San Francisco Frontiers - Chanel: unpicking one year of 'Blazymania'

Some of Blazy's designs have proved so popular they have sparked a neologism -- "Blazymania" -- which has come to mean the frenzied buying in stores off items that often cost thousands of dollars.

When his first collection -- Spring-Summer 2026 -- arrived in stores in March this year, videos of buyers streaming into Chanel shops went viral on social media.

And while the luxury sector as a whole is going through a tough spell, sales at the company increased 16 percent in the first half of this year compared with 2025, according to confidential sales data reported in August from financial news agency Bloomberg.

"When he arrived, I was unsettled, a little shocked, and frankly sceptical. But there's no denying that he offers more designs, more novelty," Rita, a Lebanese businesswoman who declined to give her surname, told AFP while browsing in a Chanel shop in Paris.

"It's no longer about buying the same bag or the same slingbacks every year in a different colour, but about buying new objects," she added, holding a "31" bag in which she hoped to fit her laptop.

Alix Morabito, director of buying at luxury Paris department store Galeries Lafayette, has also gauged the extent of "Blazymania": every new delivery is eagerly awaited and it can sometimes be difficult for shoppers to get hold of pieces because the waiting lists are so long.

"There's a new balance to find between desirability, scarcity and generosity," she told AFP.

Blazy's Spring-Summer 2027 collection will be unveiled on Monday in Paris at 8 pm (1800 GMT).

- 'Joy' -

Eric Briones, director of the Paris School of Luxury, told AFP that only the fourth designer in Chanel's history had "brought joy" to the brand.

"Before, it wasn't exactly all smiles. Now there is joy everywhere, even in sales at a pop-up store in Shanghai" despite weak sales in China, he explained.

Appointed in 2025 to succeed Virginie Viard, Karl Lagerfeld's discreet successor, Blazy landed one of the biggest jobs in fashion aged just 40.

Said to have impressed with his in-depth presentations during the recruitment process, he embodies "a new generation with sincere humility", Chanel fashion president Bruno Pavlovsky said of him at the time.

That was seen as good a fit for Chanel's discreet family owners, Alain and Gerard Wertheimer.

Blazy began his career at Maison Margiela in 2011, before moving to Celine and then Calvin Klein in New York, where he worked under Belgian designer Raf Simons until they were both sacked in 2018.

Named as Bottega Veneta's creative director in 2021, he helped reinvent the Italian leather goods brand, earning him the nickname the "magician of Milan".

- New items -

So what is Chanel's magic formula now?

"He has broken down the brand's codes, projecting them into a new era," Pierre Groppo, fashion and lifestyle editor-in-chief at Vanity Fair, told AFP.

The emblems of the house founded by Coco Chanel in 1910 remain visual cornerstones: tweed, often woven in highly modern iridescent and metallic tones; the camellia; pearls; the double C; black and white; and the silhouette of the 1920s dress falling below the knee.

At the same time, everyday accessories and clothing have been introduced, along with denim, humour and pop references.

Groppo highlighted the enthusiasm among a new male audience for Chanel ready-to-wear, including "loafers, trainers, blazers and bags".

The house has also taken on male ambassadors this year, including actor Pedro Pascal, but still has no officially designated men's line.

Just "pieces that suit everyone", Blazy says.

J.Martinez--SFF