Coco Chanel lived her life as she alone intended. The trials of a childhood as an orphan and the successes of an accomplished businesswoman gave birth to an extraordinary character; daring, free, and ahead of her time. Faithful friendships and passionate love affairs, as well as a thirst for culture, discovery and travel helped shaped her personality.
Coco Chanel, born Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, grew up in poverty in Saumur, France. After her mother’s death in 1895, she was sent to a convent orphanage where she learned sewing, a skill that later shaped her destiny. Her nickname “Coco” reportedly came from a song she sang during her brief stint as a cabaret singer.
In the early 1910s, Chanel began her career in fashion by opening a small millinery shop in Paris, thanks to financial support from Étienne Balsan and later Arthur “Boy” Capel. Her designs, characterized by simplicity and elegance, quickly gained popularity among wealthy clientele.
Chanel revolutionized women’s fashion by introducing the “Little Black Dress,” making black—a color traditionally associated with mourning—an essential part of modern wardrobes. In 1921, she launched Chanel No. 5, the first perfume to bear a designer’s name. It remains one of the best-selling perfumes in the world.
A wardrobe freed from constraints and superfluity, tweaked with masculine accents, created a visionary allure that has become timeless and yet wildly modern. Pearls and diamonds casually paired with iconic perfumes have created a signature style… That of an avant-garde woman, a pioneer whose lifestyle and multiple facets forged the values of the House she founded, and who remains an inspiration for all women.
“I invented my life by taking for granted that everything I did not like would have an opposite, which I would like.”
“You can be gorgeous at thirty, charming at forty, and irresistible for the rest of your life.”
