By Hershey Pascual
Anthony Chalhoub, co-CEO of the Chalhoub Group, talks about S.T. Dupont, his prized collections, his role and his responsibility towards his business, family and the environment.
The Chalhoub Group is a leading partner for luxury in the Middle East. The empire began in Damascus in 1955 and it has since been headquartered in Lebanon, Kuwait and Dubai. They have reshaped luxury in the Gulf for over 60 years. The Dubai-based Group is the franchise partner for luxury brands in the Middle East including Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior, Fendi, and S.T. Dupont (to name a few brands) as well having created their own concepts such as Level Shoes and Level Kids with a total of over 650 outlets in 14 countries.
Anthony Chalhoub is co-CEO of the Chalhoub Group together with his brother Patrick. At first, meeting Anthony you notice his slight frame which makes him somewhat understated. He is calm, aware and patient, yet he exudes a mighty aura that creates respect around him. Perhaps it is his attention to detail, his luxury brand awareness, his wisdom and hard work that has enabled such respect and authority.
He divides his time between his activities of joint Chief Executive Officer of the Group and as Director of three luxury brand distribution companies for the region: Habchi & Chalhoub, the Louis Vuitton and Dior Couture joint ventures. He joined the Group founded and directed by his father in 1975 when they had only 30 employees. His brother later joined in 1980. It’s amazing that now the company has over 12,000 people working for them.
Mindful of maintaining the image of the brands entrusted to him and keeping France’s high profile in the Middle East, Anthony is a French Overseas Trade Counselor, since 1991. He played an active role in the “France in Kuwait” exhibitions of 1991, 1994, 1996 and 2004. In 1993, aware of the opportunity available to showcase French brands in Kuwait, he secured, in the face of four international competitors, the concession to establish and open the Kuwait airport duty free. As a co-founding member of the MEADFA (Middle East Africa Duty Free Association), he served four years as its Vice-President, four years as President and is still an active member of the board.
Anthony is Chevalier de l’Ordre National du Mérite, which is an official honour awarded by the French government and he is also a Knight of the Order of Malta. He has also been decorated Knight of the Legion d’Honneur for his distinguished humanitarian, economic and cultural achievements and his active role during the Gulf invasion in particular, where he facilitated the communication between Kuwait and France.
How and when did the Chalhoub Group form?
My parents, Michel and Widad, formed the Group. It started because they wanted to sell Christofle silverware back in 1958. It was based in Damascus until 1965. Then in July 1965 we moved from Damascus to Lebanon. We were established in Lebanon by then. Meanwhile, we had a couple of interesting projects in Kuwait. In 1967 we opened a S.T. Dupont workshop. We were selling so many lighters at that time. We only sold lighters then, in Kuwait and Iran. We were having so many lighters on both markets. Some of them needed maintenance, so we decided to open our first S.T. Dupont shop outside the factory. This workshop is still up and running now and it looks the same. It has the same tables and the same pieces. It has history which is part of our values.
How important is it for you to move with contemporary new changes?
You have to adapt all the time or you need to be an innovator.
Did you always want to join the family business?
I had other hopes before and other dreams, but in 1975 the Lebanese Civil War started and we lost everything. I decided to join the family business and set up from scratch again, this time from Kuwait in 1975. We had a S.T. Dupont workshop, a few other shops up and running and a small distribution company. In 1990 we moved to Dubai. I did not feel forced into joining the business but I felt the need to participate in the rebuilding. It was fascinating to be part of a new start.
[Image: Top left to bottom right – Limited Edition Phoenix Renaissance Premium Pens and Lighter Set, Cuff links from the Iron Man Collection.]
What makes the brand so special?
S.T. Dupont is a great brand that is worth discovering. Aesthetically speaking it is beautiful and excellent quality; technologically speaking it is probably the most advanced brand by far. The mechanics of the lighters are crafted in the block of the metal whilst others are often disposable. Even the click of the S.T. Dupont lighter is remarkable. The craftsmanship is second to none.
In the late 1970s and early 1980s the sales of Chinese lacquer S.T. Dupont lighters were so high. They could not keep up with the demand, but there was a special workshop for special orders. If you wanted a lacquered lighter with your initials on them or a logo, it was treated separately. We would customise them with logos then we got customer orders from various Heads of State in the Middle East, and so on. This made our brand very special.
You are a collector; what do you collect?
Yes, I am. My father collects, until now, limited edition rare pieces. We had a prototype of the King of Jordan’s lighter that we kept and we have a couple of samples from Kuwait orders. It is forbidden for us to sell them to the public with the logo as it is a state order but we can keep samples. That is how we starting collecting. In our family we collect a lot of things. I collect cuff links. I have maybe 130. I use cufflinks every day. I collect walking sticks too and I have about 100 of them. I also collect binoculars and books.
Do you have any favourite pieces?
I have so many such as some pieces issued for the bicentenary of the French Revolution and some made for the anniversary of Mozart.
Is luxury something that you have always appreciated?
I think it started with my grandfather. He liked luxury. He always wanted us to have luxurious things. My mother has been educated with a lot of refinements. Refinements and luxury often go together. I think it is a question of behaviour. For instance, when we have dinner, with my grandchildren, we don’t use cheap cutlery.
What is your most valuable luxurious possession?
Family.
How do you find balancing family life with work?
We are in a circus. We have to jump from one side to the other all the time. They know that I have my work. I get up early between 5:30 am – 6:00 am. They know I carry my mobile everywhere, but I will not check emails on holidays or during the evenings after I leave the office. I am finished for the day once I stop working at 8:45 pm. Once in a while, I may get calls after work but that doesn’t happen much. It is important to have discipline. I don’t control everything at work, but I try to know as much as possible. I think it’s important to know as much as possible and it’s important to appreciate the work done by everyone.
As a company, do you have social responsibilities?
Yes, we have a division taking care of this. We have sustainability standards and impact programs for natural disasters and the environment. We have social and environmental responsibilities. We are members of the United Nations Global Compact. By becoming a member, we have joined the ranks of international, socially responsible businesses who are striving to forge the way for responsible business. We pledge to continue to work with some water programs like the Pearl project. We support human development programs and situations of crises through donations, sponsorships and charitable contributions to a range of non-profit and humanitarian organisations.
We are also working with education because education is the future for everybody. We have scholarships for 4 to 18-year-olds. The more people that have high quality education, the better the world will be. We place a strong focus on the training and development of our teams as well as supporting the education of our employees’ children. Externally, though we have partnerships with renowned educational institutions such as Sciences Po in France, Polimoda in Italy, La Sorbonne in Abu Dhabi and the American University of Sharjah, the Group supports scholarships, language training, internships and educational programs both in the region and internationally.
Do you want the business to continue to stay in the family?
We pledged we would keep management succession in the family. It started with my parents, then my brother and I. As long as we are alive it will be family. We are preparing for the third generation. They are between 22-years-old through to 29-years-old. Most probably, they will also pledge to keep it in the family.
What advise do you give your children?
Both my children like to work. All the children work including my brother’s children. I don’t pressure them, I want them to be happy and active not just by earning their own way and having their own money, but by being good to others and taking responsibility over the impact of social and corporate responsibility. I want them to get even more involved. They have to make good around them and that pressure is there. In the company, they will be hired like everybody else and they will be appraised like everybody else.
Where do you spend your time?
Home is Dubai. I spend half my time in Dubai, up to 60 days in Kuwait and then a few days in Paris every year.
What is your biggest achievement?
Probably trying to keep the family all together.
[Image: Limited Edition Phoenix Renaissance Writing Kit Diamond Collection.]
