"Luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury" - Coco Chanel.
Birth
Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born on August 19,1883, in Saumur, France. She claimed her birth year as 1893 which was not true. She was born to an unwed mother Eugenie Jeanne Devolle, a laundry woman. Her father was Albert Chanel who was a street vendor who peddled clothes and undergarments. Chanel was the second child of Jeanne with Albert. In 1884, Albert married Jeanne. The family was very poor. They did not have a permanent place to live. Her mother died of Bronchitis at the age of 31. After her mother's death, her father abandoned her to an orphanage. The life there was frugal and demanded strict discipline. But this was the best thing happened to Chanel because it was where she learned to sew. For more than six years she continued to learn sewing and after that got a job as seamstress. During her free time, she was singing in a cabaret "La Rotonde". It was there she acquired the name "Coco". Chanel firmly believed that money was everything.
The Rise Of a Fashion Empire
In 1905, Chanel involved in a relationship with Bourgeois Etienne Balsan who was wealthy man. In 1908, she met with a friend of Balsan, Arthur Edward Boy Capel who was an English polo player. Arthur Capel advised Coco to open a hat store and promised her that he will support financially. She finally broke up with Balsan in 1910 and began to live with Capel in an apartment. She opened her first shop in 1910 in Paris's Rue Cambon, Coco started out selling hats. Later she opened new stores in Deauville, Biarritz and began making clothes.
Once, she modified an old jersey on a chilly day. Many people asked about where she got the dress. She offered to make one for them. That was the first taste of success for her as a designer. She once told in an interview that "My fortune is built on that old jersey that I'd put on because it was very cold in Deauville".
In 1913, She had no right to make women's dresses as she had no license. She found the solution and sewing dresses out of jersey fabric which was used for men's underwear. As she had regular customers to her boutique in Deauville, she sold all of her dresses. She earned her first capital on it. All of her new designs were born that way and very soon she became a popular designer. In 1919, Capel died in a car accident. This was a big blow to Chanel.
Chanel No.5
In 1920, she opened a fashion house in Biarritz. Later in her life she met the Grand Duke Dmitri Pavlovich and they had a romantic interlude, maintained that for many years. This relationship of Coco gave birth to a world wide popular perfume Chanel No.5. Both of them went on a road tour in France. During that tour, Pavlovich introduced Coco to a Russian perfumer, Ernest Beaux in Grasse town. Coco asked Beaux for a perfume and after a year of hard work ,after numerous experiments, Ernest gave Coco 10 samples. Coco chose sample No.5.
"Perfume is the unseen, unforgettable, ultimate accessory of fashion... that heralds your arrival and prolongs your departure" - Coco Chanel.
The fragrance of sample No.5 was unique and department store owner Theophile Bader was also impressed by it. He introduced Coco to businessman Pierre Werthiemer, one of the directors of the Eminent Perfume and Cosmetics House. The other director of the company was Paul Werthiemer. Both the brothers agreed to provide full financing for production and marketing of the perfume Chanel No.5. Coco made an agreement with Werthiemer brothers that the brothers would recieve seventy percent of profits and Bader would receive twenty percent and Coco would receive ten percent. Production of perfume Chanel No.5 started and it became a huge success. Later unhappy with the agreement, she repeatedly sued to have the terms of the deal renegotiated which were not fruitful. Yet she enjoyed the revenue generated from Chanel No.5.
The Little Black Dress
In 1925, Chanel designed and introduced a collarless jacket and well-fitted skirt. This was more comfortable than corset. She chose black fabric initially for this dress. Hence it was called "The Little Black Dress'.
This revolutionized the dressing of women worldwide as it provided simplicity, comfort and richness. It became a symbol of luxury among the business people. Many companies around the world still produce this type of dresses. Slightly modified version of the little black dress is being used around the world proves that this dress will never go out of fashion.
Death
In 1971, Chanel turned 87 years old and she was ill. On saturday, 9 january, She went for a long drive in afternoon. Soon after, she felt ill and went to bed early. Next day on 10th january, 1971 she died at the Hotel Ritz. A real rags to riches story came to end.
