Europe’s richest man Bernard Arnault on Monday made a $14.5bn (£11.3bn) bid to buy Tiffany & Co, the jeweller famed for its extravagant engagement rings and white diamond necklaces worn by the likes of Audrey Hepburn for the film Breakfast at Tiffany’s. Arnault’s €194bn (£167bn) LVMH luxury goods empire, which features brands such as Louis Vuitton, Dior and Moët & Chandon, announced it had made a $120-a-share offer to buy the US jeweller, which was founded by 25-year-old Charles Lewis Tiffany in 1837. Tiffany said it was carefully reviewing the proposal, but said it was not in discussions with its Paris-based suitor, which it mistakenly referred to as LMVH in its statement. Tiffany employs more than 14,000 people, and operates about 300 stores around the world including its flagship store next to Trump Tower on Fifth Avenue. The shop, where Hepburn’s Holly Golightly character mused “nothing very bad could happen to you”, is undergoing a $250m refit.
