Models in Chanel for the Croisiere show in Marseille on May 2. The storied fashion house announced on June 5 that its artistic director Virginie Viard was leaving. NEW YORK – In yet another seismic shift in the fashion world, Chanel announced on June 5 that Virginie Viard, Karl Lagerfeld’s hand-picked successor, was leaving the fashion house after five years as its artistic director – years in which, though her collections received a critical drubbing and speculation was rife about her possible departure, sales exploded, reaching almost US$20 billion (S$26.
9 billion) in 2023. In a brief statement, Chanel, the second-largest luxury brand in the world, thanked Viard for almost 30 years of service, “during which she was able to renew the codes of the house while respecting the creative heritage of Chanel”. No new designer was announced.
Viard, 62, assumed the artistic director role at a precarious moment, following the death of Lagerfeld, who had led the brand for more than 35 years, in 2019. An unassuming presence who avoided the spotlight, Viard had worked side by side with Lagerfeld for decades and been his choice for a successor. He described her as both his left and right arm, and her appointment brought a sense of continuity to a house Lagerfeld had long dominated.
But despite annual revenues rising to US$19.7 billion under her tenure – a 16 per cent increase over the previous year – Viard seemed more like a caretaker designer for the storied house than a cha.
