CHANEL

“May my legacy grow and live on. I hope it enjoys a long and joyful life.”

Gabrielle Chanel lived life entirely on her own terms. From a difficult childhood spent as an orphan to becoming a powerful and successful businesswoman, she developed a bold and unforgettable personality. She was fearless, independent, and far ahead of her time.

Her close friendships, deep love stories, and strong curiosity for art, culture, travel, and new experiences shaped who she was. She rejected excess and restriction, creating a new way of dressing that felt free and modern. Her style blended simplicity with masculine touches, elegance with ease. Pearls worn casually, diamonds without formality, and unforgettable perfumes became her signature.

She was not just a designer, but a pioneer. Her lifestyle, beliefs, and many sides of her personality formed the values of the House she created — values that continue to inspire women around the world today.

Luck: A Personal Belief

When Gabrielle Chanel created her first perfume, she was asked to choose between several samples. She selected the fifth one. When asked what it should be called, she replied that she was presenting her collection on May 5th, the fifth month of the year, and believed the number five would bring her luck. That decision gave birth to the legendary N°5.

Luck played an important role in her life. Friends often wrote to her about it, and she surrounded herself with symbols she believed brought good fortune. An ear of wheat became one of her favorite signs of abundance and hope. It appeared in her home as art and decoration, created by talented artists she admired.

Although Gabrielle Chanel believed strongly in shaping her own destiny, she also paid close attention to symbols and signs. Her birthday, August 19, inspired another fragrance, N°19. The lion, representing her zodiac sign Leo, appeared often in her personal spaces. The star, first seen in the stone floors of her childhood home, followed her throughout her life and later became a bold diamond design in her jewelry collection.

A Liberated Way of Living

Gabrielle Chanel embraced freedom not only in fashion, but in life. In the early 1900s, she chose comfort and movement over convention. She wore trousers, sailor shirts, and kept her hair short — long before this was common for women.

She loved the outdoors and an active lifestyle. She enjoyed the sun, travel, and time spent near the sea. Sports became part of her daily life: horseback riding, skiing, golf, sailing, and fishing. Horse riding, in particular, remained a lifelong passion and influenced both her personal style and her designs.

These experiences inspired clothing that allowed women to move freely — what we now recognize as the foundation of modern sportswear. As she once explained, she designed clothes not because fashion demanded it, but because her life did.

She created fashion for living — and lived fully, boldly, and without apology.