LVMH Hand Sanitizer

You may have likely heard by now that LVMH (as in Louis Vuitton Moet Hennessy) has stopped production of its cologne and perfume brands (as in Christian Dior for one) in order to produce hand sanitizer for local governments and hospitals to use.

How it all happened broke down like this:

• On Friday, the French government called on companies to help fill a gap in much needed medical supplies

• On Saturday, the CEO of LVMH (based in France) gave the go-ahead to start making hand sanitizer (cologne/perfume is after all mostly alcohol)

• By Monday am, the production lines at LVMH were pumping out hand sanitizer and getting them ready to distribute

Wow! For those of us in marketing, we know how hard it is to be nimble. Making a decision and implementing it that quickly is nothing short of amazing. But then again, times like these require extra-ordinary movements.

And I’m betting that LVMH has built up a lot of brand equity in the process. Luxury yes, but also there in the time of need, setting aside its own profits to help.

So the question for the rest of us and our brands: is there a way that we can take our unique capabilities and put them to service to meet a need? What can we do to help our communities facing COVID-19?

What’s your experience? JIM