Virginie Viard is working at the house, with five of those in her current position as artistic director. She'd been her predecessor 's right hand for the decades prior. The news of Viard's departure, especially after last month's news that its sales were up 16% to $20 billion last year, was a surprise — but the broader story of a yet another woman leaving a storied house is not.
The big question in currently is why women designers can't seem to get ahead. Currently, creative director roles at fashion's biggest brands are occupied by men (the majority white), with the exception of . It feels a little like an 'old boys' network when you consider how many of them have worked with each other in the past, too despite appointments at Chloé ( ) and Calvin Klein (Veronica Leoni) disrupting the all too predictable male roll call.
And, in a landscape where , it's seems women designers are the most critiqued. Less than 12 hours after the news broke that Viard was leaving Chanel, Instagram became littered with phrases that, even if intended to be about her work, moved into a more personal space. 'We won,' wrote one fashion professional I follow on Instagram, another shared cheering emojis and countless others got involved.
You have to wonder, who would want to put themselves up to such scrutiny? While Viard (who is famously press shy) might not have a public Instagram, it's expected such criticism reverberates down the Chanel corridors and lands on her desk. Remember when the Interne.
