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Last Updated Apr 21, 2026, 10:00am EDT

Chanel is a privately held company owned by Alain and Gerard Wertheimer, grandsons of Pierre Wertheimer, who was an early business partner of Coco Chanel. Its products cover clothes, fragrances, handbags and watches. The brand is most famous for its “little black dress”, the Chanel No. 5 perfume and the Chanel Suit. Karl Lagerfeld joined Chanel as its creative director in 1983 and continued in the role until his death in February. China is the second biggest market, after the U.S., for Chanel's beauty business. The U.S., China and France represent one-third of Chanel's sales.

Chanel Stats

Industry
Packaged Goods
Founded
1910
Headquarters
London
Country/Territory
United Kingdom
CEO
Leena Nair
Employees
32,000

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