Richemont has appointed Yanina Novitskaya, a 19-year Cartier veteran, as chief executive officer of its Brussels-based leather goods maison Delvaux, effective Dec. 1. She will report to Philippe Fortunato, CEO of Richemont's fashion and accessories maisons, and work from Delvaux's headquarters in Brussels.

The appointment fills the post vacated by Jean-Marc Loubier, the executive who led Delvaux's global expansion in the 2010s and returned for a second stint as CEO five years ago after Richemont acquired the house from First Heritage Brands. Loubier is expected to leave Delvaux at the end of the year following a handover period. His next move could not immediately be learned. The management transition was carefully planned, and took at least a year to arrange, according to industry understanding.

Novitskaya's appointment signals Richemont's preference for internal talent at a brand the group is positioning at the top of the leather goods market. A graduate of Moscow State University of Design and Technologies, she has spent the past 19 years at Cartier, Richemont's flagship jewelry brand. She took on increasing responsibilities across Russia, Ukraine and CIS countries before being named CEO of Cartier in southeast Asia and Oceania four years ago. Her regional leadership experience in Asia is notable given that Asia was central to Delvaux's expansion under Loubier, who pushed the brand into China, South Korea and Japan during his first tenure.

"Yanina's strong knowledge of the luxury industry will be instrumental in leading Delvaux into its next chapter, further strengthening its distinctive positioning and continuing to drive product desirability and international growth," Fortunato said in a release shared exclusively with WWD.

Novitskaya, in turn, praised Delvaux's "remarkable heritage, distinctive savoir-faire, and a unique creative identity."

Loubier's transformation record

Loubier leaves behind a substantially reshaped company. During his first tenure, the proportion of Delvaux's sales generated outside Belgium rose from 3 percent to roughly 85 percent, and the brand multiplied its store count fivefold, opening flagships on New York's Fifth Avenue, Bond Street in London and at the Palazzo Reina in Milan. On his return after the Richemont acquisition, he further reinforced the house's elite positioning and its world-class manufacturing base.

An industry veteran, Loubier spent 16 years at LVMH Moët Hennessy Louis Vuitton, including 10 as executive vice president of Louis Vuitton, before serving as CEO of Celine and Escada. As CEO of First Heritage Brands, he held a minority stake in Delvaux and has maintained a long-standing commitment to the brand's international potential.

Fortunato credited Loubier directly for the transformation. In Monday's release, he thanked the outgoing chief "who has transformed Delvaux into a global luxury maison while strengthening its unique identity, rooted in its exceptional craftsmanship."

The asset Novitskaya inherits

Founded in 1829, Delvaux is considered the oldest luxury leather goods house in the world. It was the first company to file a patent for leather handbags, in 1908, and one of the first luxury goods firms to introduce seasonality into its collections in the 1930s. The house has served as an official supplier to the Belgian royal court since 1883 and maintains an archive of more than 3,000 patented styles. Its bestselling top-handle Brillant model dates to 1958.

For sourcing and supply-chain watchers, the key question will be continuity: Delvaux's value proposition rests on exceptional craftsmanship and a controlled manufacturing base built up under Loubier, and the incoming CEO arrives with commercial and regional leadership credentials rather than a production track record. Richemont has given no indication of changes to the house's product or manufacturing strategy.

The handover runs through year-end, with Novitskaya taking operational control on Dec. 1 and full strategic direction of the maison as Loubier exits.