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Gucci Owner Names Emma Watson, Tidjane Thiam as Directors

Their appointment was approved at the annual general meeting of shareholders on Tuesday.

Gucci Owner Names Emma Watson, Tidjane Thiam as Directors
A woman walks past signage for a Gucci store in Almaty, Kazakhstan. (Photographer: Taylor Weidman/Bloomberg)

(Bloomberg) -- Kering SA, the French owner of the Gucci fashion label, named actress Emma Watson and former Credit Suisse Group AG Chief Executive Officer Tidjane Thiam to the board.

Their appointment was approved at the annual general meeting of shareholders on Tuesday, the company said in a statement. Jean Liu, president of Didi Chuxing --the Chinese ride-hailing service -- was also named a director.

The appointments come as the luxury industry seeks to bounce back from the Covid-19 crisis, which shut stores in China and other key markets for weeks. Companies are also seeking to boost diversity on their boards.

Watson came to the public’s attention playing Hermione Granger in the film adaptations of the Harry Potter book series. Recently, she starred in Greta Gerwig’s “Little Women.”

Thiam comes from the financial services industry. After leading the insurer Prudential Plc for six years, he became CEO of Credit Suisse, the Swiss banking giant, from 2015 until February.

©2020 Bloomberg L.P.