New directors, directors leaving and some doing straight swaps. Now it’s Chanel’s turn to join the waiting list of brands looking for a new creative director. Virginie Viard is the next creative director to leave a fashion house this year. After 5 years of being the lead designer at Chanel, the famous house announced she’d be departing, with no reason given. It’s the end of an era for the house, as Virginie continued Lagerfeld’s vision after his death.

In Lagerfeld’s own words, Virginie was his ’right arm and left arm’. She worked alongside Karl originally as an intern at Chanel in 1987. So it’s no wonder that after Karl passed, she was Chanel’s first choice as creative director to continue his vision. So far, since Virginie took over, we’ve not seen much evolution at the brand. Tweed jackets with matching skirts have still been the order of the day at Chanel. Of course, that’s their bread and butter and mainly what they are known for. I doubt that heritage style will be going anywhere, even when the new designer is announced. However, I’d like to see something new at Chanel, a bigger change than what Virginie bought to the house.

I can’t say I’ve been blown away by a Chanel show in the last five years. I’ve not found any of the shows to be particularly moving in any way. There have been parts I’ve enjoyed, the CC logo tiaras from SS21 were a stand-out piece for me. But their ready-to-wear has been fairly bland overall. Despite this, the brand’s sales have gone up from £11.1 billion in 2018 to £19.7 billion in revenue. This may be down to the huge price increases we’ve been seeing at Chanel in recent years. On average an increase of 9%, especially across the accessories sales. In 2020, a medium Chanel classic flap bag was roughly £4,500. They now retail for (on average) £8,500. Arguably the quality of these bags has not increased which has been a cause for contention within the luxury consumer community.

In more recent seasons, Virginie finally started to seem like they were settling into the creative director role. I normally like to give CD’s four seasons before I really judge their work and finally in Chanel’s last SS24 haute couture show, I saw something new, still Chanel, but new. I can’t quite pinpoint what it was about this show that moved me, perhaps the slightly new silhouettes, the mix of pastel shades, the sheer fabric alongside the classic tweed.

I can’t say it’s groundbreaking for Chanel, the house is still evident in the looks but there was a change, a shift. I saw outfits I wanted to wear. The drop wastes are reminiscent of the new modern version of the 00s’s low-rise style but done in a haute couture way. The beading is detailed and meaningful but still suits the look of each garment. I could see the girls walking down New York in these outfits; they are in a rush but somehow still have all the time in the world. There was a story. For example, look 51, it’s so casual with that simple long sleeve underneath but she’s also ready for a formal dinner with the billowing skirt and embellished bralette - it’s wearable, I’d wear it.

Of course, in fashion nothing lasts and just as I feel Virginie was perhaps getting into her stride, she’s leaving. So what is next for Chanel? I wrote in a previous article about the departure of Pierpaolo from Valentino. Could you imagine the heritage style of Chanel reimagined by the man who made Valentino what it is today? He would be my favourite choice for this role so far. But as we know, the fashion world has the ability to surprise us, as it did by appointing Alessandro Michele as Pierpaolo’s replacement. I look forward to a more modern Chanel coming soon, perhaps one I can actually picture myself in.