Jean-Claude Biver Stepping Down As LVMH Watch Division Head

Jean-Claude Biver, the colorful watch executive who has headed brands ranging from Hublot to Blancpain, is stepping down from his current role as CEO of LVMH's watch division "I will remain as nonexecutive president of the watch division and of the three brands Hublot, TAG Heuer, and Zenith," he tells JCK, without commenting further That seems to confirm a Reuters report that Biver will no longer play an operational role in the watch division.

The number of watch brands that Biver has headed is impressive and probably without peer After a year's leave from Swatch working with Franck Muller, in 2004, he became head of Hublot-then one of the few independent watch brands-where he is credited with reviving the brand with his successful Big Bang line and helping develop a new form of scratch-resistant gold In 2014, Biver was appointed head of LVMH's watch division, and in that role has served interim stints as the CEO of Zenith and TAG Heuer.

Lately, Biver has become a born-again believer in smartwatches, memorably hosting Google and Intel executives at Baselworld in 2015 to unveil the TAG Heuer Connected watch. . Source