A Future So Bright: Chanel’s President of Fashion Talks Eyewear, Ecomm and The Evolution of The Brand

Bruno Pavlovsky, the president of fashion at Chanel, speaks exclusively with Harper’s Bazaar Arabia about its evolving online strategy, its approach to the vintage space and the house’s focus on fabric innovation

Chanel recently had a runway show in Dubai so it’s clear that the city is a real centre of interest for the house, correct?

For us, it’s very important to have a strong foothold. The Chanel boutiques in Dubai are the ones where there are the most nationalities and languages spoken out of all the Chanel stores worldwide. There are over 50 different nationalities represented, which is impressive! There are not many other places in the world where we have that level of cosmopolitanism – a metropolis with that mix of cultures, and nationalities – and with mutual respect, where everyone cohabits and anything can happen.

We hear you will soon launch your e-commerce eyewear platform in the region. Chanel generally treads carefully when it comes to selling online. So what’s the thinking behind this move?

We have been present for a long time with perfume and beauty online. It corresponds with our strategy today to be more present in established forms of distribution through both stores and e-commerce, and I think that eyewear is a good balance of both. Meaning that when it comes to eyewear, even though they belong to the accessories category, we see them being sold by other retailers, so it makes sense for us to use what we learned from perfume and beauty and make this category more accessible. Because in our stores, the visibility will remain limited and I think that e-commerce will complement our in-store offering nicely. But in terms of e commerce development, it will stop there. We are not going to go into selling bags, or ready-to-wear, online because our boutiques are fantastic and people need to experience them!

Other luxury brands are starting to bring their vintage pieces in-house they can control the second-hand market. You are saying that you will never sell ready-towear online, but what about vintage – will Chanel explore that arena?

We aren’t going to sell on Farfetch, or Vestiaire Collective. But we can’t stop people from asking, [an individual] if they can buy her bag directly, that’s part of the game. If someone wants to sell their bag on Vestiaire Collective – I don’t mind. It’s a structure that is different from what we do in our boutiques. In our stores, our job is to present people with the latest collection and create an emotional link with the brand and speak with them about the story behind ready-to wear and accessories. This isn’t always the case with these other marketplaces where people are super focused on buying one single product, and a product that is already in not as good a condition.

We compare maroquinerie with watches and jewellery, but it isn’t the same thing at all. Jewellery is forever, it can be passed down to your kids and grandkids. A watch – same thing. A bag – if you actually use it, even if you are super careful with it, it will get worn down. The lifespan is different. And our job is to consult our clients, to ensure that a bag has the longest lifespan. This is why we’ve developed the Chanel et Moi service in our boutiques to maintain the bag.

But we aren’t trying to make money on products that have already been used. That’s a different approach and a different mentality. We are here to accompany our clients with the maintenance of their products, and its evolution. And by the way, we think about what the next steps are in regard to this as well, because it’s important to be present with our clients. It’s not about making money from products that have already been used – those are two things that are completely different. And we already have so much to do as a brand with our collections for one part and the services we are trying to develop. For instance, Chanel et Moi is a huge priority and it’s there that we prefer to put our energy.

Chanel is always looking to evolve, but it’s also one of the most famous brands in the world. Is there anything left to prove?

Always. It’s the engine of creativity – doing the unexpected. It’s not about changing the codes or heritage of the house, what’s important is being able to always modernise the heritage and keep pushing it forward by keeping it connected with what we are planning for the future. Chanel is a surprise but also a comfort – a surprise because each collection brings something new, and introduces a new way of wearing the products, but also a comfort because there are codes and those codes are strong.

On a more personal note, what are you currently fascinated by, or what do you find always fascinating?

There are two things that are fundamental but that also amuse me. One is to always be with Virginie [Viard, Chanel’s creative director]. Meaning it’s a team effort for better or worse. It’s important when we are working on projects months into the future, we need to have that closeness. It’s super exciting. We tell each other stories that make us laugh. We have a ball.

And the other thing?

I’m very conscious about what is happening to our planet. And I’m convinced that we can give a second life to the materials we use. For instance, what we wear, we can recycle and create new fabrics with the things we already own and these fabrics can be used either by Chanel or other brands. Chanel has existed for 50 years and we know that today the challenge is how to use these materials without destroying the planet. For example, we work with cotton we get from Senegal. We are able to trace it all the way back, right to the producer of the cotton. We are able to know how they produce the cotton, to know if the families that work in the fields can make a living off of their work. This is very important. We are going to keep using virgin and raw materials, but I’m sure they will start to be mixed with recycled materials in the future and the new materials of tomorrow.

From Harper’s Bazaar Arabia’s May April 2023 issue.