Speaker Series: RFLG Club & JBC present Mineaki Saito, former Hermès Global Executive VP

Partnering with Japan Business Club, we are honored to invite Mr. Mineaki Saito, former Hermès International Executive VP of Marketing, to IESE to talk about “Tradition and Innovation”.

Founded in 1837, Hermès is a fashion house steeped in history and tradition. Family-owned for five generations, the label is a symbol of class worldwide. A combination of rich heritage, exquisite craftsmanship, eye for detail and high levels of quality and professionalism through the entire manufacturing process gives Hermès a position of superiority in the very competitive and ruthless world of luxury.

Mr. Saito will share his insights and experience over:
* The Hermès philosophy - keeping craftsmanship relevant to modern lifestyle
* Customer communication and experience - trust and connection between products, craftsman, and customers
* Brand heritage vs. internationalization - exclusivity vs. availability
* Profitability and sustainability - how come Hermès reported the highest return on capital and the best operating profit after tax in 13 of the past 15 years, beating major luxury groups, including LVMH?


We fly him over from Paris exclusively for this talk. It’s a very rare opportunity to interact with a senior manager from a world-class luxury brand. A cocktail networking event will follow the talk. Please RSVP!


About Mr. Mineaki Saito
Born 1952 in Japan. Moved to Paris to learn Avant-garde art and graduated from Sorbonne University.
Joined France Mitsukoshi and opened concept shops in Paris for design goods from Japan, working with some designers, Kenzo and Issey Miyake.
Joined Hermès in 1992. Accepted a post as President of Hermès Japan in 1998 and developed the largest branch of Hermès outside France. In 2008 joined the executive committee at Hermès International as vice-president (the first as foreign executive) in charge of marketing including CRM, VMD and Internet.
He retired Hermès International in 2015 summer and currently become President of Scenery International to promote Japanese crafts. Also active in a range of other areas, including as a board member of Leica Japan, an adviser to Lumine, and a director on the Paris Chamber of Commerce’s Comité d’échanges Franco-Japonais.

The Talk
- Date: Thursday, March 30th
- Time: 3:45pm - 5:30pm (Cocktail networking event will follow from 5:30 - 6:30pm)
- Where: G302
- Sign up: Please RSVP



Best,
Your RFLG Board

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