The Louvre Museum closed its doors to thousands of disappointed visitors on Monday as staff launched a strike to protest working conditions at the Paris landmark, two months after a shocking robbery.
The glass entrance to the Louvre in Paris, France – DR
Workers are demanding extra staff and measures to tackle overcrowding, adding to the woes of the world’s most visited museum just as France is gearing up for the Christmas holidays.
The strike comes nearly two months after the museum was victim of an embarrassing daylight heist that saw crown jewels worth $102 million stolen.
“We are closed,” a security agent told visitors on Monday morning, according to an AFP journalist. “Come back in a few hours.”
Around 400 employees voted unanimously to continue their strike at a general meeting, the CGT and CFDT unions said.
“I’m very disappointed, because the Louvre was the main reason for our visit in Paris, because we wanted to see the ‘Mona Lisa’,” said 37-year-old Minsoo Kim, who travelled from Seoul to Paris with his wife for their honeymoon.
Natalia Brown, a 28-year-old tourist from London, said she was also disappointed. “At the same time, I understand why they’re doing it, it’s just unfortunate timing for us.”
Speaking on the eve of the action, Christian Galani, from the hard-left CGT union, said the strike would have broad support across the museum’s 2,200-strong workforce.
“We’re going to have a lot more strikers than usual,” Galani said. “Normally, it’s front-of-house and security staff. This time, there are scientists, documentarians, collections managers, even curators and colleagues in the workshops telling us they plan to go on strike.”
All have different grievances, adding up to a picture of staff discontent inside the institution, just as it finds itself in a harsh public spotlight following the shocking robbery on October 19.
Reception and security staff complain they are understaffed and required to manage vast flows of people, with the home of Leonardo da Vinci’s “Mona Lisa” welcoming several million people beyond its planned capacity each year.
A spontaneous walk-out protest on June 16 this year led the museum to temporarily close.
The Louvre has become a symbol of so-called “over-tourism”, with the 30,000 daily visitors facing what unions call an “obstacle course” of hazards, long queues, and sub-standard toilets and catering.
Documentarians and curators are increasingly horrified by the state of disrepair inside the former royal palace, with a recent water leak and the closure of a gallery due to structural problems underlining the difficulties.
“The building is not in a good state,” chief Louvre architect Francois Chatillon admitted in front of lawmakers last month during a parliamentary hearing.
Under-fire Louvre boss Laurence des Cars, who faces persistent calls to resign, warned the government in January in a widely publicised memo about leaks, overheating and the declining visitor experience.
After the memo, French President Emmanuel Macron announced a massive renovation plan for the museum, expected to cost 700 million to 800 million euros (up to $940 million).
Questions continue to swirl since the break-in over whether it was avoidable and why a national treasure such as the Louvre appeared to be so poorly protected.
Two intruders used a portable extendable ladder to access the gallery containing the crown jewels, cutting through a glass door with angle grinders in front of startled visitors before stealing eight priceless items.
Investigations have since revealed that only one security camera was working outside when they struck, that guards in the control room did not have enough screens to watch the coverage in real time, and that police were initially misdirected.
Major security vulnerabilities were highlighted in several studies seen by management of the Louvre over the last decade, including a 2019 audit by experts at the jewellery company Van Cleef & Arpels.
Their findings stressed that the riverside balcony targeted by the thieves was a weak point and could be easily reached with an extendable ladder- exactly what transpired in the heist.
Louis Vuitton has named Grammy Award–winning artist Future as its newest ambassador, deepening the maison’s ongoing commitment to celebrating talent across cultural landscapes.
Louis Vuitton names Future as its newest ambassador. – Louis Vuitton
The Atlanta-born rapper, producer and composer continues to dominate the global music landscape. Most recently, he released back-to-back chart-topping albums, “We Don’t Trust You” and “We Still Don’t Trust You”, which became an international phenomenon and further cemented Future’s status as a cultural trailblazer. Over the course of his career, Future has earned 11 number-one albums and multiple chart-leading singles.
“Future embodies the core values of Louis Vuitton, including creativity, artistry, and a pioneering spirit that resonates with international audiences,” the maison said in a statement. “His unique style and creative vision make him an invaluable addition to the Louis Vuitton family.”
It’s not the first time Future collaborates with Louis Vuitton. He attended Louis Vuitton’s Men’s Spring–Summer 2026 show in Paris at the invitation of Pharrell Williams, a longtime friend and creative collaborator. Earlier this year, Future also appeared at the 2025 Met Gala, themed “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style,” wearing a custom Louis Vuitton grey quarter-zip ensemble layered with a tie, designed by Williams.
Rent the Runway announced on Monday sales for the third quarter rose 15.4% to $87.6 million, with the U.S. rental platform clocking growth across its subscriber base.
Rent the Runway
The New York-based firm said ending active subscribers grew 12.4% to 148,916 during the three months, and average active subscribers totalled 147,645, up 12.9% on the prior-year period.
Meanwhile, total subscriber numbers lifted 6.1% to 185,166 during the quarter ending October 31.
In line with strong sales growth, the company reported a net income of $76.5 million, as compared to a loss of $18.9 million in the third quarter last year.
“This year we’ve repositioned ourselves for sustained growth in the category,” said Jennifer Hyman, co-founder and CEO of Rent the Runway.
“Not only did we execute operationally on our stated goals to return to our customer-obsessed origins, reinvigorate our brand, and drive double-digit growth in subscribers; but we also restructured our balance sheet, closing the recapitalization transactions in October that offer improved financial flexibility to better position us for continued growth.”
Earlier this year, Rent the Runway said it will hand over a controlling stake in the company as part of a plan to cut debt and grow.
The deal, with lender Aranda Principal Strategies and other partners, will wipe more than $240 million of debt from Rent the Runway’s balance sheet, according to an emailed statement released in August.
Looking ahead, Rent the Runway said it forecasts revenue of between $323.1 million and $325.1 million for the full-year.
Elisabetta Caldera, 55, has been named global chief people and organization officer for Chanel Ltd., succeeding Claire Isnard, 64, starting next month, the company told Bloomberg News in a statement.
Isnard is retiring after more than 17 years at the group, which had a workforce of around 38,400 employees last year. Caldera will join Chanel’s leadership team, reporting to Chief Executive Officer Leena Nair, and be based in London.
Caldera spent more than four years as global chief human resources officer at Aegon Ltd. where she was also part of the insurer’s executive committee. The Italian executive previously spent 17 years at Vodafone Group Plc in various HR roles until 2021 when she joined Aegon.
Under CEO Nair, the former head of HR at Unilever Plc, Chanel has been rebuilding the roster of top managers at the company as an older guard retires.
Chanel, known for its No. 5 fragrance, is privately owned by the billionaire brothers Alain and Gerard Wertheimer whose fortunes are estimated at about $43 billion each, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.
The company, founded in Paris but headquartered in London, reports its financial performance once a year, generally around late May. Revenue fell 4.3% to $18.7 billion in 2024 on a comparative basis with operating profit sliding by almost a third partly due to heavy advertising spending and a rise in hiring.
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