Provisional appointment to replace Arnaud Lagardère further to his ban from management activities

Arnaud Lagardère today informed the directors of Lagardère SA of the indictment and provisional ban from management activities issued against him on 29 April 2024. He is contesting these decisions and intends to lodge an appeal against them. Despite this, Arnaud Lagardère is nonetheless obliged to step down provisionally from his executive offices within the Group.

The Board of Directors of Lagardère SA met today to decide on provisional arrangements to ensure the Group’s proper governance pending Arnaud Lagardère being able to resume effective management of the Company.

Acting on the recommendation of the Appointments, Remuneration and CSR Committee, which also met today, the Board of Directors unanimously decided to co-opt Jean-Christophe Thiery as a director and to appoint him Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Lagardère SA.

The appointment of Jean-Christophe Thiery as Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Hachette Livre will also be submitted to the Company’s Board of Directors in the near future.

Jean-Christophe Thiery has been Chairman of the Supervisory Board of Groupe Canal+ since 2018, a position he will retain.

The Board of Directors also acknowledged Arnaud Lagardère’s decision to appoint Constance Benqué as President of Lagardère Commandité SAS and Managing Partner of Lagardère Radio SCA, the holding company for the Group’s radio unit (Europe 1, Europe 2 and RFM) since it became autonomous.

These provisional appointments will ensure business continuity alongside the committed management and talented teams of Lagardère Publishing, Lagardère Travel Retail, Lagardère News, Lagardère Radio, Lagardère Live Entertainment and Lagardère Paris Racing.

The Board of Directors reiterates that Arnaud Lagardère is presumed innocent, and that an indictment in no way prejudges the outcome of proceedings.

Biographies

Jean-Christophe Thiery

A graduate of the École nationale d’administration in 1997, Jean-Christophe Thiery began his career in public administration. After spending two years in Perpignan as Chief of Staff to the Prefect of the Pyrénées-Orientales department, he joined the French Ministry of the Economy and Finance in 1999 as Chief of Staff to the Director General of Public Accounts.

In 2001, he joined the Bolloré group to set up and develop its media division. Appointed Chief Executive Officer of Bolloré Media, he launched the television channel Direct 8, before moving on to set up free news daily Direct Matin. He went on to consolidate Bolloré Media’s assets with the acquisitions of digital terrestrial television channel Virgin 17, polling institute CSA and WiFi provider Wifirst, as well as stakes in broadcasting service provider Euromedia-SFP and French video game leader Bigben-Nacon. Following the sale of the Direct 8 and Direct 17 channels to the Canal+ group in 2012, and the entry of the Bolloré group into the capital of Vivendi at that same time, Jean-Christophe Thiery joined the Canal+ group in 2015 as Chairman of the Management Board before being appointed Chairman of the Supervisory Board in 2018.

Constance Benqué

Constance Benqué is a graduate of the University of Paris II Panthéon Assas (master’s degree in public law) and Institut d’Études Politiques de Paris (post-graduate degree in marketing and communications).

After serving as a parliamentary assistant to French Deputy François d’Aubert, she began her career in advertising at the Expansion group in 1981, where she was appointed Advertising Director in 1983. In 1990, she joined the Prisma Presse group where she held the positions of Sales Director of Capital business magazine until 1994 and then Managing Director of Régie Obs, which at the time included the advertising brokerages of Le Nouvel Observateur, Challenges and Sciences et Avenir magazines.

Constance Benqué joined the Lagardère group in 1999, where she headed up Lagardère Publicité (then Europe Régies) and chaired the Supervisory Board between 2016 and 2018. Appointed to the Lagardère Active Executive Board in 2008, Constance Benqué was named Chief Executive Officer of ELLE France & International (Elle, Elle Décoration, Elle à Table, Art & Décoration; international licences and Lagardère Active Entreprises) in 2014. Since December 2018, Constance Benqué has headed up the Lagardère group’s media activities as Chair of Lagardère News. Since 6 November 2023, she has also been Chief Executive Officer of Lagardère Radio SCA, which brings together the activities of Europe 1, Europe 2 and RFM.

Created in 1992, Lagardère is an international group with operations in more than 40 countries worldwide. It employs some 31,300 people and generated revenue of €8,081 million in 2023.
The Group focuses on three divisions: Lagardère Publishing (Books, E-Books, Partworks, Stationery, Board Games and Mobile Games), Lagardère Travel Retail (Travel Essentials, Duty Free & Fashion and Foodservice) and Lagardère News (Paris Match, Le Journal du Dimanche, JDD Magazine, and the Elle brand licence).
The Group’s operating assets also include Lagardère Live Entertainment and Lagardère Paris Racing. Its consolidated financial statements also include Lagardère Radio SCA, which is wholly owned, and its subsidiaries (Europe 1, Europe 2 and RFM) controlled by Arnaud Lagardère.
Lagardère shares are listed on Euronext Paris.
www.lagardere.com