...Burberry square by Diane O'Brien June 16, 2003 Even if you don’t recognize the Burberry name, chances are you’re familiar with the company’s signature plaid. The trademark red, camel, black and white checked pattern adorns everything from scarves to coats to umbrellas. If you happen to view one of these items while still on a store shelf, you can count on it having a shockingly high price tag attached. | | | | | This London-based brand dates back to 1856 when it was founded by Thomas Burberry. Now known more for its style, early attention focused more on function -- Burberry invented gabardine, a durable, breathable and waterproof fabric. Ernest Shackleton was even outfitted in Burberry during his 1914 expedition across Antarctica. Several decades later the famous check was introduced (1924), and shortly thereafter, trademarked. (Someone obviously had a keen understanding of the counterfeit value in the signature look.) Burberry’s rabidly vigilant copyright department is still thriving to this day (see threatening trademark section at Burberry.com). The small UK brand didn't cross the pond until the 1970s when it opened a flagship store in the appropriately posh location of the Upper East Side of Manhattan. At this point the narrow product line expanded from coats to scarves, umbrellas and luggage. Despite worldwide reach (stores in upscale locales only), by the 1990s the brand started to look like your grandmother’s pocketbook. Burberry turned to Rosemary...
Words: 3483 - Pages: 14
...Fashion Queen Coco Chanel Who has made a difference in my life? A “boy-alike” woman with a wild black curly hair. Her life was not easy, but she followed her dreams. And her name is Coco Chanel. Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel (1883-1971) was a French fashion designer who has turn upside down the world of the fashion industry. Coco Chanel wasn't a genius in sewing, but she was the talented enterpreneur. She has become the legend of the twentieth century. Coco was really classy and excellent in everything she did. She has changed the typical ideas about style and introduced male elements into female clothes such as trousers, suits, ties, etc. Coco Chanel has created a new elegant and independent woman in a jersey pantsuit. She has rejected unnecessary kilometers of fabric and lace, and has created simple casual clothes, which is more comfortable. She took off the corsets from woman’s bodies, and has gave them a little black dress. Coco was the first woman to cut her hair short and make it a real trend. Suntan was considered to be an indicator of belonging to a low class, but Coco broke down that prejudice with her bronze tint skin. She has believed that fragrances affect mood, and gave “Chanel #5” to the world. After she introduced a new jewelry collection in 1932, her string of pearls has become an icon product. Her spectacular fashion shows were like from theater stages. Coco went to work every day until she died in her sleep at the age of 87. Coco underwent a lot of highs...
Words: 318 - Pages: 2
...There are many fashion designers that are legends for example Christian Dior, Gianni Versace, and Yves Saint Laurent but, there was one woman who changed the way women view fashion greatly. Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel was a woman who invented some of the classic fashion pieces we wear today. Coco Chanel was a very popular fashion designer beginning her career as a hat maker in France during the time period of 1910- 1983. She was the creator of the brand Chanel which is now famous all around the world. Her life motto was, “If you were born without wings, do nothing to prevent them from growing” ( Saltari and Manferto 23).The house of Chanel is still popular today and her clothing remains timeless. Three things that were noteworthy in Chanel’s life was her background, the launch of her brand, and her impact on designers today. Gabrielle Bonheur “Coco” Chanel was born on August 19, 1883 in Saumur, France. Chanel’s parents were named Jeanne Devolle and Albert Chanel. Her mom passed away a few years after and Chanel’s father dumped her on the grounds of an orphange. She was raised by nuns there who taught her the work of a seamstress. Some people say that the C’s in her logo were...
Words: 1507 - Pages: 7
...Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel was born on August 19, 1883. Her parents were Albert Chanel and Jeanne Devolle. In 1895, her mother died of bronchitis, and therefore her father sent his daughters to the covent of Abazine in Corrèze. He has never been there since that day. During this time, she learned the skills of sewing. Chanel wanted to be a seamstress, but not plying her needle. She began to sing at café concerts. The popular songs oh hers was ’’Qui qu’a vu Coco’’, so she acquired the nickname’’ Coco’’. She got her start in hats and she wasn’t afraid to be her own model. According to Khurana, Coco said ‘’I don’t do fashion, I’m fashion’’. Etienne Balsan, her first love who gave her the opportunity to into a higher social life. For this reason, she met Arthur Capel, known as ‘’ Boy ’’ and became his mistress. Capel fascinated with the talent and the personality of Coco, therefore he provided the funds for her to rent commercial premises on the rue Cambon. However, Capel was died in a car accident on the road to meet Coco. It was a blow for her, after that she devoted herself to the job wholeheartedly. However, Coco has had informal relationship with a soldier of Nazism during Second World War. As a result, she suffered criticism by French, but her products were still popular with the Americans and British. This essay will outline how Coco Chanel is one of the most influential women in the fashion world. Coco Chanel witnessed the death of luxury, the passage of the nineteenth century...
Words: 1446 - Pages: 6
...Chanel ------------------------------------------------- Top of Form Bottom of Form * Born: August 19, 1882 in Saumur, France * Died: January 10, 1971 in Paris, France * Nationality: French * Occupation: Fashion designer Legend. Coco Chanel once declared, "Legend is the consecration of celebrity," and no other fashion designer in history has exceeded either Chanel's celebrity or her legend. She was a fiercely independent lover of dukes, industrialists, and artists; a confidante of many of the creative geniuses of her day—among them, writer Jean Cocteau, painter Pablo Picasso, ballet impresario Sergei Diaghilev, and composer Igor Stravinsky; and a self-created image of the free-spirited "new woman" of the 1920s. Through her personal example and the fashion empire she established, Chanel launched and sustained the movement toward simplicity, practicality, and unfussy elegance in women's clothing. "A fashion that does not reach the streets is not a fashion," she said, and by the early years of the 1920s, Chanel fashion had reached streets throughout Europe and the United States. Early Life. Chanel both obscured and embroidered upon the facts of her early life; as one of her biographers declared, "She was herself a Chanel creation." Though she claimed to have been born in Auvergne in 1893, records show that she was actually born in the poorhouse of the town of Saumur ten years earlier. Her mother, a poorhouse employee, and her father, an itinerant tradesman, were...
Words: 2482 - Pages: 10
...Coco Chanel Fashion designer. Born on August 19, 1883, in Saumur, France. With her trademark suits and little black dresses, Coco Chanel created timeless designs that are still popular today. She herself became a much revered style icon known for her simple yet sophisticated outfits paired with great accessories, such as several strands of pearls. As Chanel once said,“luxury must be comfortable, otherwise it is not luxury.” Her early years, however, were anything but glamorous. After her mother’s death, Chanel was put in an orphanage by her father who worked as a peddler. She was raised by nuns who taught her how to sew—a skill that would lead to her life’s work. Her nickname came from another occupation entirely. During her brief career as a singer, Chanel performed in clubs in Vichy and Moulins where she was called “Coco.” Some say that the name comes from one of the songs she used to sing, and Chanel herself said that it was a “shortened version of cocotte, the French word for ‘kept woman,” according to an article in The Atlantic. Around the age of 20, Chanel became involved with Etienne Balsan who offered to help her start a millinery business in Paris. She soon left him for one of his even wealthier friends, Arthur “Boy” Capel. Both men were instrumental in Chanel’s first fashion venture. Opening her first shop on Paris’s Rue Cambon in 1910, Chanel started out selling hats. She later added stores in Deauville and Biarritz and began making clothes. Her first...
Words: 1033 - Pages: 5
...INDUSTRIAL AND COMMERCIAL SETTINGS / DESIGNER CASE STUDY RESEARCH TASK FASHION DESIGN Fashion design - brand : CHANEL History of Chanel No.5 Chanel No.5 is the first perfume launched by French couturier Gabrielle "Coco" Chanel in 5 May, 1921. The chemical formula for the fragrance was compounded by French-Russian chemist and perfumer Ernest Beaux. The number 5 to Coco Chanel means good luck. She released this perfume on the 5th day of the 5th month and it's main sent is May rose and jasmine. Coco's famous quote on Chanel No.5 is “what is very important in a fragrance, is that the fragrance has some kind of mystery” The Chanel No.5 journey starts of in the fields of May roses at the Mul family's generations-old flower farm, in Pégomas, France. The weather is perfect for growing and picking roses: fresh and not too warm. Every single rose that goes into each bottle of No. 5 parfum is harvested by hand right there. A 30mL bottle of No. 5 parfum contains 1,000 jasmine flowers and 12 May roses - all from this same field. On average, it takes an hour and 20 minutes for a flower to go from being plucked in the field to being processed in the factory. Workers gently place the roses in the pockets of their aprons and transfer them into big burlap sacks; once these sacks are full, they’re loaded onto flatbed trailers and pulled by tractor back to the plant. Jean-Francois Vieille, a cousin of Joseph Mul’s, oversees operations at the prettily landscaped Sotraflor...
Words: 1696 - Pages: 7
...French designer, Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel, also known as Coco Chanel, has taken the world by STORM! From faux jewelry to The Little Black Dress, everyone knows Chanel! With a little more visible skin, Coco Chanel gives women a NEW and comfortable yet stylish look! Chanel came into the fashion world gradually but with a slow rise, she is at the top. Corsets are out, but Trousers are IN. Chanel has made quite a few upgrades in the fashion world and trousers are one. Women may now dress in a comfortable yet stylish manner. Aside from trousers, Chanel introduced women to faux jewelry to use to accessorize simple outfits. Although it was Paul Poiret who introduced faux jewelry to the fashion world, when Coco Chanel came out with them, the trend...
Words: 380 - Pages: 2
...California, an individual's appearance is crucial because it is used to make a first impression. A person is judged by what they wear and how they look. For example, it is probable that many people would perceive a person wearing ratty clothes as uneducated and irresponsible while a person looking pristine in a designer ensemble is assumed to be intelligent and successful. In every city, there are multiple fashion brands with different styles and ranges of apparel and accessories. Every season, new styles and designs are created which influence society. It appears as if more types of clothing exist than the actual number of people. With so many different alternatives of fashion, the fashion industry is trying to please too many customers with variety. There are currently various styles to choose from, and the clothes people wear categorize or label them long before they realize it. The three fashion brands that will be analyzed extensively are Chanel, Nike, and Hot Topic. These brands have apparel but are completely different in their target audience. Chanel is a prestigious high-fashion brand; Nike is a popular athletic line; Hot Topic is musically and artistically edgier with a smaller target audience between the three. With these apparel brands, a person wearing each would be labeled or even stereotyped. One wearing a Chanel’s 2012 Spring/Summer ready-to-wear designer outfit with a white jacket, lambskin dress with pearls, and a glass pearl belt would be labeled as rich, successful...
Words: 10625 - Pages: 43
...Gabrielle Chanel was born in the French town of Saumur on the 19th of August 1883. She was one of 5 children and when her mother died; her father couldn’t manage on his own so the girls went to an orphanage and the boys to work on a farm. Gabrielle stayed at the orphanage and visited grandparents on holidays until 1900 when she moved in with them. She went to a local convent school with her aunt Adrienne who was almost the same age as Gabrielle, she remained a valued friend. Gabrielle and Adrienne learned to sew at the convent so were able to get jobs as dress makers when they had finished school. Gabrielle’s earliest ambition was to be on stage and during her time off from work she was a regular cafe and bar singer, through this she gained the nick name Coco from singing her own version of a song called ‘Qui qu’a vu coco?’. Through this circuit Chanel met Etienne Baslan, a wealthy military officer; she became his mistress and went to live with him when she was aged 25. Chanel’s appearance was always very modest and neat, very different to that of Baslan’s rich friends who were always very made up with lace and frills. Baslan owned alot of horses and was into horse racing, Chanel learnt to ride whilst living with him, women traditionally wore side saddle skirts yet Chanel could be found in the same masculine clothes as the stable hands, first showing her rebellion in fashion which eventually translated in her collections. One of Chanels passions was trimming her own shop bought...
Words: 1058 - Pages: 5
...Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel By Cynthia On August 19th 1883, a beautiful girl was born in Auvergne. She is a trendsetter in 1900s, and she set up the CHANEL which is a very famous brand in the world. Her name is Gabrielle Bonheur Chanel. When she was 6 years old, her mother passed away, and her father left her alone, so she grew up with her aunt. She studied in Convent School in her childhood, and she learned needlework skills from there as well. In 1905, she became a Cafe singer named “Coco”, and sing for a living in different KTV or coffee houses. Dering this time, she made friend with two kinds of people, and became their bosom friend, one is rich officer, the other is English industrialist. In 1910, Coco had the first millinery shop in Paris. Because of her extraordinary needlework skills and her friends introduced many celebrities for her guests, just in one year, her business was rising. Then Coco moved her store to Rue Cambon, it is more fashionable than before, and this area still is the head office of Chanel so far. But only make hats were not content her ambitious for fashion, so she moved to higher level—Haute Couture. And in 1914, she opened two clothes stores, this is the brand was born which is influence deeply in the world. In 1920s, Chanel designed a lot of innovative style, such as tricot sailor dress, little black dress. Furthermore, she was also got new ideas from men’s clothing. Because of the women’ clothing were too gorgeous, so she put some men...
Words: 558 - Pages: 3
...In 1909, Gabrielle Chanel opened a shop on the ground floor of Étienne Balsan's apartment in Paris—the beginnings of what would later become one of the greatest fashion empires in the world.[2] The Balsan home was a meeting place of the hunting elite of France and the gentlemen brought their fashionable mistresses along, giving Coco the opportunity to sell the women decorated hats. During this time, Coco Chanel struck up a good relationship with Arthur 'Boy' Capel, a member of the Balsan men's group. He saw a businesswoman in Coco and helped her acquire her location at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris by 1910.[2] There was already a couture shop in the building, and so Coco was not allowed in her lease to produce couture dresses.[2] In 1912, Coco Chanel opened her first millinery shop in Paris and in 1913, Chanel introduced women's sportswear at her new boutique in Deauville and Biarritz, France. Chanel's designs tended to be simple rather than opulent in look. She detested the fashions of women who came to these resort towns.[2][5] World War I affected fashion. Coal was scarce and women were doing the factory jobs that men had held prior to the war; they needed warm clothing that would stand up to working conditions. Chanel fossella's designs from this era were affected by the new idea of women's sports. During World War I, Coco opened another larger shop on Rue Cambon in front of the Hôtel Ritz Paris.[2] Here she sold flannel blazers, straight linen skirts, sailor tops, long jersey sweaters...
Words: 525 - Pages: 3
...Celebrity endorsements 8 Fashion show 8 Movie 8 Competitor Analysis 9 Gucci 9 Louis Vuitton 10 Hermès 10 Recommendation 13 Conclusion 14 References 15 Introduction According to Somma, M (2010), “Chanel is a brand known by everyone, wanted to by nearly all, and also tried and practiced by very few,” making it an appreciated asset. Double "C" logo has become the pride of the global fashion industry, is stand for the brand a woman on this world most like to have. Chanel is famous brands over 90 years’ experience, Chanel has a constantly elegant, artless, well-dressed style, she is expert in breaking through the traditional as initial as twentieth Century 40's to efficaciously "tied up" the ladies into the artless, relaxed, which is maybe the first modern casual ensemble. After Chanel's death, the succession in 1983 by the design genius of Karl Lagerfeld, he has freedom, arbitrary and easily design mentality, and he always unbelievable feeling of the unity of two opposites in the design of works of art, both creative and noble, both French romance, humour, another German severe, fine. He did not change the shape of lines and favourite colour, but from his project from beginning to end all can work out "Chanel" pure style (Chanel 2013). According to Forbes, Chanel is a privately held company held by Alain and Gerard Wertheimer, grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer, who was an initial business mate of Coco Chanel. Meanwhile, Chanel brand value is $7 billion...
Words: 2881 - Pages: 12
...Gabrielle Bonheur "Coco" Chanel (19 August 1883 – 10 January 1971)[1] was an influential French fashion designer, founder of the famous brand Chanel, whose modernist thought, practical design, and pursuit of expensive simplicity made her an important and influential figure in 20th-century fashion. She was the only fashion designer to be named on Time 100: The Most Important People of the Century.[2] Legacy as design revolutionary As early as 1915, Harper's Bazaar raved over Chanel’s designs: “The woman who hasn’t at least one Chanel is hopelessly out of fashion…This season the name Chanel is on the lips of every buyer.” [62] Chanel’s ascendancy as a fashion avatar was the official deathblow to the corseted female silhouette. The frills, fuss, and constraints endured by earlier generations of women were now passé. Her genius redefined the fashionable woman for the post WW I era. The Chanel trademark was a look of youthful ease, a liberated physicality, and unencumbered sportive confidence. The horse culture and penchant for hunting so passionately pursued by the elites, especially the British, fired Chanel’s imagination. Her own enthusiastic indulgence in the sporting life led to clothing designs informed by those activities. From her excursions on water with the yachting world, she appropriated the clothing associated with nautical pursuits: the horizontal striped shirt, bell bottom pants, crewneck sweaters, and espadrille shoes—all traditionally worn by sailors and fishermen...
Words: 722 - Pages: 3
...Establishment and recognition: 1909 through 1920s In 1909, Gabrielle Chanel opened a shop on the ground floor of Étienne Balsan's apartment in Paris—the beginnings of what would later become one of the greatest fashion empires in the world.[1] The Balsan home was a meeting place of the hunting elite of France and the gentlemen brought their fashionable mistresses along, giving Coco the opportunity to sell the women decorated hats. During this time, Coco Chanel struck up a relationship with Arthur 'Boy' Capel, a member of the Balsan men's group. He saw a businesswoman in Coco and helped her acquire her location at 31 Rue Cambon in Paris by 1910.[1] There was already a couture shop in the building, and so Coco was not allowed in her lease to produce couture dresses.[1] In 1912, Coco Chanel opened her first millinery shop in Paris and in 1913, Chanel introduced women's sportswear at her new boutique in Deauville and Biarritz, France. Chanel's designs tended to be simple rather than opulent in look. She detested the fashions of women who came to these resort towns.[1][3] World War I affected fashion. Coal was scarce and women were doing the factory jobs that men had held prior to the war; they needed warm clothing that would stand up to working conditions. Chanel fossella's designs from this era were affected by the new idea of women's sports. During World War I, Coco opened another larger shop on Rue Cambon in front of the Hôtel Ritz Paris.[1] Here she sold flannel blazers, straight...
Words: 1234 - Pages: 5