Going Public: Unlocking a 130-Year-Old Firm

For generations of elegant travelers, Louis Vuitton has been the last word in luxury luggage. Marlene Dietrich once crammed 23 trunks bearing Vuitton's famous initials into her limousine before a trip. Now Paris-based Vuitton, whose retail prices range from $235 for a duffel bag to $1,225 for a hard-frame suitcase, has decided to unlock itself and let in public owners. In a unique double offering, the 130-year-old company (1983 sales: $100 million) listed its stock on the Paris Bourse last week, and plans to sell 258,000 common shares on the U.S. over-the-counter market later this month. This will be the first public stock offering of a private French firm in the U.S.

By going public, Vuitton will be cashing in on a remarkable boom. Sales of its luggage and handbags have surged more than eightfold since 1977, when Henry Racamier, a retired steelmaker whose wife is a member of the Vuitton family, took over as president. At the time, Vuitton had only one factory. Racamier added six more and opened more than 50 new stores in cities ranging from Singapore to Short Hills, N. J. As a result of the exuberant expansion, two-thirds of Vuitton's business now comes from high-fashion bag toters outside France.