Chanel creative head Virginie Viard quits luxury brand

Chanel's artistic director Virgine Viard is leaving the brand. The luxury brand made the announcement on Thursday sparking speculation on who will replace her in one of the fashion's most coveted post. 

"A new chapter is opening for Chanel Mode," Chanel said in a statement, confirming the change, which was first reported on fashion news website Business of Fashion.

The privately-owned label, known for tweed jackets, quilted handbags with double-C logos and the iconic No. 5 perfume, did not name a successor as it thanked Viard for her "rich collaboration of five years".

Viard, 62, worked at Chanel for nearly thirty years, alongside Karl Lagerfeld. Viard took over Lagerfeld's post after his death in 2019. 

She favoured relaxed silhouettes with an Eighties flare and took a low-key approach compared to her predecessor, sending models along the Seine River and down a street in Manchester for recent fashion shows, for example -- marking a contrast with the showmanship of Lagerfeld, who built towering sets including a rocketship and indoor waterfall for his catwalk presentations.

In the statement, the brand also stated that Chanel teams will ensure the "continuity" of collections in the interim period. The brand will also host its fall-winter haute couture show 2024/2025 on June 25 in Paris.

Rumours of a new designer at Chanel have swirled for years, most recently including talk of industry heavyweights like former Gucci designer Alessandro Michele, who has since been recruited to Valentino.

Chanel Chief Executive Leena Nair last month brushed off talk of a designer change, noting that Viard had overseen strong growth in ready-to-wear fashion sales, which have surged two-and-a-half-times since 2018.

The world's second-largest label after LVMH's Louis Vuitton, Chanel is owned by French billionaire brothers Alain Wertheimer and Gerard Wertheimer.

(With agency inputs)