Chloé Definition | Apparel Search

Chloé is a luxury fashion design house headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1956, the house produces women's prêt-à-porter, haute couture, accessories, and fragrances.

Chloé is a luxury fashion design house headquartered in Paris, France. Founded in 1956, the house produces women's Pret-a-porter, haute couture, accessories, and fragrances.

History

Chloé has employed several of contemporary fashion's most influential designers in the past 40 years. Karl Lagerfeld, who currently serves as creative director for Fendi and Chanel, served two stints as top designer for the house. From 1971 to 1983, Lagerfeld forged a sexy, feminine image for Chloéthat perseveres today. His 1972 Deco collection won him wide acclaim and elevated the house, as well as the designer, to international fame. He departed for Chanel in 1983 but returned in 1993 to replace outgoing designer Martine Sitbon, who brought a more modern look to Chloé during her tenure.

In 1997, young British designer Stella McCartney took the helm of the fashion house, succeeding Lagerfeld in one of the industry's highest-profile positions. Having graduated from London's Central Saint Martins College of Art and Design only two years earlier, McCartney's eponymous collection was already popular among London's fashion scene. This did not silence critics who maintained that McCartney received the position only because of her celebrity parents, ex-Beatle Paul and Linda McCartney, and that the appointment was simply a publicity stunt on the part of Chloé's owners, the Vendme.

McCartney's first collection for Chloé, shown in Paris in October 1997, put to rest any criticism of her abilities as creative director. The collection included signature pieces such as lace camisoles and petticoat skirts that recalled the feminine image submitted by her predecessor. Her ready-to-wear designs elevated Chloé's profile to new heights in the late 1990s. McCartney, an avid animal-rights activist, refused to work with fur and leather during her tenure at the house.

McCartney announced her departure from Chloé in early 2001, naming 27-year-old Phoebe Philo as her successor. The move left most in the fashion industry baffled, as Philo was a relative unknown. She had attended Central St. Martins a year behind McCartney and worked under her for only four years, but did not have the credentials typical of designers at any other major house. Again, critics were silenced after the young designer's first collection. Planted firmly at the intersection of casual street chic and whimsical femininity, Philo's designs forged an image that the company calls "luxurious, romantic and quinessentially French." Philo also created several "it" bags during her time at Chloé exclusive fashion accessories that are in such high demand that having one denotes the carrier's elevated social status. One of such was her Paddington bag, which became a smash hit in 2004 and spawned a slew of knockoffs.

On January 6, 2006, Philo stepped down as creative director for the fashion house in order to spend more time with her young daughter.

Chloe women's fashion

A House Defined by Its Designers

Chloé's history reads as a succession of strong creative voices rather than a single fixed style. A Paris luxury house producing women's prêt-à-porter, haute couture, accessories and fragrances has to renew itself each season, and Chloé did so by handing the studio to designers with distinct points of view. Karl Lagerfeld's long first tenure gave the house a sexy, feminine image that outlasted his departure. Martine Sitbon then brought a more modern look, before Lagerfeld returned. That pattern — femininity reinterpreted, never abandoned — became the thread connecting very different collections, and it explains why each new appointment at Chloé attracted such close attention from press and buyers alike.

Youth, Celebrity and Proving a Point

Twice in a row, Chloé appointed young British designers whose credentials were questioned before their first shows and vindicated by them. Stella McCartney arrived in 1997 only two years after graduating from Central Saint Martins, already known on the London scene, and answered doubts about her appointment with a Paris collection built on lace camisoles and petticoat skirts. Phoebe Philo, who had studied a year behind McCartney and worked under her for four years, faced the same scepticism in 2001 as a relative unknown without the typical credentials of a major-house designer — and again, the first collection silenced the critics. The episodes show how a heritage house can use youthful appointments to raise its profile sharply.

Accessories and the Idea of the Coveted Bag

Philo's tenure also underlined the commercial power of accessories within a luxury house. Her Paddington bag, a hit in 2004 that prompted many imitations, demonstrated how a single handbag design can carry a house's name far beyond its clothing customers, turning an accessory into a marker recognised on sight. For a house whose range already spanned ready-to-wear, couture, accessories and fragrance, that kind of success ties the categories together: the bag advertises the clothes, the clothes sustain the bag's prestige, and both reinforce the romantic, French identity Chloé claims for itself.

Common Questions

Who were Chloé's best-known creative directors?

Karl Lagerfeld served two stints as top designer, from 1971 to 1983 and again from 1993. Stella McCartney took the helm in 1997, and Phoebe Philo succeeded her in early 2001. Each director reshaped the house while keeping a feminine image at its centre.

What was Phoebe Philo known for at Chloé?

Phoebe Philo created several highly sought-after accessories during her time at Chloé, most famously the Paddington bag, which became a major success in 2004. Her designs combined casual street chic with whimsical femininity, an image described as luxurious, romantic and quintessentially French.

What did Stella McCartney refuse to use at Chloé?

Stella McCartney, an avid animal-rights activist, refused to work with fur and leather during her tenure at the house. Her first collection, shown in Paris in October 1997, featured signature pieces such as lace camisoles and petticoat skirts that recalled a feminine house image.

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