Paris. Martin Bethenod had lasted almost twelve years. On the recent scale of the Pinault Collection, this is exceptional longevity. Arriving in 2010 at Palazzo Grassi and Punta della Dogana, then in charge of the Bourse de Commerce project from 2016, he left the group in the fall of 2021, a few months after the opening of the Parisian museum.
Since then, the rotation has accelerated. Sylvain Fort, appointed in 2019 after his time at the Élysée, steps down after six months. Denis Berthomier, called in May 2023 as executive general director to support Emma Lavigne, in turn leaves the house in June 2025, after a little over two years. Guillaume Cerutti, finally, only lasted around thirteen months as president of the Pinault Collection, which he had held since February 2025.
The Cerutti case is the most striking. At the time of his appointment, the former head of Christie’s was not only to chair the Pinault Collection, but also to implement a new organization of artistic and cultural activities at Artémis. His career called for this extension of scope: Center Pompidou, office of the Minister of Culture, Sotheby’s France, then Christie’s, where he headed the executive for eight years before remaining chairman of the board.
Kering struggling
However, his departure did not give rise to any detailed public explanation. On LinkedIn, Guillaume Cerutti simply wrote that one does not turn such a significant page without sadness, while evoking time found for his family, reading and several long-delayed personal projects. The tone, more melancholy than triumphant, suggests a poorly prepared exit.
This waltz of the leaders comes at a time when the main asset of Artémis is going through a zone of strong turbulence. In 2025, Kering’s turnover fell by 13% to 14.7 billion euros; the group’s share of net income fell to 71.8 million euros. Net debt, which had reached 10.5 billion euros at the end of 2024, remains high at 8 billion euros at the end of 2025.
Artémis’s portfolio resembles a Prévert-style inventory: a cruise line (Ponant), newspapers (The Point), a football team (Stade Rennais), wine estates, and, of course, Christie’s and the Pinault Collection. Another departure fuels the impression of taking control: Alban Gréget, who was deputy general director of Artémis for a long time, left 12, rue François-1er – the Artémis private mansion in Paris – last January.
François Pinault will be 90 years old on August 21. He remains a central figure and has even taken over the executive presidency of the Stock Exchange where he continues to come to work several times a week. This is undoubtedly one of the reasons which explains the departure of all the directors who cannot find their place in a well-organized structure where the patriarch continues to maintain control.
