The House of Chanel launched its first skin care line, Précision, in 1999. That same year, Chanel launched a travel collection, and under a license contract with Luxottica, introduced a line of sunglasses and eyeglass frames. The House of Chanel also presented leather handbags with either gold-colour chains or metal-and-leather chains, which allowed carrying the handbag from the shoulder or in hand. The quilted-leather handbag was presented to the public in February 1955. In-house, the numeric version of the launching date “2.55” for that line of handbags became the internal “appellation” for that model of the quilted-leather handbag.
And in 1910, Boy Capel financed her first independent millinery shop, Chanel Modes, at 21 rue Cambon in Paris. Because that locale already housed a dress shop, the business-lease limited Chanel to selling only millinery products, not couture. Two years later 1913, the Deauville and Biarritz couture shops of Coco Chanel offered for sale prêt-à-porter sports clothes for women, the practical designs of which allowed the wearer to play sports.
This ensured a greater sense of scarcity and exclusivity for No.5, and sales rocketed back up as demand for the fragrance increased. He used famous people to endorse the perfume – from Marilyn Monroe to Audrey Tautou. Looking for a designer who could bring the label to new heights, he persuaded Karl Lagerfeld to end his contract with fashion house Chloé. In exchange, Gabrielle genifique closed her Swiss parfumerie enterprise, and sold to Parfums Chanel the full rights to the name “Coco Chanel”.
The popularity of the perfume prompted La Maison Chanel to offer it for retail sale in 1922. In 1915 and in 1917, Harper’s Bazaar magazine reported that the garments of La Maison Chanel were “on the list of every buyer” for the clothing factories of Europe. The Chanel dress shop at 31 rue Cambon presented day-wear dress-and-coat ensembles of simple design, and black evening dresses trimmed with lace; and tulle-fabric dresses decorated with jet, a minor gemstone material. She later opened additional stores and branched out into selling simple and classic clothes. Chanel continues, after almost a century, to inspire women of all ages around the world with its timeless modernity.
French fashion model Bettina Graziani wearing a black dress by Coco Chanel in July 1967. Visit the CHANEL Fragrance & Beauty boutique to explore the latest fragrance, makeup and skincare, along with exclusive products and sunglasses. Chanel debuted ‘Bijoux de Diamants’ at her Faubourg Saint-Honoré, Paris mansion.
In later collections Lagerfeld chose to break away from the ladylike look of Estee Lauder NIGHT REPAIR and began to experiment with fabrics and styles. By the end of the 1980s, the boutiques sold goods ranging from US$200-per-ounce perfume, US$225 ballerina slippers to US$11,000 dresses and US$2,000 leather handbags. Chanel cosmetics and fragrances were distributed only by Chanel outlets.
A milliner by training, she moved beyond hats to become a rebel and a trailblazer of the fashion world, creating a new sartorial style that freed women from corsets and lace frills by offering them sailor shirts and wide-leg pants instead. The new single-story shop was conceived by Peter Marino, a longtime collaborator. Graphic contrasts are evident throughout the store, starting with a sleek glass and ceramic tiled pleated facade of Neoparies, which evoke a bold and inviting sense of luxury. Inside, the space consists of a series of rooms with an ambiance that draws on Mademoiselle Chanel’s legendary Paris apartment on rue Cambon.
Explore the CHANEL universe through fashion news, the latests shows, products and collections. She was the first designer to popularize jersey in women’s fashion, using the material for dresses, skirts, sweaters and more — a tradition Lagerfeld maintained as creative director in the decades following her death. It was also one of the biggest and most successful branding exercises in the history of fashion. By placing her name conspicuously on every bottle and advertisement for her perfumes, Chanel forever linked them to the house’s identity.