French luxury goods brand Louis Vuitton has appointed Wieden + Kennedy president Blake Harrop as its new executive vice-president of image and communications.
The agency veteran replaces the outgoing Stefano Cantino, who joined high-end fashion house Gucci earlier this week as its new deputy chief executive officer after close to six years at Louis Vuitton.
Harrop joins the iconic Paris-based firm after over 13 years with global creative agency Wieden + Kennedy for whom he led a variety of offices in Shanghai, Seoul and Amsterdam before being made president in 2022.
“Blake has extensive communications and marketing expertise, with over 20 years of international experience, over half of which he acquired at the advertising agency Wieden + Kennedy,” Beccari said in an internal memo.
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“President of the agency since 2022, Blake previously headed the agency’s offices in Shanghai, Tokyo and Amsterdam. He deepened his knowledge of the luxury sector while working with several major industry leaders.
He added: “Prior to that, Blake was global head of digital marketing at Samsung in South Korea, rolling out the company’s first social media campaigns.”
Harrop’s appointment as advertising executive within the fashion world is a relative rarity, but points to the increasing importance of brand perception and communications within the industry. He will take up his new role on 2 May and will report in to chairman and CEO Pietro Beccari.
