Why China will be next Silicon Valley, says LVMH digital head, and how French start-up culture is catching up
Ian Rogers, LVMH chief digital officer and a former Apple and Beats executive, talks luxury online retail, start-up ‘scaffolding’ in France, and why the next Google or Facebook is likely to be from China
Furnished with music memorabilia, black and white photos of skaters and an Apple TV, the office of Ian Rogers, at the LVMH headquarters on Avenue Montaigne in Paris, is not what you would expect from a top LVMH executive. But then again Rogers, a skateboard-obsessed former roadie for the Beastie Boys turned music-industry mogul, is not your average luxury honcho.
Often clad in his signature uniform of T-shirt, jeans and beat-up Vans, Rogers was born in the US state of Indiana and was at Apple Music when LVMH hired him as chief digital officer in 2015. He was previously at Beats Music and moved to Apple when the Cupertino-based technology giant took over Beats in 2014.
While his background might seem an unusual match with LVMH – “I’d never done physical stores or China before this job” – his hiring was a clear sign that the company was getting serious about all things digital.
Rogers’ arrival at LVMH coincided with the launch of 24 Sevres, the company’s multi-label e-commerce site which competes with websites such as Net-a-Porter and matchesfashion.com. His remit, however, extends beyond online retail to encompass LVMH’s entire brand portfolio and how the company uses technology to build awareness, gather data, interact with its customers and create a seamless omnichannel shopping experience.
The way Rogers sees it, “digital” is an obsolete word for any company trying to be relevant in the 21st century.