Background

Coco Chanel (born Gabrielle in 1883) began her fashion career after opening a millinery shop in 1912 making simple but stylish hats. A ready market helped her expand into clothes and by the 20’s she had built a substantial fashion house with its emphasis on comfortable elegance. It swept away the fussy, sometimes painful clothes considered suitable for women of the time and her designs blended features previously exclusively male with innovative fabrics. They were astonishing to the more rigid tastes of the times and marked a liberation in women’s fashion. Her signature creations included the jersey suit and dress, the draped turban, the chemise, pleated skirts, the cardigan suit, the little black dress, the sling pump, the box jacket, the strapless dress and the trench coat.

Chanel first branched into perfumes in 1922 with the iconic No 5 (it was the fifth and last in a selection she had commissioned). As with her fashion it defied norms. When most perfume bottles of the time were ornate hers was simple and modern, when others reflected a single floral essence (rose, lily of the valley) hers was a complex mix of natural and synthetic and the name itself was at odds with the standard overly-poetic naming conventions.

The House of Chanel today produces a select range of cosmetics and fragrances. Their make up includes products for the face (foundation, powder, concealer, blush); eyes (mascara, eyeshadow, eyeliner, eyebrows); lips (lipsticks, lip gloss, lip liner, lip care); nails (nail enamel, nail care). The skin care range includes cleansers, toning lotions, exfoliation and masks. The fragrance range starts with No 5 but also comprises Chance, Allure, Coco, Coco Mademoiselle, No 19, Cristalle, Exclusifs Boutiques, and for men, Allure Homme, Allure Homme Sport, Anteus, Platinum Egoiste and Pour Monsieur.