Vendôme: the mayor defends the sale of the name of his city to LVMH - France 24

Orleans (AFP)

The mayor of Vendôme Laurent Brillard (UDI) on Tuesday defended the sale for 10,000 euros of the name of his city to LVMH for its jewelry products.

"The city of Vendôme does not transfer its name to Louis Vuitton, a subsidiary of LVMH, but transfers the + Vendôme + brand only on class 14 (of the National Institute of Industrial Property), which simply allows the company to use of the name + Vendôme + for any creation of a collection or products related to luxury jewelry, "Mr. Brillard told AFP.

"The city council approved the terms of the transfer contract (...). Out of 33 councilors, all sensitivities combined, there were only two votes against and two abstentions," he said.

The LVMH group has a leather goods workshop in Vendôme, located in Loir-et-Cher, and plans to open a second in 2021. The first is located in a listed building, restored by LVMH, which has invested several dozen millions of euros according to the elected.

"Vendôme is extremely successful with the arrival of Vuitton. And there, we recover 10,000 additional euros for a name that they could have used anyway. In the end, between the Regence building, and the workshop which is under construction, this 500 jobs will be created in the short and medium term, ”said the mayor.

“To say that Vendôme was sold for 10,000 euros is an unacceptable shortcut,” he said.

According to the elected official, this agreement will not prevent the city of 17,000 inhabitants from using the name "Vendôme" as it sees fit.

"Moreover, the name + Vendôme + has been regularly used for years by many brands who have never asked us for the slightest authorization. There is already a Vendôme hotel, a Vendôme delicatessen, Vendôme cosmetics ...", pointed out Mr. Brillard.

The environmental opponent Florent Grospart (EELV) was particularly moved on the social networks of this sale.

“Privatizing this word and turning it into an advertising emblem is a decision that we cannot share,” he reacted, criticizing a “total abandonment” of the name of the city to the LVMH group.

© 2021 AFP