Your account has been succesfully created.

EN FR

The Morning Brief
Log in

Password

Keep me logged in

Forgot your password?
Subscribe

Front Row
Running stories

Running stories
The greatest stories are told in chapters. Follow our long-term investigations delving into luxury's deepest secrets.
All Running stories

Hermès heirs at odds
Houses

The geopolitics of fake goods
Houses

Jewellery sector's quest for clarity
Houses

Password

Keep me logged in

Forgot your password?
Over 300 articles

France, United Kingdom
How Chanel became British (Part 1 of 3): Chanel takes French leave

In the first quarter of 2022, following a long reorganisation of its operational and shareholding structure, Chanel definitively moved its decision-making and financial core to London. This sleight of hand, which Chanel only acknowledged in a footnote, comes at a time when the Wertheimer brothers, the group's two French shareholders, are paving the way for their succession. [...]

Published on 08/09/2022 at 05:30 GMT Reading time 6 minutes

This article is free

Create an account to read more

Do you want a free trial before subscribing?

create a free account

Read this article here:

Houses

Set up email notifications for these topics

France
Luxury groups on tenterhooks as France's business-friendly pension reform hangs in the balance

The left-wing Nouveau Front Populaire (NFP) coalition that topped the seat count in France's snap legislative elections on 7 July wants to repeal President Emmanuel Macron's 2023 pension reform. But that reform has meant big savings for luxury groups.

Subscribers only Entourage 11.07.2024

Spotlight | France
Chanel quietly buys up workshops across France

The fashion house has been registered in the UK for years, but behind the scenes Chanel has been pursuing a proactive expansion plan in France, acquiring subcontractors and workshops across the country in a bid to catch up with rivals Hermès and LVMH.

Subscribers only Houses 27.06.2024

In recent years, Chanel has focused its acquisition policy on buying up factories and workshops.

France
Chanel secretly acquires founder Coco's original workshops in Biarritz

The fashion house has quietly bought the property that housed one of Gabrielle Chanel's very first workshops in the 1910s, in Biarritz, on France's Atlantic coast.

Subscribers only Houses 13.06.2024

France, United States
Court orders Texan heirs to foot tax bill for Coco Chanel's legendary Riviera villa

Once a gift from the Duke of Westminster to Coco Chanel, the La Pausa villa, acquired in 2015 by the Chanel fashion house for €20m, has for many years been burdened by a major tax debt.

Subscribers only Families 16.05.2024

Spotlight | France, United Kingdom
Chanel braced for new generation of leadership

No fewer than four of Chanel's longstanding executives have left the company and its board within less than 10 months. Will CEO Leena Nair seize the opportunity to rethink the company's management, with a younger, more women-centred team?

Subscribers only Houses 18.01.2024

Chanel's board of directors, which has seen four of its long-standing members leave in recent months.

France
Chanel on warpath to protect its intellectual property

To ensure that it has complete control over its image, the fashion house is constantly registering trademarks and applying to the French intellectual property office - sometimes to an absurd degree.

Subscribers only Houses 09.11.2023

United Kingdom
Good times: Rolex's investment arm strengthens its London holdings

Through its investment arm, the Swiss watch brand is now one of the two majority shareholders in Almacantar, a property company that owns prestigious buildings in London's most sought-after areas.

Subscribers only Families 29.06.2023

United Kingdom
Chanel loses a director

The forthcoming departure of one of Chanel's directors will change the equilibrium on the luxury group's board.

Subscribers only Houses 30.03.2023

France
Editors' backlash over Chanel-Le Monde partnership spells trouble for Fondation L'Oréal

The decision by Le Monde's society of editors, SRM, to investigate a partnership between the newspaper and Chanel raises concerns for the Fondation L'Oreal, which has a similar agreement with the French daily.

Subscribers only Entourage 30.03.2023

France
Sciences-Po Paris taps luxury brands in bid to fund new cinema chair

Sciences-Po, France's famed political science university, will open its new arts centre this month, the Maison des Arts et de la Création. It is currently doing the rounds at luxury houses as it looks to find a patron for its film programme.

Subscribers only Entourage 09.03.2023

France
Wertheimers banking on new direction for family office portfolio with Rothschild & Co

The just-announced investment in Rothschild & Co by the Chanel shareholders' family office adds to the portfolio of holdings quietly amassed by the Wertheimer clan.

Subscribers only Families 16.02.2023

Spotlight | France
A pretty penny: Inside Chanel's lucrative brand ambassador contracts

Brand ambassadorships have become a primary marketing tool for luxury houses, making such contracts very profitable for the stars who sign on. Glitz.paris has the lowdown on one such deal, between Chanel and the Belgian singer Angèle.

Free access Houses 16.02.2023

Europe
Chanel bags: Vintage experts struggling to tell the originals from the fakes

Websites that sell second-hand products have had to review their procedures for identifying counterfeit Chanel goods as the workmanship of the fakes catches up with the originals.

Free access Houses 26.01.2023

France
Luxury industry forms alliance with H&M and Zara in battle against labelling requirements

Luxury's big names are appealing to H&M and Zara parent company Inditex via France's fashion federation with a view to developing clothing sustainability criteria that work in their favour, and that can feature on their garments without harming their businesses.

Subscribers only Entourage 19.01.2023

United Kingdom
Chanel Culture Fund's exclusive relationships with museum partners

The two-year-old Chanel Culture Fund - run by Yana Peel, former head of Serpentine Galleries - provides long-term support to a handful of cultural institutions but asks that they commit to strict conditions in exchange.

Subscribers only Houses 22.12.2022

Canada, France, United States
From Delaware to Canada, the changing home of Wertheimer's stable

One of the leading horse racing stables on the French circuit, Wertheimer et frère, run by Chanel shareholders, is in fact a Canadian company.

Subscribers only Families 01.12.2022

France
Chanel brings fizz and sparkle to the film industry

The Chanel group has in the space of a few years become the main sponsor of dinners, cocktails and festivals that bring together key players in the film world.

Subscribers only Houses 01.12.2022

Middle East
Egyptian luxury magnate Rachid Mohamed Rachid's offshore networks

Egyptian former trade minister Rachid Mohamed Rachid is chairman of the Mayhoola fund, which owns Valentino and Balmain. His family office, Alsara Investment Group, is also a shareholder in several Middle Eastern luxury houses. Managing all his investments via offshore structures guarantees him optimal discretion.

Subscribers only Families 10.11.2022

France
Amarante acting as shock troops for Chanel

From fashion show security to repatriating personnel, French company Amarante International is increasingly working with Chanel, in both Ukraine and Africa.

Subscribers only Entourage 10.11.2022

United Kingdom
Mouawad Group to set up shop on Buckingham Palace's doorstep

Lebanese jeweller Mouawad, a long-standing supplier to the Saudi and Bahraini royal courts, is already firmly established in Switzerland and is now quietly setting up a UK outpost, right in front of London's royal residence.

Free access Houses 03.11.2022

France
Quiet storm brews at Haute Couture Federation in Paris over Chanel's London move

The appointment of Chanel executive Bruno Pavlovsky as head of the French Haute Couture Federation, a few months after the group became British, is causing muted malaise within its governing bodies.

Subscribers only Entourage 20.10.2022

United Kingdom, United States
Chanel's main shareholder Alain Wertheimer and his made-to-measure US visa

Frenchman Alain Wertheimer - who lives in the US but chairs UK-registered Chanel Ltd's board and is the group's largest shareholder - juggles his trans-Atlantic lifestyle with help from US immigration services, which have granted him a notoriously difficult to obtain visa.

Subscribers only Families 20.10.2022

Switzerland
Former Rolex chairman focuses on his role as Chanel director

Chanel Ltd, the new British parent company of the brand founded by Coco Chanel, has two quiet but formidable figures from the Swiss luxury world on its board.

Subscribers only Houses 13.10.2022

France, United Kingdom, United States
Quiet on the set: Chanel's discreet foray into film production

Chanel was already everywhere on film festival red carpets, outfitting nearly a dozen actresses in gala apparel. The luxury brand is now also extending its investments into producing films and sponsoring France's cinematic institutions.

Subscribers only Houses 06.10.2022

France
Paris Fashion Week plays host to tarpaulin tug-of-war between luxury giants

Luxury house giants made strategic use of the tarpaulins masking construction work in key Paris fashion week locations, buying them up to serve as advertising billboards that became uninvited guests at their rivals' otherwise perfectly choreographed fashion shows.

Subscribers only Houses 06.10.2022

France, United Kingdom
How Chanel became British (Part 3 of 3): Chanel, British luxury's star player?

While it was relocating to London, Chanel staffed its board with leading UK figures. The group's political activism across the Channel contrasts with the ambiguity that the group is trying to maintain around its nationality.

Free access Houses 15.09.2022

France, United Kingdom
How Chanel became British (Part 2 of 3): the French authorities' response to Chanel's move to the UK

Chanel's move to the UK was spread out over four years, and went virtually unnoticed in Paris, where the group deliberately limited its contact with the authorities on this subject, while continuing to capitalise on its French image and heritage.

Free access Houses 13.09.2022

Set up email notifications for these topics

Once registered, you will be notified by a short message on your computer or mobile phone as soon as a new edition of our publication or an alert is published. Stay informed anytime, anywhere!