Virginie Viard - Designer, Creative Director of Chanel

[brandon J pierre]

the only person who can really breakdown karl is marc jacobs. He will turn it all on its head but it will be chic and exquisitely made. It should be chanel thru a warholian lens.

But do you think you can take on that type of task again I mean he wouldn't be brilliant he would take all the fantasy and the real life all in one shot which is what channel needs

 

[brandon J pierre]

hedi slimane really is the only person who could take chanel into the stratosphere. his entire career has basically been one long chanel audition anyway. as someone mentioned earlier, the prospect of chanel homme would make the wertheimers salivate. it's the only option that makes sense.

He's very good at business he understands customers age range(which is needed at Chanel) he understands French chicness and he understands Karl lagerfeld. But will he be in a state of mind to explore the freedom and femininity of couture that is the question if he can't get that down then it will be a disaster but I think he's a very good option. Anyways I can't wait to see Chanel back on his feet particularly the couture portion of the house and to see all the great things that they can do they need to designer that can really work those artisans and the couture workrooms.

 

[Nimsay]

hedi slimane really is the only person who could take chanel into the stratosphere. his entire career has basically been one long chanel audition anyway. as someone mentioned earlier, the prospect of chanel homme would make the wertheimers salivate. it's the only option that makes sense.

Chanel had a small Homme run only available in Paris, Soho/Beverly Hills and Tokyo designed by Karl. It was so dandy and unwearable. It was ended after a few seasons. I recall thinking Hedis DH jackets were superior.

Yea though. As Lola pointed out Chanel builds up to things. I think Chanel has been connecting with the male customer for about a decade now.
Starting with the unisex 2.55 reissue
adding CH by Karl which didnt work
the successful Chanel Bleu perfume
Chanel sneakers are normalized for men now
Chanel chains are normalized for men now

Ok. I need to prepare if Hedi is coming to Chanel.

 

[GivenchyAddict]

SHE IS LEAVING CHANEL !!!!!!!!! WHAT A GLORIOUS DAY!

 

[NoInvite]

We have to take into account how French Hedi is. His point of references and vocabulary is ultimately French. In the game right now he's the only one left that can take on the other big French 4 (Hermes, LV, Dior, YSL) Other than being close to Karl, he (and his team) has been doing exactly what Chanel needed image driven shows/collection + products merchandising all the bags at Celine is an exercise on how to place logo hardware. He has proven that his vision can be fun too which is definitely missing since Karl. As long as there is a team to fulfill his vision on all sides I think it's him and no one else. Other than that it's internal promotion.

When I see names like Pierpaolo, Sarah Burton, Phoebe I'm like really? y'all think?

 

[Nimsay]

But do you think you can take on that type of task again I mean he wouldn't be brilliant he would take all the fantasy and the real life all in one shot which is what channel needs

chanel by marc

It will definitely be Chanel at its most hyper-consumer. The bags and shoes would become even hotter and even more desirable. I can see Marc being able to produce many hit garments just reworking Karl the way he reworks everything. Marc has an eye for silhouette and will never miss on fit which is crucial for Chanel. Imo the primary reason for VV termination is the fit - she did Cathy D no favors at Cannes. For Karl, fit was a cornerstone of making his weirdest pieces still remain chic.

There would likely be no Homme component though.

 

[GivenchyAddict]

I don’t want Hedi at all at Chanel because, even though I love him, he is one dimensional.

He has nothing more to offer, his obsession with the very thin depressing models starts to become annoying and let’s be real he is not funny.

I want someone who knows how to have fun. Virginie at Chanel made me realise how much I missed how witty Chanel used to be and how Karl used to engage with modern social issues.

 

[bc collector]

If the Wertheimers have signed up Hedi, they'd better think about his successor too: we all know what's going to happen in 5/6 years time...

 

[Lola701]

A fabulous way to wake up right?
Of course I’m happy! Unfortunately, she never lived up to the expectations of her glorious mentor to me (unlike Silvia).

About who’s going to replace her? Hedi Slimane seems like the obvious response (unfortunately) but the man is still employed by Celine.
I mean, no announcement was made so far. If it happens, that would mean that Chanel would pay for the break of the non competition clause…

Even if I have promised myself to never mention him again: Haider is a name for me. He is close with the Chanel galaxy and his role as CD of Canada Goose is not a real role. He is speaking french and it’s a plus.

Christelle Kocher is another name. She is the creative director of Lemarie. She knows Chanel, the house, the people, the organization. She speaks French…

It may sounds ridiculous but I would add Alexandre Vauthier to the list. Same thing: he is around the people at Chanel. Bruno Pavlovsky’s wife, Nathalie, is his childhood friend and has minority stake in his brand. He is familiar with working with the Ateliers of 19M and considering the state of his house now, he is literally a free agent.

Maybe I would add Sarah Burton too…

I think Bruno Pavlovsky, with his involvement in the French fashion scene, will have the choice.

Im totally clueless on who they will hire. The idea of Phoebe is cool but she only works from London. This is one job that requires quite a lot from a designer. It’s really a position of a lifetime. You have to be ready to participate in the life of the Atelier.

Marc is cute name to throw around…But if he expresses the desire to work outside of LVMH, they won’t let him leave without a fight…

 

[GreyVetiver]

Hedi seems to be the obvious choice for the suits. They only care about growing their business after alland the idea of Chanel Home will exactly help them propel the business to another level. But I’m genuinely hoping to be pleasantly surprised by Haider or Galliano taking over.

 

[donyan]

what incredible news. Maybe she had enough of all the horrible comments, and she probably doesn’t need the money. She always seemed awkward in her role, as if she didn’t really want to be there .
Or maybe the numbers are not as good as they said?
My guess is they’ll continue with the studio for a while. It will be better than Virginie’s Collection, and I’m not sure Chanel really needs an artistic director at this point

 

[Drusilla_]

Hedi? idk.....

 

[RaisinBoy]

😱 😳 😆

 

[LadyJunon]

The forum manifesting her departure after the Marseille sitshow:


Seriously, though this is the perfect thing to wake up to. The Haute Couture show will probably be completed by the studio team, but I feel that they'll appoint someone for the September show, if only temporarily.

 

[Kerg]

i do not understand why so much hate about her... You just have to read the pity comments from people who are supposed to be "inclusive", "kind" ...
She wasn't Karl of course, but she never pretended to be at his level.
Furthermore, she multiplied by 1,8 the sales since Karl's passing.
She seems to be so normal and down to earth.
So thank you Virginie, you did your best by always being yourself.
And of course it will be Hedi.
The Wertheimers can take a risk when the company was nothing like in the beginning of the eighties with Karl, but when your brand is valued to 100 billions, you will never be a gambler...

 

[RaisinBoy]

Karl wanted Virginie for 5 years and then Hedi for 5.
Its in the contract

 

[Tchi]

Hedi is the only one that has a vision grand enough to fill the grand palais.

 

[Lola701]

The forum manifesting her departure after the Marseille sitshow:


Seriously, though this is the perfect thing to wake up to. The Haute Couture show will probably be completed by the studio team, but I feel that they'll appoint someone for the September show, if only temporarily.

No I think HC FW2024 will be her farewell. HC is in one month.
They will probably announce the new CD after Couture.

I don’t see the point of having Virginie as a designer to then stay without CD for an uncertain period of time because they are supposedly waiting for someone.

I don’t see Chanel being without a CD for one year.
I wouldn’t be surprised if they have already chosen who the CD is.

Now that I think about it, the first time Chanel disclosed their numbers (after nearly decades of not doing it) was to aknowledge the contribution of Karl. Now in their latest financial reports they aknowledged Virginie. I would be surprised if they released their numbers next year…

 

[RaisinBoy]

Exactly, they will announce right after couture. Also heard the clothes were not selling at all (all their sales were from the bags which have nothing to do with Virginie). And supposedly the campaigns cost them so much as Inez and Vinoudh supposedly demanded huge fees and production cost but for nothing in return - just their stuffy old fashioned pictures, and the bosses got fed up with all of them.
Farewell to all that!
Who’s next in there??

 

[tourbillions]

stahpp with hedi he is so limited he has been showing the exact same collections since saint laurent, how can he survive doing this much collections in a year?? Its not gonna work with chanel since its already big and their clients dont expect to buy their "basics" from chanel. They want tweed jackets embroidered with a virginal mermaids hair or dressess adorned by unicorn horns that was made to look like lace. None of this fantasy can be done by Hedi. He will be much better off at Givenchy with his basic rocker girl party dressess for gen z girls.

Even Pilati's homeless couture would be more exciting.