Chloé (French pronunciation: [kl?e]) is a French luxury fashion house founded in 1952 by Gaby Aghion. Aghion later joined forces with Jacques Lenoir in 1953, formally managing the business side of the brand, allowing Aghion to purely pursue the creative growth of Chloé. Its headquarters are located in Paris, France. The house is owned by luxury brands holding company Richemont Group. Chloé has been worn by many celebrities, including Marion Cotillard, Sienna Miller, Madonna, January Jones, Maggie Gyllenhaal, Cameron Diaz, Emma Stone, Clémence Poésy and Katie Holmes.
Video Chloé
History
Gaby Aghion was born in 1921 in Alexandria, Egypt. After moving to Paris, France in 1945, she founded Chloé in 1952 with a vision of offering luxury prêt-à-porter (Ready-To-Wear), a new concept at that time. Gaby Aghion continued to run the house until 1985, when Chloé was bought by Alfred Dunhill Ltd. (now part of Richemont).
Prior to Chloé's launch, luxury fashion houses had only ever produced Haute Couture (i.e. made-to-measure) clothing. For the few who could afford it, this was fine; everyone else was left with poorly made copies, supplied by local seamstresses.
Aghion, rejecting the stiff formality of 1950s fashion (and sensing a gap in the market), decided to create a line of off the rack, high quality, soft, body conscious clothes from fine fabrics, which she called 'luxury prêt-à-porter' and thus, the Prêt-à-Porter (Ready-To-Wear) market we know today, was born.
The couturiers quickly followed suit (the first being Givenchy, with their 1956 Ready-to-Wear collection; 'Givenchy University') and today, designer ready-to-wear heavily outweighs couture.
Maps Chloé
Collections
Chloé's collections are diversified into 5 major sections.
See by Chloé
See is a younger line of the Chloé luxury brand. This line manufactures ready-to-wear, handbags, and accessories since 2001. This line of apparel is intended to target the younger generation and is more affordable for those who are starting to become more sophisticated in their styles.
Locations
Chloé's headquarters are located at Avenue Percier, 8th arrondissement of Paris. The regional offices are in New York, Tokyo, Shanghai, Hong Kong and Dubai.
Like all fashion houses, Chloé is facing counterfeited products and maintain a list of authorized online retailers on its website.
Chloé has boutiques in Bal Harbour, Costa Mesa, Las Vegas, New York City, Beijing (2), Sydney, Shanghai (2), Shenzen, Hong Kong (2), Singapore, Kaohsiung, Taipei (3), Bangkok, Bandung, Paris, Munich, Porto Cervo, Moscow (2), Marbella, Istanbul, London, Tokyo (2), Nagoya, Salmiya, Beirut, Doha, Seoul, Dubai (2) and Kuwait.
Internet
In September 2007 Chloé was the first luxury brand to offer an iPhone-specific version of its website. In 2008, the brand broadcast its fashion shows on the same-day they took place.
Timeline
- 1952. Chloé is founded by Gaby Aghion, a Parisian of Egyptian-Jewish origin. She and her partner, Jacques Lenoir, were among the first to become aware of the raising demand for collections that could merge the strict requirements of haute couture and those of ready-to-wear.
- 1956. The first collection is introduced at Le Café de Flore, one of their favorite cafes and the meeting place of artists in Paris.The collection was designed by Gaby Aghion and made by a first assistant at Lelong. Gaby Aghion and Jacques Lenoir start hiring young talented designers, who would eventually make a name of their own : Christiana Bailly, Michèle Rosier, Maxime de la Falaise, Graziella Fontana, Tan Giudicelli, Guy Paulin, Carlos Rodriguez.
- 1966. Karl Lagerfeld is the main designer and Chloé becomes one of the symbolic brands of the 1970s. Among its customers : Jackie Kennedy, Brigitte Bardot, Maria Callas and Grace Kelly.
- 1971. The first Chloé boutique opens at the 3 rue Gribeauval in Paris.
- 1985. The company is acquired by the Richemont group.
- 1980s. Chloé keeps working with promising and eventually famous artistic directors : Martine Sitbon in 1988, Karl Lagerfeld in 1992.
- 1997. Stella McCartney brings in a new direction, feminine, romantic and impertinent.
- 2001. Phoebe Philo adds a personal and sensual touch. Kirsten Dunst, Natalie Portman, and Lou Doillon become customers.
- 2002. Chloé launches a line of bags, small leather goods and shoes. The Paddington bag will become the first of the 'it-bags'.
- 2006. Paulo Melim Andersson brings in a staggered and modern style.
- 2008. After a close collaboration with the brand for the launch of the fragrance, Hannah MacGibbon is named artistic director.
- 2009. MacGibbon introduces her first collection in March at the Spring-Summer 2009 runway. She cited the fashion illustrations of Antonio Lopez as an inspiration. American actress, former model and fashion designer Chloë Sevigny becomes a spokesperson for the company.
- 2010. Geoffroy de la Bourdonnaye becomes CEO and chairman Ralph Toledano
- 2011. MacGibbon is replaced by former Pringle of Scotland Designer Clare Waight Keller.
- 2012. Chloé starts sponsorship of the annual Prix Chloé at the Festival de Mode de Hyères
- 2017. Clare Waight Keller is replaced by Natacha Ramsay-Levi as new ready to wear, bags and accessories designer.
References
External links
- Chloé's official site
- Chloé - brand and company profile at Fashion Model Directory
- Interview with Gaby Aghion
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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