There is something quite radical about choosing a flower that has no scent. In a world where perfume was power and femininity was announced before a woman even entered the room, Gabrielle Chanel chose the camellia – odourless, immaculate, and impossible to ignore. It was a choice that told you everything about how she understood beauty: precise, purposeful, and entirely on her own terms.

CHANEL presented its Cruise 2026/27 collection in Biarritz and the choice of location is anything but coincidental. The storied coastal town was where Gabrielle Chanel opened her first couture house in 1915. CHANEL’s decision to return to the town foundational to its identity, sends a clear message: that the future of the house will continue to be written in dialogue with its origins. And that dialogue is now in the hands of Matthieu Blazy. Seaside references, couture details and fluid freedom define the collection and carry the spirit of Biarritz.

You’ve seen it on mood boards and in magazine editorials, distilled into a clean sans-serif caption: dress for yourself, not for others. It sounds simple. It sounds like something a confident woman in a perfectly cut jacket would say while effortlessly hailing a cab. It sounds, in other words, like an advertisement. But spend any time with what Gabrielle Chanel actually did – not what she said, but what she built, and why – and the idea starts to feel less like a slogan and more like a genuine provocation.

A guide to layering and wearing multiple CHANEL scents together, inspired by how the house designs fragrance families.

Gabrielle Chanel introduced the little black dress in 1926 through a simple crepe de chine design published in VOGUE. Her black dress removed excess fabric, heavy corsetry, and rigid structure. Editors described the garment as “Chanel’s Ford,” comparing its accessibility to the Model T automobile. Journalists framed the piece as practical, adaptable, and modern.