While fixing French carmaker Renault SA, Chief Executive Officer Luca de Meo pursued a hobby that would feed into his next job as CEO of Kering SA: A taste for the finer things in life, particularly Swiss watches.

The Gucci owner is banking on an automotive turnaround specialist to fix its luxury brands. Francois-Henri Pinault, the billionaire heir who has headed up the French fashion house Kering Group for the past 20 years,

Gucci owner Kering said it was hiring Renault boss Luca de Meo as its new CEO to help revive the debt-laden luxury conglomerate, confirming reports that sent its shares soaring and those of Renault tumbling earlier on Monday.