Chanel CEO Maureen Chiquet Uncovers the True Chanel

How crazy is it that I just watched the movie "CoCo Chanel" and all of a sudden, BAM!, the CEO of Chanel shows up at my school. You all KNOW I was the first one there eager to see what this head-woman-in-charge had to say. So here is my rundown/review.

Background
So, to begin, she starts with her Bio. She is from a small town in Missouri and at the age of 16 she fell in love with France. She went there for a summer and fell more in love with each day.

She explained that she went to Yale University to study Cinema with an emphasis in French Film (surprise). Her big punch line of her career path is that she "walked out of the LSAT." She recalls that she went to take the test because "that was what you were supposed to do" but after an hour in she walked out.

She moved to Paris upon graduation from college, got an internship with L’Oreal, met a French husband and then moved back to the US.

When she moved back to the States her and her husband moved to San Francisco because they "liked it." There she called the GAP to try and get a job in marketing. Since there was no marketing program at the time she became a merchant until 1994 when she was asked to work on the brand Old Navy.

In 2002 she went to work for Banana Republic and after a year she joined Chanel and had to go back to Paris for a year. She said she always wanted to work in luxury retail but exclaimed never knew much about it saying "I mean, I liked luxury clothing." In 2007 she became the Global CEO at Chanel.

Takeaways
Now, she wanted to inform us of the things she learned over the years, here they are for you summed up:
About Chanel:
1. They emphasize creativity
2. They insist on quality and strive for excellence in service and product
3. They have a nique story, rich heritage and modernity
4. They have a decentralized structure

About having a job:
1. Learn to listen
2. Let passion lead your choices
3. Get your hands dirty
4. Have a vision
5. Break some rules

Myths to get out of your head:
1. More is better
2. Bottom line is king
3. Change or die
4. Get rid of people who are at the bottom
5. central organizing is key

She went on to discuss being a woman in business and how we are comfortable when a man leads a company but we need to break out of that comfort zone. Followed by (here is the shocked) a large Chanel plug about the new stores, the line, jewelry, perfume, and beauty products.

What was interesting to me

What I found the most interesting is her (or Chanel's) approach to the creative end. She relinquishes all the creative control of Karl Lagerfeld, saying "what Karl makes is what will be in the store." She continues saying that Chanel is not the type of company that thrives on customer feedback, they basically anticipate what the customer needs, without the use of actual customer feeback ( or so they say). The discussion on the creative part of Chanel was very much Karl focused, and when asked what she would do if Karl were to leave, she didn't have a true answer. She said that Karl makes a lot of lines each season and he is happy here and he will be designing for a longtime. Yes, that might be true, but he may not be with Chanel forever. Clearly, they do not have a back up plan.

Critiques
As you can tell already I have my own critiques, but my biggest concern is diversity of opinion. Maureen claims that this company is not hierarchical but throughout the speech she hints otherwise. She says that they have work groups that have the ability to contribute their ideas with campaigns and what the customer wants. (First of all, they don't care about what the customer wants and she made that very clear.) She added that these teams don't get to make decisions, but they are important. Oh really? So what about the diversity of opinions and thoughts. The point of having work groups is to have a diverse group of opinions that held aim the product at the particular customer at each store, or is that wrong ? How do you strive for top quality customer service, when you really don't engage the customer on what they want and need? hmm

I am also concerned about diversity in campaigns. After getting to about page 17 of google images, I have found no one advertisement that involved ANYONE of color for Chanel ( most of my results included Chanel Iman but never in an ad). During the presentation she showed us some ads as well, still no color. I am wondering what is going on with that? People of color buy Chanel and there are some great models of color that could be featured in those campaigns. Where is all the modernity she was talking about ?

Final Thoughts
In the end, she was an interesting person with a diverse retail background (Old Navy to Chanel) but it is troubling to me that some of the things that her very brand and company "stand for" are not the things they are doing: like being modern and keeping up with the times with diverse campaigns and having a diverse amount of opinions. Don't get me wrong, I like Chanel but I think that the views of Karl Lagerfeld ( who is notoriously controversial when it comes to race and size) are influencing the company a bit too much.

The Infamous Karl Lagerfeld

Anyone breathing should know who the name: Karl Lagerfeld. He is a design genius who has worked with and for some of the most well known people in the fashion and entertainment world. He is one of the worlds greatest designers and it would be a shame if all you knew about him is that he designed for Chanel. That's why I am here to let you in on his life because apparently it doesn't revolve around Chanel.

He was reportedly born on September 10th, 1933 as Karl Otto Lagerfeldt in Hamburg, Germany. Some speculation has been stirring around his birthday, some say it was 1938 but many sources have confirmed 1933. However, Karl doesn't want anyone to know his real birth date, he was even quoted saying "born neither in 1933 or 1938." He has one older sister named Martha Christiane and a half sister , Thea.

As for his last name, he changed it because Lagerfeld "sounds more commercial."

His father was German and made a lot of money from introducing condensed milk to Germany. His mother was a lingerie saleswoman in Berlin when she met her husband in 1930. His family was very wealthy. He was raised on a 12,000 acre estate. At the age of 4 he insisted on having his own valet because he liked to change clothes several times a day. His mom was kind of... I'll just say different. She didn't want him to wear glasses, though he needed them, because she said children with glasses are the ugliest thing in the world. She criticized his smoking because he had to show his hands which she believed where not beautiful.

Karl moved to Paris in the early 50's. He worked as a draftsman for a fashion houses. A draftsman drew pictures of fashions instead of having photographers. This made his drawing skills in tip top shape.

(this is supposed to be Michelle Obama)

During the mid 50's at the age of 22 Lagerfeld was given the position as an apprentice at Pierre Balmain after winning getting second place ( to Yves Saint Laurent) in a competition for a coat sponsored by International Wool Secretariat. This was the birth of a rivalry.

A while after his second place win he told the press that designing coats was his list favorite thing to design and that he really loved little black dresses. But then, YSL won the contest for a dress design, beating Lagerfeld.


This led Lagerfeld to say that he wasn't very impressed.

After three years at Balmain in 1958, he went to work for Jean Patou where he was given a lot of experience. He designed under the know Roland Karl and his first collection was not very well liked. However his second collection was a great improvement. In the 1960's he made a collection with vary short skirts, the shortest in Paris and needless to say, people did not like it.

He decided that he had enough of Paris and moved to Italy to continue his fashion education. He didn't exactly go back to school while in Italy, he spent 2 years mostly on the beaches where he claimed to have " studied life."

He worked as a freelance designer for brands like Mario Valentino, Repeto, and Monoprix. He also was able to open up his own shop with the help of his parents.


In true Karl Lagerfeld fashion, outside of the box, he consulted with a lady named Madame Zereakian, Christian Diors's Armenian fortune teller who told him that he would succeed in fashion and perfume.

Karl designed for a Roman couture house called Tiziani founded by Evan Richards of Texas. When the brand decided to do ready to wear in about 1963 Evan and Karl sketched up 90 outfits. Karl remained with the company until about 1969 after bringing in fans of the label such as Elizabeth Taylor, Dorix Duke and Lollobrigida.



Karl freelanced for Chloe in 1964 starting off with a few pieces and ending up making a whole collection. In 1970 he collaborated with Curiel. His first collection with them was "drippy drapery elegance." There were velvet shorts and black ankle length capes. True to Karl's personality.


his Spring 1973 collection for Chloe got Karl a lot of press. He made the surprise skirt that was ankle length pleats and actually pants and he designed looks inspired by Carmen Miranda, mini bra dresses and short skirts.

He makes a lot of clothing that is inspired by people in culture. He line of Chanel that was inspired by Amy Winehouse.


In 1972 Karl worked with Fendi making furs, clothing and accessories. During the 70's he also designed costumes for theatrical productions. Being a costume designer really helps with your couture work and vice versa. No wonder he is such a genius !

In 1983 Karl was hired by Chanel's corporate head to reinvent the Chanel brand since the death of Coco in 1971. Karl was said to have a weird psychic connection with Coco saying that he could Chanel her to reinvent the brand, but he never wore Chanel himself.

Here is a quote for thought: Luxury is not the opposite of poverty but the opposite of vulgarity.

Karl had a lot of international success as well. He worked with H&M, Trevira, Wolford and Philip Colbert.

In 2006 he announced his launch of his new collection called K Karl Lagerfeld with T shirts and jeans. Karl has a deal with Dubai Infinity Holdings to design homes on Isla Moda, the world's first dedicated fashion island. Fashion Island?!!?!? Can we say SPRING BREAK!



Karl has done a little of everything. He is truly well rounded in the fashion and design world. However, he didn't become so renowned without a few hiccups along the road.

• In the 90's Anna Wintour walked out of one of his shows because he hired strippers and an adult film start to model his collection for Fendi.
• PETA had a some issues with Karl, of course because they have problems with almost every major designer. He believes that banning fur is childish and in a meat eating world it would be absurd.
  
• He had a few problems with Heidi Klum saying that she was no runway model, that she was too heavy. He reportedly said she was a commercial model. Then stories developed that he did not say that and it was in fact a quote from Wolfgang Joop. Karl said that he didn't now Heidi because she never worked in Paris.
• Karl did, however, give his take on Seal's skin, saying " I am no dermatologist but I wouldn't want his skin. Mine looks better than his. He is covered in craters."
• 
• Karl, in his interview as Coco Chanel in Harper's Bazaar, said that he ( Coco) was never a feminist because she was never ugly enough for that.
• Karl was not happy with the movie Coco Before Chanel's lead, Audrey Tautou and told the press he would have rather Penelope Cruz play the part, this followed his anger towards the actress for wearing Chanel Rubber Boots to an interview. He said he was unaware that Chanel made rubber boots, inferring that her boots where knockoffs.
• 
• Of course there is some weight controversy. In the issue he believes that we should focus on the amount of obese people in the world rather than on the small amount of women who are considered underweight.

Speaking of weight, Lagerfeld lost 90lbs on a low calorie diet and turned this infamous diet into a book. He lost the weight because he wanted to dress differently and wear clothes by designer Hedi Slimane. Right now his ambition in life is to wear a size 28 in jeans.


btdubs ( btw) he met Beth Ditto and considered her a muse, and she is two of the things he doesn't like, fat and a feminist.




I really respect Karl for all the work he has done. He is definitely an inspiration to us all. I am really astonished to learn that he was not the best friend of Coco Chanel because how I have him associated in my mind is only with Chanel and no other brand. I mean he had a whole career before Chanel and he has his own thing going on while he is with Chanel. I appreciate his honesty and his ability to stay true to himself and what he believes in, whether or not the public likes it. For example, his list of 10 things that he CAN do without include: food, fat people, children, going to other places that involve people, going to other places at all, people who try to touch him, people who try to analyze him, the nineties, technology and the Internet, and love. If that isn't honest I do not know what is. He is very against the norm, he ever said he is pro-prostitution.


I'll leave you with Mr. Lagerfeld's words: “This is not an easy job, because I have the understanding about Chanel and couture design that nobody has anymore. I have the training that nobody else has. This job is not free. I am not going anywhere.”


Also check out his twitter page... 95,933 followers and following no one. Typical!

Citations:1,2,3,4,5,6,7,8,9

The Fashion Sanctuary: Bergdorf Goodman

Very rarely do we ever speak of the department stores that house some of our favorite designers, and some undiscovered gems. For this reason, I absolutely must tell you about some of these places that are pretty much fashion churches. We have to dress a certain way to attend, we must be respectful of what is inside, and we must pay the utmost thanks to the people who made all the clothing and accessories that surround us while we are in these sanctuaries.

Today we are gonna start with the almighty BG: Bergdorf Goodman. In 1899 the company kind of started when an Alsace immigrant, Herman Bergdorf, opened a tailor shop just above Union Square in Manhattan. As an employee of Herman's, Edwin Goodman, purchased the store in 1906 and moved it to 5th avenue.


In 1914 Goodman became the first couturier to introduce ready to wear.

In 1928 the store moved to its current location at 5th and 58th. Goodman's son Andrew, who was the president, opened a fur salon, made a perfume called Bergdorf Goodman Number Nine, and created Miss Bergdorf, a line for younger customers.


In 1953 Goodman retired as the most celebrated merchant of his time.

During the 60's and 70's BG wasn't doing so well. They tried to build other BG's but only one in White Plains, NY was made in 1972 which was made into a Neiman Marcus in 1981. In order to pull them up from this slump they hired Dawn Mello in 1975 as the vice president of fashion.

Dawn was able to bring life to this conservative store making it more successful. She was named president in 1984. She left in 89 to work for Gucci and returned to BG as the president again in 1994. The CEO of Bergdorf Goodman today is James J. Gold.


So in the 90's the Chairman and CE Ira Neimark enlarged the women's store by 300% resulting in the men's store having to move across the street to the old FAO Schwartz space. Poor guys!


BG was just beginning to get bigger and bigger. In 1997, the former Goodman Family house, the penthouse at the top of the store was made into the John Barrett Salon and Susan Ciminelli Day Spa. More spas opened in 1999 under the main floor and a cafe.

Dramatic renovations took place in 2002 on the main floor of the women's store. This lead to the introduction of the new boutiques of Gucci, Chanel, Armani, Versace, and YSL in 2003. In 2004 their website launched to bring their goods across America. Though, I feel like it just recently got really good.


As you can see BG is like one the resting places of luxury. I mean seriously, they have Fur storage to hold your furs over the summer. Really? You even get the option of having your fur glazed. What on God's green earth does that mean?


Anyways BG has a lot of other unique aspects. Like their infamous windows. Some windows are dressed by regular sales associates whose bosses told them to do it last minute and give the sale associate get their pick of the clothes in which to dress it. Not here! BG's windows require way more work. I mean these people are wearing construction hats, to build a window display. YES! It's that serious.



This is a store that focuses more on the act of shopping, making it an entire sensory experience that you pay for through the prices of the clothing. However , to some, the experience is priceless and I think that everyone should at least experience the luxurious way of buying designer clothing at least once, even if its only a lipstick. The joy that one feels with the BG bag swaying from their wrists as they proudly walk out of the large doors is something that can not be described.


So the reason I think it is important to be aware of these stores beyond the surface level is because these are the places where designers are given their chance to shine. Though it is owned by Neiman Marcus, it still serves its own space in the hearts of fashion lovers everywhere. I also think there is a great deal of effort and thought that are put into the window designs that they should be admired by the world and serve as an inspiration to its onlookers.

This is a store that focuses more on the act of shopping, making it an entire sensory experience that you pay for through the prices of the clothing. However , to some, the experience is priceless and I think that everyone should at least experience the luxurious way of buying designer clothing at least once, even if its only a lipstick. The joy that one feels with the BG bag swaying from their wrists as they proudly walk out of the large doors is something that can not be described. Fashion is not only an art, it is a life style and an experience.

Enjoy the pics!






Citations: 1

Isaac Mizrahi, A Man Of Many Talents!

I have to admit, I had never heard of Isaac before his run with Target, but I do not feel as bad because most of his success became before I was even born or able to talk properly. In Isaac's lifetime, success can not simply be measured by mastering one craft but by doing everything you ever dreamed of doing. Isaac is one of the few people who I know that has been thoroughly involved in every aspect of pop culture from movies, to books, to fashion, and television. He has done it all! Let's take a stroll down the path of his tireless journey.



Isaac was born October 14, 1961 in Brooklyn, New York and raised in Ocean Parkway New Jersey. He must have been born with a fashion gene because at the age of 4 his mother began to notice his attraction to the details of her shoes. His mother often took him shopping with her at Saks and Bergdorf's and ,honestly, who can resist falling in love when introduced to these fashion paradises at such a young age. His father was a merchandiser of children's clothing, so design was nothing new to this semi-traditional Jewish family.

By the time Isaac was 10 years old he had moved back to Brooklyn and had been given his first sewing machine from his father. He made clothing for puppets to wear during birthday party appearances. By 13, he was making clothing for his mom, dad, and his mother's friend Sarah Haddad.


While in Brooklyn his parents wanted him to attend a Jewish school, however his rebellious personality got him kicked out on numerous occasions. His mother had to come to the school and bail him out of trouble constantly. Finally, Isaac had enough. He enrolled in New York High School for the Performing Arts to persue his passions in drama, music, and dance. Isaac lost 75 pounds his first semester and gained it all back in confidence.


While in high school Isaac took some evening classes at Parson's. Upon his high school graduation he studied full time at Parson's developing his skills that would one day land him the title of one of the Best American Fashion Designers of his time.

After his third year at Parson's, he got a part time internship working with Perry Ellis. Mr. Ellis became his mentor and after graduating from undergraduate, he went to work for him full time. Isaac worked very hard for Ellis and in return her received experience and training that would be priceless in this industry.


After he left Perry Ellis, he worked for Jeffrey Banks and Calvin Klein. Not long after , in 1987, Isaac started his own line with financial support from family friend Sarah Haddad. He began small designing in a small loft and selling from the back of a car. In the spring of 1988 he had his spring show. There were few guests , only there to see if anything interesting would come from this new designer. All the guests were floored with surprise at the fresh feeling he brought to fashion, Isaac became an over night success story. From that moment forward, his life began moving full speed ahead.


He began to win awards and designing costumes for ballets and theater in the early 1990's. In 1994 he was going to introduce his fall line and his preparations for his line would be filmed for his hit documentary called Unzipped. The documentary was directed by Isaac's ex lover Douglass Keeve and it was released in 1995. It contained footage from his childhood and footage of his life as a designer working with models and at shows. This documentary took him from beloved fashion designer to beloved celebrity fashion designer.


In 1997 he wrote a comic book series called Isaac Mizrahi Presents the Adventures of Sandee the Supermodel. The series featured the supermodel facing all the stereotypical problems that a supermodel would face in the industry. Critics and fans alike loved his rendition on the life of a model. This was a cherry on top of his sweet career.



Little did he know that in 1998, Chanel, his financial backer, would pull out and cause him to have to shut down his business. He had other options that would possible keep the company rolling, but he decided to move on. Which today has proved to be a good idea.


In 1999 he started in a one-man off Broadway cabaret act that critics called charming and engaging. From there he was given his own talk show on Oxygen where he had a plethora of celebrity guests and a wide array of activities.


Reverting back to designing, he signed a five year deal with Target to design a line of affordable fashions ranging from $10-$70. I have to say that he made some really cute things for target that were sold out in a heart beat. In 2007 he made wedding gowns for Target as well. He made target more than $300 million per year. He also had his own line which he referred to as Isaac Mizrahi to Order where he designs gowns starting at $4,000 a pop.


In 2008 he split with Target and went over to Liz Claiborne to resuscitate her dying line. He has made a fall 2009 line which has won rave reviews. He is now the host of a show called The Fashion Shows on Bravo, which is a different spin to the once hit Project Runway. Isaac has made many appearances on all the fashion forward shows and movies including Ugly Betty and Sex in the City. Today he is in the works of directing his first movies, The Extra Man.



Though we all know Isaac as an outspoken and almost flamboyant person, you can't help but love him . However, in the 2006 Golden Globes I couldn't help but shutter with horror at some of the things he was doing, such as squeezing Scarlett Johansson's breasts, looking down Terri Hatchers dress, and asking people if they had undies on. I am willing to look past that if you are :-(


Recently, Isaac Mizrahi has been named to a newly created role of Senior Vice President, Managing Director at Alma DDB effective July 13, 2009.

Isaac's Award Center

2002 won the Drama Desk Award for his costume designs for The Women.
1996 won the Eddie for Best Edited Documentary.
1995 won the audience award for best documentary.
1991 won CFDA Womenswear designer of the year award

If you wanna keep up with Issac, watch him at by clicking HERE.

I chose Isaac for my blog because he embodies what it means to follow your dreams and that anyone could do anything as long as they want it bad enough. He had a few hurdles, some avoidable and others not so much, but he came through them better than ever. It is not always about how someone does while they are already successful and loved, but how someone does when they are going through hard times. He has shown his dedication to the arts and his passion to do any and everything he set his mind to. We should all be so lucky to accomplish the things this man has. Here's to you Isaac, " Fat is the new black."