You’ve probably seen the photos. There is François-Henri Pinault, usually looking sharp in a tailored suit, standing next to his wife, Salma Hayek, on a red carpet in Cannes or Milan. People love to talk about them. Sometimes the comments are kind of mean, actually. You’ll see internet sleuths whispering about a "massive" age gap or wondering how old the guy actually is to have built a luxury empire that rivals LVMH.
Honestly, the reality is way less dramatic than the tabloids want you to believe.
As of right now, in early 2026, François-Henri Pinault is 63 years old. He was born on May 28, 1962. If you do the quick math—and trust me, people do—you’ll realize he’s actually only about four years older than Salma Hayek. She turned 59 last September. For some reason, because he’s a billionaire with silver-tinged hair and she’s, well, Salma Hayek, the world assumes there’s some 20-year chasm between them. There isn't. They’re basically the same generation.
Why the François-Henri Pinault age conversation is peaking right now
It isn't just about the red carpet looks anymore. Age is a huge topic in the luxury world because we are currently witnessing a massive "changing of the guard" across European dynasties. While Bernard Arnault over at LVMH has been raising age limits to keep himself in the driver's seat, Pinault just did the opposite.
He recently made a move that shocked the business world. At 63, a time when many moguls are doubling down on power, he decided to split his roles. For two decades, he was both the Chairman and the CEO of Kering—the parent company of Gucci, Saint Laurent, and Balenciaga.
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But as of September 2025, he officially handed over the CEO keys to Luca de Meo.
De Meo came over from Renault, which was a wild pivot. It’s rare to see a car guy take over a couture house. Pinault is staying on as Chairman of the Board, but this shift marks a new chapter. He’s essentially saying, "I’ve done my twenty years in the trenches; now I’m going to steer the ship from a higher altitude." It’s a move that suggests he’s thinking about his legacy and his family’s future rather than just clinging to a title.
A timeline of a billionaire's life
If you look at his trajectory, he didn't just stumble into wealth at a young age. He put in the time.
- The Early Days: He graduated from HEC Paris in 1985. That’s one of the top business schools in Europe.
- The 90s Grind: He spent the 1990s working through various subsidiaries of his father’s company, then called PPR. He wasn't just "the son"; he was running timber distribution and electrical supply businesses. Not exactly high fashion.
- The 2005 Shift: This was the big one. At age 43, he took over from his father, François Pinault. This is when he started pivoting the company away from retail and toward "pure luxury."
- The Marriage: In 2009, at age 46, he married Salma Hayek in a ceremony in Paris (on Valentine's Day, no less) and then again in Venice.
The "Grandpa" Rumors and the Reality of Aging in Public
There was this one specific Instagram post a while back where Salma shared a photo of them together. The comments were... brutal. People were asking if he was her grandfather.
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It’s a weird double standard. Pinault has aged like, well, a normal 63-year-old man who doesn't seem to obsess over Botox or dye. He’s got the grey hair. He’s got the laugh lines. In a world of filtered celebrities, he looks like a guy who actually lives his life.
The couple has a daughter, Valentina Paloma Pinault, who is now 18. He also has three other children from previous relationships, including a son with supermodel Linda Evangelista. Balancing a blended family of that scale while managing a portfolio that includes Christie’s auction house and the Stade Rennais football club isn't for the faint of heart.
Does age even matter in the luxury game?
In the boardrooms of Paris, your age is often seen as your "weight." The longer you’ve been around, the more relationships you have with the creative directors who actually make the money. But Kering has had a rough couple of years lately. Gucci, their golden goose, has seen some sales slumps.
By stepping back from the CEO role at 63, Pinault is signaling that he knows the market is changing. Gen Z and Gen Alpha don't care about the same things his generation did. They want digital integration and sustainability. Pinault was actually one of the first big luxury bosses to push the "Environmental Profit & Loss" (EP&L) account back when people thought "eco-friendly fashion" meant hemp sacks. He’s always been a bit ahead of the curve.
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What you should take away from this
If you're tracking the life of François-Henri Pinault, don't get distracted by the superficial "he looks older than her" chatter. Focus on the strategy.
He’s currently worth somewhere in the neighborhood of $20 billion to $23 billion, depending on which day you check the stock market. At 63, he’s effectively "semi-retiring" from the day-to-day grind to focus on Groupe Artémis, the family holding company that owns everything from high-end vineyards to Creative Artists Agency (CAA) in Hollywood.
Basically, he’s moving from being a manager to being a kingmaker.
Next Steps for You:
If you're interested in how luxury empires actually work, keep an eye on Kering’s quarterly reports through 2026. Now that Pinault has stepped back as CEO, the big question is whether Luca de Meo can fix Gucci's bottom line. You might also want to look into the "Pinault Collection"—his father’s massive art stash housed in the Bourse de Commerce in Paris—if you want to see where the family’s real passion (and long-term money) is parked.