not enough. Getting support for flawless execution is absolutely essential".
"A full 20% of the start-ups participating in this year's competition are in the category of sustainability and green technology," said Hélène Valade, director of environmental development at LVMH, during the award presentation. Estonian start-up Woola is the leader of this category of start-ups. Founder Anna-Liisa Palatu said, "This award will help us move towards our goal of replacing plastic packaging with wool. About 200,000 tons (of plastic packaging) are thrown away in Europe every year."
The Innovation Award in the Data and AI category went to the startup Chatlabs. Gonzague de Pirey, Omnichannel and Data Officer of LVMH Group, said, "The solutions provided by this company can guide traffic from social media and allow brands to create unique customer experiences. Artificial intelligence and data are everywhere, and data and artificial intelligence are our key factors. The core of all solutions for startups recognized today."
Subsequently, Sojin Lee (pictured below), CEO of TOSHI, a representative of previous award-winning companies and a logistics service company aimed at bridging the gap between online and in-store retailing of luxury goods, said that in the year since winning the 2022 LVMH Innovation Award, her company " Absolutely amazing in every way." With the support of La Maison des Startups (House of Entrepreneurs), LVMH's incubation system for technology startups, TOSHI has made great progress in cooperation with seven brands including RIMOWA and Louis Vuitton.
In addition to the exhibition, nearly 60 speeches were held on the LVMH stage during the four days of the exhibition.
Iris Decamps, head of product, collections and innovations at Veuve Clicquot, detailed some of the packaging innovations introduced by the winery at the meeting, saying that Veuve Clicquot spent two years developing a "composed of 50% hemp fiber and 50% The new packaging, made from recycled paper, "plays a key role in helping the brand achieve its 'target to reduce carbon emissions by 50% by 2030'."
On the first day of VivaTech, LVMH held a roundtable conference titled "Talent Stories: Leading the Digital and Tech Transformation of the LVMH Group (Talent Stories: Leading the Digital and Tech Transformation of the LVMH Group)". At the meeting, Frédérique Rousseau, director of human resources at LVMH Holding & Other Activities, shared the group's proud experience of recruiting 900 people for the technical and digital teams within 18 months. She said, "These talents are the engine behind our growth."
Gonzague de Pirey, chief omnichannel and data officer of LVMH Group, emphasized the importance of omnichannel at the meeting, saying that experience shows that omnichannel customers are more satisfied, buy more and are more loyal to brands. Frank le Moal, director of information technology at LVMH Group, pointed out, "LVMH has a huge demand for technical talents in omni-channel and e-commerce, as well as customer service, supply chain, design, data, network security and other fields. Today, digitalization is everywhere in LVMH, Included in our workshop."
Related article: LVMH Chairman Arnault Hosts Elon Musk in Paris
