How the business started?

Coco Chanel didn’t have much money but many of her friends were rich and successful. She borrowed money from a rich friend and started her first hat shop in Paris in 1910. Women were happy to buy her stylish hats and asked her to design clothes for them. In 1913, Coco borrowed money to open a second shop in the French seaside town of Deauville. Women from all over Europe were soon buying her clothes.

With the arrival of the First World War in 1914, women were doing various jobs and Coco designed clothes for them. In 1915, Coco opened another shop in Biarritz in the south of France. Rich people went there to escape from the worries of war and women were looking for beautiful clothes that allowed them to enjoy themselves. In the 1920s, Coco expanded her clothing business around the world. She also began dealing with jewellery and cosmetics.

Coco’s Chanel No. 5 became the most successful perfume of the past hundred years. While many people suffered from the stock market crash of 1929, Coco continued to design expensive products. In the mid 1930s, some of the workers in her factories stopped work and demanded better treatment. In 1939, with the start of the Second World War, Coco closed her factories. After the war, she moved to Switzerland. However, in 1953, she returned to the fashion business. By the late 1950s, she was back at the top. She designed clothing until her death in 1971 at the age of 87.