Paris Women’s Fashion Week 
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Beneath the legendary glass dome of the Grand Palais, transformed into a shimmering galaxy of stars and dreams, Franco-Belgian designer Matthieu Blazy wrote a new chapter in the story of Chanel. For his first collection as the house’s creative director, unveiled during Paris Fashion Week, Blazy delivered a show of striking contrasts — between heritage and daring, between the memory of Gabrielle Chanel and the pulsating rhythm of modernity.
A Dialogue Between Past and Present
Like a celestial body mastering the balance between light and shadow, Blazy reinvented Chanel’s founding codes — those talismans almost sacred in fashion’s collective imagination: tweed, the camellia, the pearl, and those masculine lines imbued with a disciplined femininity.
The result was a wardrobe that blends structure and freedom: cropped jackets paired with wide, low-waisted trousers; discreetly slit straight skirts; and fluid blouses teamed with voluminous feathered skirts — a true textile ode to the spirit of Coco Chanel, where timeless grace meets contemporary energy.
A Renewal Guided by a Young Vision
Before the show, Bruno Pavlovsky, President of Fashion at Chanel, confided:
“Blazy has continued to play with the house’s codes, but he has given them the freedom we needed.”
And indeed, he did just that. By deconstructing the classics, Blazy breathed new life into them: frayed tweed, bold colors dominated by red, and an electrifying soundtrack blending The Corrs, MC Solaar, and the nostalgic theme of Dawson’s Creek.
In the audience, emotion was palpable — even before Blazy appeared for his bow, the crowd rose to its feet, applauding the birth of what already felt like a turning point.
A Front Row Full of Stars
Under the spotlights, the front row gleamed like a constellation: Nicole Kidman, Chanel’s new muse, sat alongside Madonna, Penélope Cruz, and Pedro Pascal.
It was a tableau perfectly embodying Blazy’s vision — Chanel as a radiant star at the center of fashion’s vast galaxy, eternally luminous, eternally desired.
Since Virginie Viard’s departure in the summer of 2024, the question lingered: Where would Chanel go next?
Blazy’s answer, delivered with quiet confidence, is clear: forward — but with elegance.
From Brussels to Paris: The Journey of a Discreet Visionary
A graduate of La Cambre, Brussels’ renowned fashion school, and a long-time collaborator of Raf Simons, Blazy has shaped his aesthetic across Margiela, Céline, and Calvin Klein, before finding full creative maturity at Bottega Veneta.
There, he transformed leather into a poetic, sculptural, living material. His creative philosophy is both simple and profound: elegance is not imitated — it is rediscovered, collection after collection.
Chanel: Between Heritage and Challenge
In a fragile economic climate — with Chanel’s net profit down 28% in 2024 — Blazy’s appointment stands as a bet on the future.
As the luxury industry faces headwinds and transformation, Chanel continues to shine, guided by a creator who blends reverence for the past with a gaze fixed toward infinity.
With this first show, Matthieu Blazy has done more than present a collection — he has opened a new era, one that envisions Chanel as both faithful to its roots and open to the vast expanse of its own galaxy.