Chanel S.A. , commonly known as Chanel ( /ʃəˈnɛl/ ), is a Parisian fashion house founded by the late couturier Coco Chanel, recognized as one of the most chic in the haute couture. Specializing in luxury goods (haute couture, ready-to-wear, handbags, perfumery, and cosmetics among others), the Chanel label has become one of the most recognized names in the luxury and haute couture fashion industry. According to Forbes , the privately held House of Chanel is jointly owned by Alain Wertheimer and Gerard Wertheimer who are the grandsons of the early (1924) Chanel partner Pierre Wertheimer.The company has had many high-profile celebrities as spokesmodels, including Catherine Deneuve (1970s Chanel No.5 spokesmodel), Nicole Kidman (early 2000s Chanel No. 5 spokesmodel), Audrey Tautou (current Chanel No.5 spokesmodel), and most famously, Marilyn Monroe (1950s Chanel No. 5 spokesmodel) pictured splashing herself with a bottle of Chanel No. 5. The image is certainly the most famous of all Chanel advertisements, and continues to be one of the most popular advertisement photos in the history of marketing, used in countless biographies, and still selling in large quantities as a poster and art piece using Marilyn Monroe as the model..
History
The Coco Chanel era
See also: Coco ChanelGabrielle "Coco" Chanel heralded new designs and revolutionized the fashion industry by going "back to basics", incorporating elegance, class, and originality.Under her tight reign from 1909-1971, Coco Chanel held the title as ‘Chief Designer’ until her death on January 10, 1971.
Establishment and recognition: 1909 through 1920s
In 1909, Gabrielle Chanel opened a shop on the ground floor of Balsan's apartment in Paris - the beginnings of what would later become one of the greatest fashion empires in the world. The Balsan home was a meeting place of the hunting elite of France and the gentlemen brought their fashionable mistresses along, giving Coco the opportunity to sell the women decorated hats. During this time Coco Chanel struck up a relationship with Arthur Capel, a member of the Balsan men's group.
He saw a businesswoman in Coco and helped her acquire her location at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris by 1910. There was already a couture shop in the building, and so Coco was not allowed in her lease to produce couture dresses. In 1913, Chanel introduced women's sportswear at her new boutique in Deauville and Biarritz, France. She detested the fashions of women who came to these resort towns. Chanel's designs tended to be simple rather than opulent in look (common haute couture fashion of the Belle Époque ). World War I affected fashion. Coal was scarce and women were doing the factory jobs that men had held prior to the war; they needed warm clothing that would stand up to working conditions. Chanel fossella's designs from this era were affected by the new idea of women's sports. During World War I, Coco opened another larger shop on Rue de Cambon in front of the Hôtel Ritz Paris. Here she sold flannel blazers, straight linen skirts, sailor tops, long jersey sweaters and skirt-jackets. Her fashion became known in 1915 throughout France for its simplicity. In the years 1915 and 1917, Harper's Bazaar mentioned that Chanel's name was "on the list of every buyer." Her boutique at 31 Rue Cambon previewed simple day dress-and-coat ensembles and black evening dresses in lace or jet-embroidered tulle (she also piled cushions of feathers, fur and metallic fabrics on the sofas in the gray and amber salons).
Coco Chanel established her reputation as a meticulous fashion couturier. Following the fashion trends of the 1920s, Chanel produced beaded dresses. The suit in two or three pieces created in 1920 remains a modern fashion look. The suit was advocated as the "new uniform for afternoon and evening as far back as 1915." 1921 saw the introduction of her first perfume Chanel No. 5. Earnest Beaux created the fragrance for Coco and she named it after her lucky number 5. The fragrance was a success. The signature scent was a result of her belief in superstitions. She was scheduled to show her collection on the fifth day of the fifth month. Coco informed Harper's Bazaar, "simplicity is the keynote of all true elegance", in 1923.
Parfums Chanel: the late 1920s
Parfums Chanel was founded in 1924 by Pierre Wertheimer to produce and sell perfumes and beauty products. Theophile Bader (founder of the successful French department store Galeries Lafayette) introduced Coco to Wertheimer. Wertheimer retained 70% of Parfums Chanel, while Bader retained 20%, and Coco a modest 10%. Coco was forced to operate her couture business apart from Parfums Chanel. In 1924, Coco also introduced her first costume jewelry which were a pair of pearl earrings, one black, one white. Along with the success of her haute couture business, Coco expanded her "social desirability and her personal legend." A new love interest in her life was the Duke of Westminster. She introduced her signature cardigan jacket in 1925 and in 1926, the ‘little black dress,' and a tweed, inspired by visits to Scotland. Soon, Coco operated a boutique near the renowned Louvre.
As the couture Chanel and Parfums Chanel gained success, business relations between Coco and Pierre were sour. She resented the partnership with Pierre Wertheimer and believed she deserved more than 10% of the profits, and believed that the Wertheimers were exploiting her talents for their own personal gain. Wertheimer reminded Coco that he had funded her venture, and that he had made her a wealthy woman.
Coco hired René de Chambrun as her attorney for renegotiating the terms with the Wertheimers. but this failed. The youngest model she hired was a teenager from her area, Meredith Annaline.
Chanel and Nazi affiliation: 1930s through 1950s
Evening couture dresses from Chanel evolved into an elongated feminine style. Summer dresses had contrasting scintillating touches (e.g. rhinestone straps and silver eyelets). Coco designed a line for petite women in 1937. Throughout the 1930s, Elsa Schiaparelli was competing more strongly with the House of Chanel, but this was only a short term rivalry. Chanel premiered an exhibition of jewelry in 1932 dedicated to the diamond. Several of the pieces, including the "Comet" and "Fountain" necklaces were re-introduced by Chanel in 1993. When World War II began in 1939, Coco Chanel retired and moved into the Hôtel Ritz Paris with her new beau, Nazi officer Hans Gunther von Dincklage. Only her parfums and accessories were sold in her existing boutiques.
When France fell under the control of Adolf Hitler's Nazi Germany in 1940, the Nazis made the Ritz their French headquarters. Pierre Wertheimer and his family fled to the United States in 1940, and before Coco could take control of Parfums Chanel, Wertheimer made an "Aryan proxy" for the company. Rumors spread that Coco was on good terms with the Germans. Chanel biographer Edmonde Charles-Roux states that German intelligence sent her to "visit Winston Churchill as a part of a secret peace mission. Coco Chanel was arrested immediately after the liberation of France and charged with abetting the Germans, but Churchill intervened on her behalf and she was released." When France was liberated after the fall of the Nazi Empire, many French people meted out punishments to French women who were believed to have collaborated with the Nazis. Coco Chanel was without a doubt a target after the rumors, and so she fled to Switzerland.
In Coco's absence, Pierre Wertheimer returned to Paris to control Wertheimer family holdings. Out of spite, Coco created her own collection of perfumes. Wertheimer felt his legal rights were infringed, but he wanted to avoid a legal battle and settled with Coco by giving her $400,000 USD, 2% royalty from all Chanel products, and gave her limited rights to sell her own perfumes in Switzerland. Coco stopped making perfumes after the agreement. She sold the complete rights to her name to the Wertheimers for Perfumes Chanel, in exchange for a monthly stipend. The stipend supported her and her friend, von Dincklage.
Chanel's comeback: 1950s through 1970s
Chanel returned to Paris in 1953 to find that fashion designer Christian Dior now dominated the couture market. Coco re-approached Pierre for business advice and financial back-up. In return, he gained complete rights to all products stamped with the name "Chanel." Their re-collaboration paid off as Chanel became the top label in fashion again. Chanel re-introduced the "Chanel suit" and introduced the Chanel chain handled quilted leather handbags in February 1955 (The date is used as the name of the recently re-released bag, 2.55), and her first eau de toilette for men, Pour Monsieur (which has also been marketed under the name "A Gentleman's Cologne"). Chanel and her spring collection received the Fashion Oscar at the 1957 Fashion Awards in Dallas. Pierre bought Badar's 20% share of the perfume business, giving his family 90%. Pierre's son Jacques Wertheimer took his father's place in 1965. Coco's attorney Chambrun called the now-gone-relationship as "one based on a businessman's pass
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