Chanel from the beginning, what do you really know?
Chanel is one of the most high-end fashion brands, striving to be the “ultimate house of luxury, defining style and creating desire, now and forever.” The brand’s existing support base consists of refined customers, but do we really know the history behind the brand? As we see the brand amongst the glitz and glamour in the media space it is always interesting to find out where it all began. Chanel is a brand that truly feels as if it will exist forever, it is timeless. The class it exudes and the impact it has stay consistent. The admiration for the brand and the perception has been carefully crafted, but what does the past look like?
We see many of the runway looks on a younger demographic of influencers and famous people, they are also breaking through on social media and being seen in a different light. It has captured the desire for the strong females to be displayed. Classy and chic remain consistent, within the fashion industry which is a large social and cultural system in today’s society. Chanel stands as one of the leading brands in this competitive industry.
It all started in 1910…
If you’re fascinated with the origin story of people, places, and things Chanel definitely has an extraordinary amount of details, listed are some of the things that stood out to me, that I found surprising and just a little bit about what I think.
- The brand was founded by Gabrielle Chanel in 1910 surprisingly starting out with selling hats.
I never would have thought that hats would be the root of it all…
- 1920 – Launch of Chanel No. 5 perfume “women’s perfume which smells like a woman”
An expensive holiday gift but maybe look into, and still relevant wow!
- 1924 – Launch of first makeup collection
- 1939 – Closing of the Couture House
Additionally, during this time it was found in late 2014…
“French intelligence agencies declassified and released documents confirming Coco Chanel’s role with Germany in World War II. Working as a spy, Chanel was directly involved in a plan for the Third Reich to take control of Madrid.”
Below are the introductions of some of the most classic products and people that have drifted throughout the history of Chanel that has captured my attention:
- 1955 – Creation of the 2.55 Handbag
- 1956 – Creation of trimmed tweed suit
- 1957 – Creation of Two-Tone Pumps
- 1970 – Launch of Chanel No. 19 Perfume
- 1971 – Gabrielle Chanel
- 1983 – Arrival of Karl Lagerfeld
- 1984 – Launch of Coco Perfume
- 1987 – Creation of Chanel Watches
- 1993 – Creation of Chanel Fine Jewelry
- 2004 – Nicole Kidman becomes the face of No. 5 Chanel…
- 2007 – Keira Knightley face of Coco Mademoiselle Perfume
- 2011 – Creation of the Fondation Chanel
- 2019 – Death of Karl Lagerfeld
As someone who loves fashion, I don’t think the respect for the brand is going away anytime soon. If anyone needs a good movie rec and is a fashion lover in need of more knowledge I recommend the movie Coco Before Chanel. My interest in this film really grew and exploring the different pieces of history and all the components throughout this brand is shocking. I think that it could even be labeled as the “chicest” out of all high-end fashion brands. Although Gabrielle Chanel has intricacies in her past that are controversial the brand has evolved beyond her but embodies the impact she would have wanted it to have. I think it is important to bring light to the negatives in the pasts of these high-end companies because people hold them to perfect standards and hiding the dark secrets of the past and being uneducated in any industry should be improved from a consumer point of view. Looking into the history of fashion brands might just be a new hobby!