Chanel’s New Artistic Director is Matthieu Blazy

Lagerfeld was 50 when he was tapped to run what was then a faded name in haute couture, and by the time he died at 85 Chanel was the second largest fashion company in luxury, with revenues in the billions. Along the way, he arguably changed the fashion industry writ large. He was succeeded by his deputy Virginie Viard, who left the label this summer after five years at the helm.

“I am delighted to welcome Matthieu Blazy,” said Bruno Pavlovsky, president of Chanel Fashion and Chanel SAS, to whom Blazy will report. “I am convinced he will be able to play with the codes and heritage of the house, through an ongoing dialogue with the studio, our ateliers, and our maisons d’art.”

Blazy, 40, is coming off a celebrated run at Bottega, where he was appointed in November 2021 and drew strong celebrity interest, including the likes of Jacob Elordi and Julianne Moore. The Belgian-French designer previously worked at Raf Simons, Maison Margiela, Celine under Phoebe Philo and Calvin Klein under Simons. He graduated from the visual arts school La Cambre in Brussels.

“Matthieu Blazy is one of the most gifted designers of his generation,” said Alain Wertheimer, global executive chairman, and Leena Nair, global ceo of Chanel. “His vision and talent will reinforce the energy of the brand and our position as a leader in luxury.” Annual revenues at Chanel exceed $19 billion, WWD has reported.

Matthieu Blazy’s Spring 2025 show for Bottega Veneta.

It has been a newsy week for fashion. Hours before Chanel made its blockbuster announcement, Bottega named Louise Trotter as Blazy’s successor. And on Wednesday, John Galliano said he was leaving Margiela after a decade. There’s much speculation about his future.

The Chanel development caps a wild year at the highest levels of fashion, which has seen departures and arrivals at Valentino, Givenchy, Celine and Lanvin, whose new creative director, Peter Copping, will make his debut with a coed show in January, when the Paris men’s and haute couture shows are scheduled. With today’s announcement, Chanel put a stop to its own game of musical chairs. Pavlovsky sees the Blazy appointment as the beginning of a long relationship.

“We hope to be together for 10, 15 years or more,” he told WWD.

Erik Maza is the Executive Style Director at Town & Country, overseeing print, digital and social coverage of fashion, architecture/design and the intersection of money, power and scandal. Before T&C, he led W’s editorial voice across digital platforms, including the relaunch of the trademark “In & Out” List as a weekly newsletter. Earlier, he edited Women’s Wear Daily’s the Eye®, a news/features vertical covering culture and style. He was also WWD’s media columnist, reporting a daily column, Memo Pad, that consistently broke news about the media industry in a highly competitive beat. He began his career working as a reporter at the Miami New Times and later at the Baltimore Sun. He was born and raised in Cuba, and lives in New York City. He can be found on X and Instagram @erikmaza.